![\"Do](\"https:\/\/thetokyotourist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/police-officers-japan-tokyo-large.jpg\" "\\"Do")
Japan is a fascinating country in so many ways. As we know, they’ve organized their\u00a0society very differently from most Western countries. Does this apply to the police force as well? How do they arm their police officers? Let’s find out!<\/p>\n
Do Japanese police carry guns? Yes, they do. A handgun has been part of the standard equipment for the police force since 1949 after it was introduced by the Allies during their occupation after World War II<\/strong>.<\/p>\n The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department has the same standard equipment as the rest of the country, and this includes a handgun as a service weapon. I’m talking\u00a0about the regular uniformed cops, as special forces and undercover agents use a variety of different weapons.<\/p>\n Want to travel all over Japan the cheapest possible way? Check out a JR Pass<\/a>!<\/em><\/p>\n I’ll only focus on the uniformed police officers because these are the law enforcement officers you are likely to see. The Japanese police force’s standard handgun is called\u00a0New Nambu Model 60.<\/strong>\u00a0The\u00a0“New Nambu” is named after Kijir\u014d Nambu who designed it. It’s double-action revolver with a .38 Special <\/em>caliber\u00a0based upon Smith & Wesson-style designs. In fact, it’s also called\u00a0S&W M37 (Smith & Wesson) because it so closely resembles the S&W M36.<\/p>\n As you can see, it’s not the most modern gun. It’s a revolver and it only holds five bullets. Does it look familiar to you? That’s probably because you’ve seen a revolver very similar to it hundreds of times on TV. Like I mentioned the New Nambu Model 60 closely resembles the\u00a0S&W M36 (thus its nickname\u00a0S&W M37) and the S&W M36 are one of the world’s most common guns. For a bunch of years, the Model 36 was the standard police detective and “plainclothes man” service\u00a0weapon for many police agencies including the NYPD. It was also the most common “TV detective gun.” It was used by everyone from\u00a0Columbo to Kojak.<\/p>\n Here you’ll see “Ricco Stubbs” (played by Philip Michael Thomas) using a\u00a0S&W M36. I guess “Sonny Crockett” (played by Don Johnson) preferred a more modern weapon!<\/p>\n Great question! I’ve already\u00a0alluded to it. After World War II Japan was occupied (1945-1952) by\u00a0the Allies. The\u00a0Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers,\u00a0General Douglas MacArthur, decided to\u00a0re-create\u00a0the Japanese police force and modeled them after the American police. As a consequence, they were uniformed and equipped similarly to American police. They started out using a\u00a0S&W M36 (like they mostly did in America) and later switched to the New Nambu M60 during the 1960s. The\u00a0New Nambu Model 60<\/em>, an old weapon who first saw the light of day back in 1960, is still the standard service weapon of the Japanese police force. So why are they still using such an antique weapon? Apparently, they never saw the need to upgrade it.<\/strong> Let me tell you why.<\/p>\n Enjoying this article and want to check out some of my other informative articles on Japan?\u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n Is Tokyo Polluted?<\/a><\/em><\/span> According to the\u00a0BBC<\/a> and GunPolicy.org Japan only\u00a0had six gun deaths in 2014, which is tremendously low. And it’s not like 2014 was special. The norm in Japan is single digit gun deaths annually. For a country with a population of almost 130 million that’s very impressive! But how can a country with so many people have so few gun deaths?<\/p>\n You’ve guessed it. There are very few guns on civilian hands in Japan. With a population of 127\u00a0million, it’s estimated only to be 377 000 guns (both licit and illicit)<\/strong> held by civilians. That gives .3 firearms per 100 population<\/strong>. This is how Japan compares to some other countries:<\/p>\n Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (GunPolicy.org):<\/u><\/p>\n As a result of so few gun deaths annually and very few guns in civilian hands, I can sort of see why they never upgraded their service weapons to something more modern<\/strong> with higher capacity (only five rounds now) and with stronger firepower. As it stands, they just don’t need it<\/strong>. But how come there are so few weapons in Japan?<\/p>\n Before we go into the gun laws, let’s first have a brief look at history. Japan’s history as an aggressive military power and their defeat in World War II plays a big role in how the society is today.\u00a0 Let’s just touch on a few<\/u> key points. I don’t want to bore you to death.<\/p>\n This law covers who gets to own a gun, how you can get a gun and, how you need to store it. Not into the legal mumbo-jumbo? Jump down to some amazing facts.<\/a><\/p>\n As you can see you need a specific purpose to obtain a gun.\u00a0And self-defense is not a valid reason<\/strong>. So if you’re for example a hunter, what does it take to legally obtain a gun?<\/p>\n Take a deep breath. Here goes!<\/p>\n There you have it! In just 13 small steps, you have your gun!\u00a0<\/strong>No wonder there are so few guns in Japan.