Impact Objectives • Explore how protection and control functions for people with mental health problems have developed in modern Japanese social work

• Analyse the operational process of the Psychiatric Custody Law and the Mental Hospital Law

Mental health policies explored

Dr Minori Utsunomiya is delving into the history of mental health policy in Japan to decipher the lasting impact these policies have had on the policies of today

Could you begin by protection provisions and there were no persons with mental health problems or introducing your legal provisions for physical or human rights mental illnesses, who are at constant risk current research protection. The Japanese Government at of human rights abuses, can be clarified goals? that time sought to modernise human rights through historical research. Its significance by enacting a special law for the “mentally involves clarifying the gap between the I am examining the ill” as the most vulnerable symbolic entity. subjective consciousness and the objective process of enacting However, because there were no facilities meaning that can be found from the the Psychiatric Custody Law based on the or financial resources for treatment, Japan’s inductive analysis of historical facts, thereby hypothesis that the current patterns of “family system” was used to create a new illuminating the essence of recurring treatment and perceptions of people who system in which the family protected the patterns. have mental illness can be found in the “mentally ill” and the police monitored the legal philosophy of the Psychiatric Custody family. The meaning of “protection” was not How will your work protect the rights of Law, which was enacted while Japan was the direct protection of the “mentally ill”, people with mental health problems? aiming for modernisation. The purpose of but the indirect protection as continuous this research is to analyse the operational monitoring of their family by a strong police The results of this study indicate that the process of the Psychiatric Custody Law and power. Therefore, the “mentally ill” were duality of cognition for people with mental the Mental Hospital Law in order to better under double control, but the protective health problems continues to exist in law understand how the ambiguity regarding effect was extremely weak. and in people’s consciousness. Additionally, control functions and protection has it indicates that this cognition leans toward influenced modern Japanese mental health Can you talk about the historical research social defence theory whenever a social social work. method you are using? event involving a person who has a mental illness or mental health problem occurs. What does the Psychiatric Custody Law The historical research method I have This is a study which advocates for the cover? adopted in this work clarifies the protection of the rights of people with characteristics and essence of the era mental health problems because the results The Psychiatric Custody Law, which was through the collection, organisation of this research will serve as the foundation established in 1900, is the first nationally and analysis of historical materials. The necessary for understanding the problems unified law in Japan related to people with reason for this is that the structure of surrounding the current situation. l a mental illness. This law established the legal discrimination and exclusion against assignment of a custody officer to all the “mentally ill”. A custody officer was almost always a family member. When a family member assumed the role of custody officer, it was necessary to apply for permission for custody from the local police chief. Penalties were imposed to the custody officer for not complying with this procedure. The reason behind this was that in order for Japan to modernise and have equal relations with the Western powers, Japan needed a law to protect the human rights of people as individuals. However, for those who were the most vulnerable to human rights, the Medical records from around 1930, found stored in a public mental hospital Civil Code at that time had only property

48 www.impact.pub The past improves the present

Research underway at Aichi Prefectural University explores the history of mental health laws in Japan to secure a brighter future for people who experience challenges to their mental health

In Japan, early traditional mental health The Psychiatric Hospital Law of 1919 work, Utsunomiya focused on the first policies did not protect the rights of is also being explored in this study. public psychiatric hospital in Japan and patients with mental illnesses. Most people ‘This law stipulated that public mental looked at official documents related to the with mental health problems tended to hospitals be built in each prefecture, but hospital’s establishment, including annual be confined at home or ignored, while financial difficulties made this impossible,’ reports, newspapers and news articles. only the very few individuals who had the Utsunomiya explains. ‘The Mental Health ‘Thirdly, I performed an analysis of the

I performed an analysis of the causal relationship between the revision of laws related to mental illness and social incidents financial means were treated at what were Act of 1950, which sought to ensure causal relationship between the revision then termed the “mental hospital”. At that people with mental illness and mental of laws related to mental illness and social time, public safety was prioritised over health problems received medical care and incidents,’ confirms Utsunomiya. To do human rights, although the Mental Health protection, abolished private confinement.’ this, she looked at relevant newspapers and Act of 1950 abolished home confinement articles regarding mental illness from 1879 and promoted in-patient treatment and Utsunomiya is investigating the three laws to 2006. during the 1990s community-based support from two perspectives. The first is pre-World was promoted. Although the previous War II to post-war continuity/discontinuity, Utsunomiya’s investigations have revealed environment has been improved, these early and the second is the structure of a tendency towards public safety over the perceptions of people with mental illness acceptance and exclusion for people who protection of the rights of people with have inevitably had some bearing on current have mental illnesses. mental illness, and she found that this mental health policies and approaches in pattern began in the past and continues into Japan. EXAMINING THE ARCHIVES the modern day. ‘The crucial problem, which The research encompassed three key is unique to people with mental illness, lies Dr Minori Utsunomiya, from Aichi tasks. First, an exploration of the process in the dual nature of the need for involuntary Prefectural University, is delving into of the revision and abolition of laws and treatment/ hospitalisation and behavioural Japan’s complex history of mental health deliberation with respect to bills related restrictions and the risk of human rights and psychiatric care, with a focus on how to mental illness was undertaken. For this abuses,’ she concludes. l the mental health policies of the past have part of the research, Utsunomiya looked at influenced present policies. She believes official documents regarding laws related that past policies are the root of many to mental illness, including records of Project Insights challenges that people with mental illness deliberation processes and administrative and mental health problems face today. materials. Second, she sought to shed FUNDING light on the roles and functions of public JSPS, KAKENHI Grant numbers UNRAVELLING KEY LAWS psychiatric hospitals. For this part of the 22530657, 24530749, 15K03931 and 19K02238 In particular, Utsunomiya is analysing the Psychiatric Custody Law of 1900, which SUPERVISOR sanctioned the home confinement of Professor Emeritus Dr Kimiko Murakami, individuals under police supervision and Okayama Prefectural University monitoring by family members and in so doing sought to remove the “mentally ill CONTACT patient” from the community. ‘The idea of Professor Minori Utsunomiya the law was “protection”, and the method T: +81 561 76 8702 of protection utilised the family system. E: [email protected] In other words, it was a “double structure custody” mechanism in which the custody BIO officer detained the “mentally ill patient” Professor Minori Utsunomiya worked at a in a private detention room, this being psychiatric hospital between 1989 and 1997 the family home, and the public authority and graduated from Okayama Prefectural University Graduate School of Health and monitored the designated custodian,’ she The Home Department during the Meiji era. This Welfare Science in 2009. She has worked as explains. building housed the Ministry of Home Affairs’ Hygiene Bureau, which was responsible for measures a professor at Aichi Prefectural University for the mentally ill since 2013.

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