Responding to the acquittal of Japanese man Iwao Hakamada, who spent nearly five decades on death row, Amnesty International’s East Asia Researcher Boram Jang said:
“We are overjoyed by the court’s decision to exonerate Iwao Hakamada. After enduring almost half a century of wrongful imprisonment and a further 10 years waiting for his retrial, this verdict is an important recognition of the profound injustice he endured for most of his life. It ends an inspiring fight to clear his name by his sister Hideko and all those who supported him.
“As we celebrate this long overdue day of justice for Hakamada, we are reminded of the irreversible harm caused by the death penalty. We strongly urge Japan to abolish the death penalty to prevent this from happening again.
“Japanese authorities must also review all existing death sentences, particularly when there are concerns of mental and intellectual disabilities. Only complete abolition of capital punishment will ensure that such grave errors are never repeated, and people not irreversibly and arbitrarily deprived of their lives. Amnesty International will continue to push for the abolition of the death penalty and for reforms that ensure fairness and justice for all.”
Background
On 26 September 2024, a long-awaited ruling was delivered by Shizuoka District Court to acquit Hakamada Iwao, described as the world’s longest-serving death row prisoner.
During his first trial, Hakamada was convicted of the murder of his employer and his employer’s family, largely based on a forced “confession”. He “confessed” to the crime after 20 days of interrogation by police. Hakamada proceeded to retract the “confession” during the trial, alleging that police had threatened and beaten him. Hakamada was sentenced to death by Shizuoka District Court in 1968 and spent over 45 years held on death row.
In March 2014, Hakamada was granted a retrial by Shizuoka District Court and was released from prison after DNA evidence surfaced which questioned the reliability of his conviction.
The decision to open a retrial was based on more than 600 pieces of evidence disclosed by the prosecutor. This evidence undermined the legitimacy of earlier evidence.
In June 2018, the Tokyo High Court overturned the decision of the lower court denying Hakamada’s retrial after an appeal from prosecutors. Hakamada’s lawyers appealed this ruling, which led to Japan’s Supreme Court reversing the High Court decision in December 2020 and asking it to re-examine the appeal. Eventually, the Tokyo High Court also ruled in support of the Supreme Court decision for retrial in March 2023.
Hakamada’s retrial officially commenced in October 2023. The forced “confession” was excluded from the evidence. Prosecutors have since continued to voice their support for upholding the conviction and for Hakamada to be sentenced to death.
Japan has continued to carry out executions − including of people who had judicial appeals pending, which is in violation of international safeguards guaranteeing protection of the rights of those facing the death penalty. The last execution in Japan was carried out on 26 July 2022. As of 31 December 2023, 107 out of the 115 people on death row had their death sentences finalized and were at risk of execution. Those on death row continued to be held in solitary confinement; and in the absence of effective safeguards or transparent regular psychiatric evaluations, persons with mental (psycho-social) and intellectual disabilities continued to be subjected to the death penalty, in violation of international law and standards.
Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception regardless of the nature or circumstances of the crime; guilt, innocence or other characteristics of the individual; or the method used by the state to carry out the execution.