侮辱罪厳罰化法案で修正合意　３年後検証明記、１８日衆院委採決―自民・立民

　自民、立憲民主両党は１３日、侮辱罪の厳罰化を柱とする刑法改正案の修正で合意した。施行から３年後にインターネット上の誹謗（ひぼう）中傷対策として効果があるかなどを検証し、結果を基に所要の措置を講じると付則に明記する。立民は１８日の衆院法務委員会での採決に応じる。
　改正案はネットで中傷を受けたプロレスラー木村花さん＝当時（２２）＝が命を絶った問題を受け、政府が今国会に提出した。現在、拘留と科料しかない侮辱罪の法定刑に、１年以下の懲役・禁錮、３０万円以下の罰金を追加する内容だ。
　これに対し、立民は人を「公然」と侮辱したケースが対象となる侮辱罪では、第三者の目に触れないメールなどを用いたいじめに対処しにくいと主張。さらに侮辱罪の厳罰化は言論を萎縮させかねないと問題視していた。（2022/05/13-19:54）

Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan have agreed to modify a Penal Code amendment designed to toughen penalties for those committing the crime of defamation.
   The CDP is now set to allow the bill to be put to a vote at a meeting Wednesday of the Judicial Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the Diet, Japan's parliament.
   The government submitted the revision bill to the current 2022 regular Diet session, which started in January, after professional wrestler Hana Kimura, 22, who faced online bullying, took her own life in 2020. Kimura's death attracted wide media and public attention.
   The amendment calls for adding a jail term of up to one year with or without labor and fines of up to 300,000 yen as statutory penalties for the crime of defamation. At present, short-term detention and fines of less than 10,000 yen are the only statutory penalties for the crime.
   The CDP argued that it is difficult for the crime of defamation, which covers cases where people are insulted in public, to deal with bullying using email and other methods that are not visible to third parties.