Editorial

15:37 JST, February 19, 2025

Tragedies must not be repeated in which children abused by their parents lose their lives without being kept in protective custody by child consultation centers. Under a new framework with the involvement of the judiciary, a system should be put in place to promptly save such children.

Temporary protective custody, in which child consultation centers take away children suspected of being abused from their parents, is fraught with complicated problems. There is no end to cases in which children die from abuse or are injured while the centers hesitate to provide protection because of strong opposition from the parents.

On the other hand, there have been cases in which children were protected for a long period of time by the centers, but it was eventually determined that no abuse had occurred.

For this reason, a “judicial........

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