Chapter II Cooperation with the International Criminal Court

Section 2 Provision of Evidence, etc.

Subsection 1 Provision of Evidence

(Measures by the Minister of Justice)
Article 6 (1) Where the Minister of Justice has received documents sent by the Minister of Foreign Affairs pursuant to the provisions of Article 4 concerning a request for cooperation through provision of evidence, when the case does not fall under any of the following items, the Minister of Justice shall take the measures prescribed in the following paragraph or paragraph (3):

(i) when the request for cooperation competes with a request for assistance as prescribed in Article 1, item (i) of the Act on International Assistance in Investigations and Other Related Matters (Act No. 69 of 1980) (hereinafter referred to as "Investigation Assistance" in this item and Article 39, paragraph (1), item (ii)) and, where it is possible to give priority to such request for assistance pursuant to the provisions of the Statute, when the Minister of Justice finds it reasonable to provide said Investigation Assistance;
(ii) when complying with the request for cooperation would result in a breach of any of the obligations under international law prescribed in article 98, paragraph 1 of the Statute;
(iii) when complying with the request for cooperation would prejudice Japan's national security;
(iv) where the offense underlying the cooperation request is an offense prescribed in article 70, paragraph 1 of the Statute, when the act constituting the offense for which assistance is requested would not constitute a crime under the laws and regulations of Japan were it to have been carried out in Japan;
(v) when complying with the request for cooperation would risk obstructing an investigation or trial in a case that is connected with a crime other than the offense underlying the cooperation request, and that is being investigated by a Japanese public prosecutor, public prosecutor's assistant officer, or judicial police official or is pending before a Japanese court, and the Minister of Justice finds it unreasonable to immediately comply with said request; or
(vi) when there are other justifiable grounds for not immediately complying with the request for cooperation.

(2) The measures by the Minister of Justice pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall be the measures under any of the following items, except in the case prescribed in the following paragraph:

(i) sending the relevant documents to the Chief Prosecutor of the appropriate District Public Prosecutor's Office and ordering the collection of evidence that is necessary for cooperation through provision of evidence;
(ii) sending documents concerning a request for cooperation through provision of evidence to the National Public Safety Commission; or
(iii) sending documents concerning a request for cooperation through provision of evidence to the Commandant of the Japan Coast Guard or to the head of any other national agency to which persons prescribed in Article 190 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (Act No. 131 of 1948) who are to exercise the functions of judicial police officials belong.

(3) When the request for cooperation prescribed in paragraph (1) pertains to the provision of documents that are connected with a legal action and that are being retained by a court, a public prosecutor, or a judicial police officer, the Minister of Justice shall send the custodian of such documents the documents concerning the request for cooperation.

(4) When the Minister of Justice finds it necessary in order to take the measures prescribed in the preceding two paragraphs or in order to take other measures concerning cooperation through provision of evidence, he/she may conduct an inquiry into the whereabouts of the person concerned and other necessary matters.


(Measures by the National Public Safety Commission)
Article 7 Upon receiving documents sent under paragraph (2), item (ii) of the preceding Article, the National Public Safety Commission shall send the relevant documents to the appropriate prefectural police headquarters, and shall instruct that headquarters to collect the evidence necessary for cooperation through provision of evidence.


(Implementation of Cooperation)
Article 8 The provisions of Articles 7, 8, 10, 12, and 13 of the Act on International Assistance in Investigations and Other Related Matters shall apply mutatis mutandis to cooperation through provision of evidence based on a request set forth in Article 6, paragraph (1). In this case, the term "Article 5, paragraph (1), item (i)" in Article 7, paragraph (1) of said Act shall be deemed to be replaced with "Article 6, paragraph (2), item (i) of the Act on Cooperation with the International Criminal Court (Act No. 37 of 2007)," the term "the preceding Article" in paragraph (2) of said Article shall be deemed to be replaced with "Article 7 of the Act on Cooperation with the International Criminal Court," the term "Article 5, paragraph (1), item (iii)" in paragraph (3) of said Article shall be deemed to be replaced with "Article 6, paragraph (2), item (iii) of the Act on Cooperation with the International Criminal Court," and the phrase "specifically provided for in this Act" in Article 13 of said Act shall be deemed to be replaced with "provided for in Articles 8, 10, and 12 as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 8 of the Act on Cooperation with the International Criminal Court."


(Penal Provisions on the Submission of False Certificates)
Article 9 (1) When a person who has been requested to submit a certificate under the provisions of Article 8, paragraph (3) of the Act on International Assistance in Investigations and Other Related Matters as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to the preceding Article has submitted a false certificate, he/she shall be punished by imprisonment with work for up to one year or a fine of up to 500,000 yen.

(2) The provisions of the preceding paragraph shall not apply if the act
constitutes a crime under the Penal Code (Act No. 45 of 1907) or under Chapter IV.


(Measures Upon Completion of a Disposition, etc.)
Article 10 (1) When the Chief Prosecutor has completed the collection of evidence that is necessary for cooperation through provision of evidence, he/she shall promptly send the collected evidence to the Minister of Justice, with his/her opinion attached thereto. The same shall apply when the head of a national agency provided for in Article 6, paragraph (2), item (iii) has completed the collection of evidence that is necessary for cooperation.

(2) When the Superintendent General of the Metropolitan Police Department or the chief of the Prefectural Police Headquarters has completed the collection of evidence that is necessary for cooperation, the Prefectural Public Safety Commission shall promptly send the collected evidence to the National Public Safety Commission, with its opinion attached thereto.

(3) When the National Public Safety Commission has received the evidence sent thereto under the preceding paragraph, it shall promptly send the same to the Minister of Justice, with its opinion attached thereto.

(4) A custodian of documents that are connected with a legal action who has received documents concerning a request for cooperation through provision of evidence sent thereto pursuant to the provisions of Article 6, paragraph (3), shall promptly send the relevant documents in his/her custody or certified copies thereof to the Minister of Justice, with his/her opinion attached thereto; provided, however, that when he/she finds it difficult to immediately send the same, he/she shall promptly notify the Minister of Justice to that effect.


(Conditions for the Provision of Evidence)
Article 11 Where the Minister of Justice will provide the ICC with evidence that has been sent thereto pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (1), (3) or (4) of the preceding Article, when he/she finds it necessary, he/she shall set conditions concerning the use or return of said evidence.


(Notification of Non-cooperation)
Article 12 After taking measures under the provisions of Article 6, paragraph (2), item (ii) or (iii) or paragraph (3) of said Article, when the Minister of Justice finds that the case falls under any of the provisions of paragraph (1), items (i) through (iv) of said Article and decides not to cooperate through provision of evidence, he/she shall notify the person who received the documents that were sent concerning the request for cooperation through provision of evidence to that effect without delay.


(Consultation with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, etc.)
Article 13 (1) The Minister of Justice shall consult with the Minister of Foreign Affairs in advance in a case that falls under any of the following items:

(i) when deciding not to cooperate through provision of evidence, on the basis that the case falls under any of the provisions of Article 6, paragraph (1), items (i) through (iii);
(ii) when postponing cooperation through provision of evidence, on the basis that the case falls under either of the provisions of Article 6, paragraph (1), item (v) or (vi); or
(iii) when setting the conditions set forth in Article 11.

(2) The provisions of Article 16, paragraph (2) of the Act on International Assistance in Investigations and Other Related Matters shall apply mutatis mutandis to where the Minister of Justice decides to take the measures set forth in any of the items of Article 6, paragraph (2) with regard to a request for cooperation through provision of evidence.