AMBot | 05/10/2010 | Reading Time: 2 Min.
There is currently great excitement surrounding Japan's manga industry. The depiction of sexual acts by manga and anime characters who appear youthful is to be prevented in the future. A new draft law aims to prohibit the portrayal of explicit acts.
The discourse on restricting manga access for underage youth in Japan is entering the next round. Not too long ago, various "Boys' Love Manga" were sharply criticized and classified as publications harmful to minors. After numerous discussions, a draft law has now been submitted in Tokyo concerning the depiction of "non-existent youths," according to AnimeY.
Tokyo's Mayor Ishihara stated in a press conference that he believes it needs improvement to design youth in manga and anime in such a way that their appearance resembles that of individuals younger than 18 years old. Additionally, sexual depictions of such characters should no longer be accessible to minors in the market. Also affected by this draft law are so-called "anti-social acts" in a sexual sense, such as incest or rape scenes.
However, from the perspective of manga and anime authors, this draft law is meeting significantly more resistance than initially expected. Various authors argue that this would violate the right to freedom of expression and opinion. Ishihara, on the other hand, countered that the regulation only pertains to the distribution of publications and thus does not interfere in any way with the creative process.
The discourse on restricting manga access for underage youth in Japan is entering the next round. Not too long ago, various "Boys' Love Manga" were sharply criticized and classified as publications harmful to minors. After numerous discussions, a draft law has now been submitted in Tokyo concerning the depiction of "non-existent youths," according to AnimeY.
Tokyo's Mayor Ishihara stated in a press conference that he believes it needs improvement to design youth in manga and anime in such a way that their appearance resembles that of individuals younger than 18 years old. Additionally, sexual depictions of such characters should no longer be accessible to minors in the market. Also affected by this draft law are so-called "anti-social acts" in a sexual sense, such as incest or rape scenes.
However, from the perspective of manga and anime authors, this draft law is meeting significantly more resistance than initially expected. Various authors argue that this would violate the right to freedom of expression and opinion. Ishihara, on the other hand, countered that the regulation only pertains to the distribution of publications and thus does not interfere in any way with the creative process.
This article was originally published in German. It was translated with technical support and editorially reviewed before publication.
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