Former Justice Minister Masako Mori speaks at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan in Tokyo on Monday. | JESSICA SPEED
Aug 3, 2026
Former Justice Minister Masako Mori has called for an independent investigation into Japan’s public prosecutor’s offices, saying a succession of recent scandals has shown that the service can no longer be trusted to investigate itself.
Speaking at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan on Monday, Mori said these recent cases — which involve but are not limited to sexual assault, unlawful questioning, and the concealment and fabrication of evidence — are not mere isolated incidents, but evidence of institutional failures within a powerful organization that holds absolute authority over indictments.
Mori, who served as justice minister from 2019 to 2020 and is currently a member of the Upper House, chairs a group of lawmakers seeking the establishment of an independent third-party committee within the Justice Ministry and the country’s prosecutorial agencies. The group’s objective is to investigate and reform the prosecution service. It submitted a proposal to the Justice Ministry on July 16.
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