Full Breakdown
Japan Forms Expert Panel to Explore GPS Monitoring of Stalkers
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Proposal: GPS Tracking and Mandatory Counseling
Japanese police announced on Oct 15 that an eight-member expert panel will be created to examine whether high-risk stalkers should be required to wear Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking devices and to consider compulsory counseling or treatment. The panel’s first meeting is scheduled for Oct 19. Members will include law and criminal-policy scholars, mental-health specialists, lawyers, and a family member of a woman murdered by a stalker in Zushi, Kanagawa Prefecture, in 2012.
Background: Rising Stalking Incidents and High-Profile Murders
Public attention to stalking intensified after a 21-year-old woman was stabbed to death by her ex-boyfriend in March at a Pokémon Center store in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro district, despite the perpetrator having a restraining order. A similar fatal case occurred in Zushi in 2012. These incidents prompted the government to announce emergency countermeasures in July, including the possibility of GPS monitoring.
Data & Statistics
- In 2025, the National Police Agency (NPA) recorded 22,881 stalking-related consultations, the first time the figure exceeded 20,000 in five years.
- The same year saw a record 3,037 restraining orders issued, the highest count since the anti-stalking law took effect in 2000.
- Treatment uptake remains low: only 147 of those with restraining orders received counseling or treatment in 2025, up from 112 in 2024; the 2024 referral-to-treatment rate was 5.6 % (184 of 3,271).
- Police cleared 1,546 violations of the anti-stalking law in 2025, also a record level.
Official Statements & Responses
The NPA said the panel will assess criteria for designating “high-risk” offenders, the duration of device wear, the need for court approval, and police access to real-time location data. International examples will inform the discussion: South Korea introduced GPS ankle bracelets for certain stalkers in 2023 with no reported murders by monitored offenders; Germany and Spain operate similar electronic-monitoring systems for stalking or domestic-violence cases. The agency emphasized that any mandatory measures must balance victim protection with constitutional concerns about privacy and freedom of movement.
What’s Next
Following the Oct 19 kickoff, the panel is expected to produce a report recommending revisions to Japan’s anti-stalking law. Those recommendations will guide whether GPS tracking becomes a legal requirement and how mandatory counseling might be implemented. Subsequent legislative action will depend on the panel’s findings and any further public or parliamentary debate.
