PRESS CONFERENCE
Arrests of 89 members of Kansai District Ready-Mixed Concrete Union
Yuji Yukawa, Executive committee chairman, Kansai District Ready-Mixed Concrete Branch of the All Japan Construction and Transport Workers Solidarity Union
Genki Shimada, CEO, Imasu Sangyo Co., Ltd.
Masahito Nakai, Lawyer
13:00-14:00 Thursday, July 18, 2024
Language:The speech and Q & A will be in Japanese with English interpretation.
A total of 89 members of the Kansai District Ready-Mixed Concrete Union (or Kan'nama) have been arrested on what they and many scholars call legally dubious charges by police across five prefectures. Prosecutors have demanded 10 years in prison for the chairman of the union, Yuji Yukawa on charges of "forcible obstruction of business” and "attempted extortion." He is currently appealing against this and several other charges that could see him sent to prison for many more years.
Although, the police actions have been strongly criticized by labor scholars and legal experts, there has been little press coverage of the case. Many union members have quit under various forms of intimidation and pressure, and scholars and legal experts have signed a statement condemning the destruction of the union. Article 28 of Japanese Constitution specifically exempts non-violent labor union activity from being considered criminal. So why are union leaders being arrested for "interfering with a business" and "extortion"?
Yukawa will come to the Club with his lawyer and an executive of a company that produces ready-mixed concrete talk about their experiences and the troubling implications for labor rights in Japan.
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