Japan¡¯s civic space rating has been upgraded to reflect increased freedoms for civil society and peaceful protest, according to an annual international report released Wednesday.

has elevated Japan¡¯s civic space rating to ¡°open,¡± the highest tier on its global rights index, placing it alongside nations such as Taiwan, Canada and Denmark. The report highlights that civil society groups and peaceful protesters in Japan now largely operate without significant restrictions, an improvement from its previous ¡°narrowed¡± status.

The CIVICUS Monitor evaluates civic space in 198 countries and territories, rating freedom of expression, assembly and association as open, narrowed, obstructed, repressed or closed. In the Asia-Pacific region, this year¡¯s report downgraded Mongolia to ¡°obstructed¡± while upgrading Bangladesh, Japan and Fiji.

Each nation receives a score from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating greater openness. This year, Japan¡¯s score rose by 5 points to 84, elevating it to the ¡°open¡± category.

¡°Japan has provided a roadmap for 2024 to countries in Asia on how best to implement their international obligations to protect fundamental freedoms and how to successfully move from a narrowed to an open national civic space,¡± Josef Benedict, Asia-Pacific researcher at CIVICUS Monitor, said in a statement.

In Asia, seven countries and territories ¡ª Afghanistan, China, Hong Kong, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar and North Korea ¡ª are classified as having ¡°closed¡± civic spaces. Nine countries fall under the ¡°repressed¡± category, while six are rated as ¡°obstructed.¡± South Korea and Timor-Leste are marked as having ¡°narrowed¡± civic space, with Japan and Taiwan the only nations in the region rated as ¡°open.¡±

However, the report on Japan also highlighted areas for improvement, citing the United Nations Human Rights Committee¡¯s observations on the lack of progress in establishing an independent national human rights institution. It also raised concerns about certain laws, citing an act related to safeguarding information designated as critical to national security, which could have a chilling effect on civic freedoms.

Although media freedom and pluralism are largely upheld, the report pointed out that factors such as corporate influences, political pressures and gender disparities still limit journalists¡¯ ability to effectively serve as watchdogs.

Benedict emphasized that while Japan is making progress, it must take further steps to ensure stronger protections for all its citizens and review laws that could encourage self-censorship. He also highlighted the need for press freedom reforms, particularly regarding the press club system, which limits access to news conferences and senior officials to established news organizations.