Protecting children from danger
(From The Japan Times Dec. 10 issue)

児童を犯罪から守れ

    It appears that the long-held "safety myth" about the society is collapsing like a house of cards. On Nov. 17, 2004, a first grader who attended an elementary school in Nara Prefecture was murdered on her way home. The question in everyone's mind is why young innocent schoolgirls have been targeted.

    The future of our schools and education, and of our society as a whole, is bleak if the safety of schoolchildren cannot be guaranteed. Now is the time to consider how to establish effective safety measures for them. Schools and communities must take the lead in working out concrete ways to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents.

    Already communities throughout the country are moving in this direction. Since the slayings in Nara and elsewhere, local authorities and groups have launched various programs to protect children on their routes to and from school.

    For example, in an effort to increase safety awareness among children, schools in some communities have made students draw up regional safety maps for themselves. Children in some other areas carry a buzzer that beeps when walking through a dangerous area. Students in Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo, carry an electronic hand-held device that can alert police when they are in imminent danger. Children also have been instructed to take other steps to defend themselves, such as shouting for help when they are in danger of being kidnapped.

    Central government, alarmed by the latest incidents, has requested that schools take stronger action to ensure safety on the routes that are regularly taken by children. Education and Science Minister Kenji Kosaka has indicated that the ministry will consider a program to install anticrime video cameras in dangerous places.

    Such measures, however, may not be fully effective against would-be criminals bent on molesting or killing unguarded schoolchildren. First graders are particularly vulnerable. It needs to be recognized that self-defensive measures have limited effectiveness.

    There is one sure way, though, to protect younger students: Have parents escort them from their homes right to the school gates. In some communities, elderly volunteers are doing just that on behalf of parents.

    It may be difficult, however, to protect all children in this way on a regular basis.

    Perhaps it is time to consider using school buses for elementary-school students, in the same way that they are being used for kindergarten pupils. Such transportation seems particularly needed for students in the lowest grades, who physically do not differ much from kindergartners. Indeed, introducing a school-bus system for elementary schoolchildren is a practical idea as safety can no longer be taken for granted.

In the United States, children are normally protected on their way to and from school. Protection is provided by school buses or private cars or by escorting parents. In all cases, it is generally agreed that adults should be responsible for the safety of schoolchildren.

    In Japan, local governments — which are responsible for the establishment and management of public schools in their districts — should take the initiative. There are budgetary limitations, to be sure, but the safety of children should not be sacrificed on the budgetary altar.

    There is much to be done by central government.

    At present, half the cost of purchasing school buses is paid by the state, but this applies only to schools in sparsely populated or administratively integrated districts where children must travel long distances to attend school. The eligibility standards for this subsidy should be relaxed to cover schools in urban areas as well.

    Criminals that target unprotected children appear to have a distorted mind-set that makes it difficult for them to deal squarely with adult members of society. A sense of "victimhood" is likely to spread in our society as the mentality of "the survival of the fittest" gains ground. As a result, more children could become targets of crime.

    In such circumstances, adults are all the more responsible for the safety of children. It is a responsibility that must be fulfilled at all costs.

The Japan Times Weekly
Dec. 17, 2005
(C) All rights reserved

    今こそ、児童の安全を守る対策を確立すべきだ。同様事件の再発を防ぐため、学校、地域社会が協力して具体策を作らねばならない。

    奈良県の事件以後、各地の地方自治体、関係団体は通学路の児童の安全を確保する計画を推進している。たとえば、児童に地域の安全マップを作成させたり、防犯ブザー、携帯用警察通報装置を携帯させたり、危険なときに大声で助けを呼ぶ訓練をさせるなどである。小坂文部科学相は、危険箇所に防犯カメラの設置を検討すると述べた。

    しかし、児童に乱暴したり殺害する意図を持つ犯罪予備軍に対して、これらの対策の効果には限界がある。

    有効な対策は、保護者に通学児童の送迎をさせることだが、それでも全部の児童を完全に保護するのは困難だろう。

    そこで、幼稚園児と同様に小学校、特に低学年児童もスクールバスで通学させたらよい。米国では、スクールバス通学、保護者による自動車送迎が日常的に実施されている。

    地方自治体には予算的制約があるだろうが、それを理由に児童の安全を犠牲にしてはならない。

    現在、過疎地、合併した自治体で長距離の通学が必要な場合に限り、通学用バスの購入費用の半額を政府が助成することになっているが、この制度を都市部でも導入するため、適用基準を緩和すべきである。

    児童をねらう犯罪者は、一般社会に適応困難な精神状態を持っていると思われる。「適者生存」の傾向が強まる社会で「被害者」意識を持つ人間が増える可能性もある。その結果、児童をねらう犯罪が増えることになる。

    このような状況で、社会一般が全力をあげて児童の安全を守る責任を果たさねばならない。