Forced sterilization: Japanese state condemned for “unconstitutional law”
On July 3, in a lawsuit filed by victims of the law in force between 1948 and 1996 that allowed the sterilization of disabled people without their consent, the fifteen judges of the Japanese Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the law “unconstitutional”. And the state was ordered to pay financial compensation to the plaintiffs, reports the public channel NHK. For the victims of this eugenics law, the victory is almost total.
“Even taking into account the social context of the time, it cannot be said that the objective of the law was legitimate. By causing the victims a very serious harm, namely the loss of reproductive capacity, the law violates the spirit of respect for dignity and the person. It is therefore contrary to Article 13e article of the Constitution (which states that all persons must be respected as individuals)”, said the judge at the head of the country’s highest legal authority, quoted by the channel. “For many years, the State has discriminated against disabled people, implementing a policy that caused them very serious harm. Its responsibility could not be heavier.”
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