Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the fear of forced outings has increased in Japan. The governor of Mie Prefecture has now announced that he will ban the outing of people against their will.

In order to contain the outbreak of the new respiratory disease COVID-19, Japanese health authorities, like everywhere else in the world, have started to track down Corona virus patients and ask them how they got infected.

The fear of being involuntarily outed has since increased greatly among Japan’s homosexuals. In some cases, people are reluctant to go to medical institutions to be tested because they are afraid of outings and discrimination.

Eikei Suzuki, governor of Mie Prefecture – a region on the main Japanese island Honshū with a population of around 1.8 million – wants to put an end to this intolerable state of affairs. At the prefectural assembly on 3 June, he therefore announced a general ban on forced outings.

The ban, which according to Japan Today is part of a more comprehensive anti-discrimination law, prohibits third parties from disclosing the sexual orientation or gender identity of a person or forcing that person to publicly out themselves.

Suzuki explained that an outing “can destabilise family and work relationships and drive people into isolation by disrupting friendships and contact with others,” referring to a case in 2015 in which a doctoral student at Hitotsubashi University was exposed to a homophobic classmate and committed suicide.

Apart from the measures taken against the  Corona virus, it was this story, above all, that prompted him to draw up the new regulation. The citizens* of the prefecture should understand the diversity of gender, eliminate discrimination and prejudices against queer people, so that an inclusive society can emerge. Also in the prefecture itself – similar to the Berlin anti-discrimination law – there should be investigations whether authorities respect the diversity and equality of the sexes.

“It is certainly true that real change cannot be achieved through legislation alone,” Suzuki added, because “to change the perception of an entire society, deeper measures must be taken”. But

“at least this ban has already triggered many discussions in the country and hopefully in this way has made some people think more carefully about the situation and its significance for everyone”.

Please follow and like us: