Last week, the Japanese government (Government)
announced that it will soon introduce human rights due diligence
guidelines (Guidelines) for Japanese businesses.
The aim of these guidelines will be to assist businesses in
identifying and responding to, as well as preventing, adverse human
rights impacts in their operations and supply chains.
This latest move comes amidst a recent focus on improving human
rights protections across the nation and is consistent with
worldwide trends towards the introduction of human rights due
diligence requirements for companies.
Renewed attention on human rights in Japan
In late 2020, a Government committee launched the National
Action Plan on Business and Human Rights 2020-2025
(NAP). The NAP acknowledges that many
jurisdictions, such as the US, Australia and nations across Europe,
have introduced legislation and other regulative instruments which
require companies to take steps to identify and avoid risks to
human rights in
