Ookami
08-07-09, 07:35 PM
The main law regulating knife related matters is the jûtôhô, which has the following restrictions:
* ban on switchblades/automatic knives (does not include balisongs, like in the US)
* ban on double edged blades over 5.5cm
* ban on non-japanese swords
* ban on non-artistic swords, meaning Japanese swords must be made according to traditional standards - e.g. gunto are banned
Also to be considered:
* regulations on the possession of swords - swords must be registered to obtain a license, which has to stay with the sword at all times
* regulations on carrying knives without legal reason - 6cm blade length maximum (8cm for folders)
* regulations considering the blade length - knives without a proper handle, e.g. skeletonized knives, are considered to have a blade length of (overall-length minus 8cm)
* knives and other items that might cause bodily harm are not to be carried immediately accessible - so stash them in your pack, otherwise it is a misdemeanor
A violation of the law is a felony! (except for the last one of course)
If you have a legal reason, you are allowed to carry everything that is not banned. When you plan on fishing, you can take your fishing knife with you even though it might be longer than 6cm. You can also take your sword to your iaido class, as long as it's in a sword bag and you have the registration ready.
What will not work is trying to convince a cop of your legal reason for carring that camp knife when in business-attire. Your legal reason has to be immediate, so when carrying a camp knife you'd better be in, on the way to, or back from mother nature.
The good news is that buying a knife is a legal reason as well as taking it to the store for sharpening, repair, or refund. Make sure you have the receipt to show you bought that knife that day and also make sure you are on your way back to the hotel or wherever you are staying. Plan your trips accordingly. Do not un-wrap and admire your newest possesion in the subway, wait until you are back in your hotel.:O
If you obey the above rules there should be no problem.
If you don't play by the rules be ready to spend more than one night at the police station. There is no habeas corpus so you can be held at the police station for 23 days without being charged (you can be held by the police for 3 days; this period can be extended twice with the approval of a judge by 10 days each) and the Japanese police is notorious for their grillings of suspects. Being in that position is certainly not fun, as this little story will show:
Not long ago, a woman from Switzerland was detained in Japan for quite some time. First she was held in custody pending her trial for drug-smuggling. After the trial, although aquitted, she did not come free and instead remained in custody because prosecutors appealed the decision.
Even after the last trial before the high court, where her aquittal was upheld, she wasn't done. She was kicked out of the country by the immigration office with a refusal of entry for 10 years.
You know why? Well, it's kind of obvious, isn't it? She overstayed her visa.
Ookami
PS: As you might have guessed self-defense is not a legal reason.
PPS: IANAL, but my Japanese is quite good.
* ban on switchblades/automatic knives (does not include balisongs, like in the US)
* ban on double edged blades over 5.5cm
* ban on non-japanese swords
* ban on non-artistic swords, meaning Japanese swords must be made according to traditional standards - e.g. gunto are banned
Also to be considered:
* regulations on the possession of swords - swords must be registered to obtain a license, which has to stay with the sword at all times
* regulations on carrying knives without legal reason - 6cm blade length maximum (8cm for folders)
* regulations considering the blade length - knives without a proper handle, e.g. skeletonized knives, are considered to have a blade length of (overall-length minus 8cm)
* knives and other items that might cause bodily harm are not to be carried immediately accessible - so stash them in your pack, otherwise it is a misdemeanor
A violation of the law is a felony! (except for the last one of course)
If you have a legal reason, you are allowed to carry everything that is not banned. When you plan on fishing, you can take your fishing knife with you even though it might be longer than 6cm. You can also take your sword to your iaido class, as long as it's in a sword bag and you have the registration ready.
What will not work is trying to convince a cop of your legal reason for carring that camp knife when in business-attire. Your legal reason has to be immediate, so when carrying a camp knife you'd better be in, on the way to, or back from mother nature.
The good news is that buying a knife is a legal reason as well as taking it to the store for sharpening, repair, or refund. Make sure you have the receipt to show you bought that knife that day and also make sure you are on your way back to the hotel or wherever you are staying. Plan your trips accordingly. Do not un-wrap and admire your newest possesion in the subway, wait until you are back in your hotel.:O
If you obey the above rules there should be no problem.
If you don't play by the rules be ready to spend more than one night at the police station. There is no habeas corpus so you can be held at the police station for 23 days without being charged (you can be held by the police for 3 days; this period can be extended twice with the approval of a judge by 10 days each) and the Japanese police is notorious for their grillings of suspects. Being in that position is certainly not fun, as this little story will show:
Not long ago, a woman from Switzerland was detained in Japan for quite some time. First she was held in custody pending her trial for drug-smuggling. After the trial, although aquitted, she did not come free and instead remained in custody because prosecutors appealed the decision.
Even after the last trial before the high court, where her aquittal was upheld, she wasn't done. She was kicked out of the country by the immigration office with a refusal of entry for 10 years.
You know why? Well, it's kind of obvious, isn't it? She overstayed her visa.
Ookami
PS: As you might have guessed self-defense is not a legal reason.
PPS: IANAL, but my Japanese is quite good.