<\/p>\n I feel the laws are designed to restrict the number of guns on civilian hands. When you look at the number of guns owned by civilians in Japan you can probably say they succeeded. We already know that the number of annual gun deaths in Japan is extremely low. And because there are so few guns in the country gun crime, in general, is also very low. Only six shots were fired by Japanese police nationwide in 2015.<\/strong> The police carry guns, but they very rarely use them and only rely on them when it\u2019s absolutely and unavoidably necessary. So what other means of force\u00a0do the Japanese police have? To a foreigner, some of these seem strange!<\/strong><\/p>\n Yeah, you didn’t misread. I just asked if the police “burrito arrest” people. And the answer’s yes!<\/strong> Although it’s not quite a futon, it’s something called a “protection sheet,” and it’s made from plastic. Here’s the recipe:<\/p>\n Think I’m kidding? Check it out here<\/a> or here<\/a>!<\/p>\n There’s not much information about the Japanese police paintball gun out there because it wasn’t in use for very long. It was introduced in 2009 and was originally intended to be a tool the police could use to mark fleeing criminals, making them easier to follow and identify later. The paintball gun featured a laser sight, but the paintballs moved so slowly it was hard to hit the intended target. The Japanese police paintball gun is not in use today.<\/p>\n But the paintballs are not dead!\u00a0Although not primarily used by the police, these large paintballs are called\u00a0bohan yu kara boru<\/em>(anticrime color balls). These are used by convenience-store clerks to throw at robbers to mark her\/him to improve the chance of an arrest. You can see these large paintballs behind the counters in Japan.<\/p>\n Arms and legs! Have you heard of Aikido, Judo, Jujitsu, Kendo, and\u00a0Karate? These are just some of the many Japanese martial arts. Where am I going with this? One of the most important tools for the Japanese police force is something called\u00a0<\/strong>taiho-jutsu.<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0Its a term for the martial arts developed by Japan\u2019s feudal police to arrest dangerous criminals. It literally translates into \u201carrest technique.\u201d This martial art\u00a0makes great use of the Keibo, a short police baton, and focuses on\u00a0ways of disarming people with hand-to-hand combat and taking down criminals. Taiho-jutsu\u00a0training is a big part of everyday life for the police officers of Japan.<\/strong> So think twice before you do something stupid! You probably won’t get shot, but might get your a** handed to you!<\/p>\n The Japanese police carry guns – they carry\u00a0antique guns. Might as well, because they never use them! Because Japan is a land of very few guns, the police force has developed non-lethal methods for dealing with criminals. First, they take you down with martial arts, then they burrito arrest you.<\/p>\nDo the Tokyo Police Carry Guns?<\/h3>\n
What Kind of Gun Do Japanese Police Carry?<\/h3>\n
![\"Closeup](\"https:\/\/thetokyotourist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/new-nambu-m60-large.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Ricardo](\"https:\/\/thetokyotourist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/miami-vice-guns-large.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWhy are the Japanese Police Using Such an Old Weapon?<\/h3>\n
Can you drink the tap water in Tokyo?<\/a><\/em><\/span>
Is Tokyo Humid?<\/a><\/em><\/span>
What if you get sick in Japan?<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\nGun Facts from Japan<\/h3>\n
Number of Guns in Japan Compared to Some Other Countries<\/h5>\n
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![\"Japanese](\"https:\/\/thetokyotourist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/japan-police-car-large.jpg\")
Gun Laws in Japan<\/h3>\n
A Short History Lesson<\/h5>\n
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![\"Closeup](\"https:\/\/thetokyotourist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/tokyo-cop-closeup.jpg\")
\u00a0Firearm and Sword Possession Control Law<\/h4>\n
Who gets to own a gun?<\/h5>\n
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How to Buy a Gun in Japan<\/h5>\n
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![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/thetokyotourist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/classroom-japan-large.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWhat do You Need to Do When You Own a Gun in Japan?<\/h5>\n
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<\/a><\/p>\nDo the Japanese Police Carry Any Other Weapons?<\/h3>\n
Is it True the Japanese Police Use Futons to Roll Up People?<\/h5>\n
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A\u00a0Paintball Gun!<\/h5>\n
![\"Japanese](\"https:\/\/thetokyotourist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/japanese-police-officer-paintball-large.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Split](\"https:\/\/thetokyotourist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/anti-crime-paint-ball.jpg\")
<\/p>\nFour Powerful Weapons<\/h5>\n
Conclusion<\/h3>\n
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