Changing Face of Access to Government information in Japan: Issues Concerning Policy, the Electronic Environment, and the Role of Libraries and Archives

Abstract

Japan has recently undergone a radical change in policy concerning access to government information and the role of libraries and archives. Among these, the most prominent policy initiatives are listed below: 1. Enactment of the Public Records Management Act in July 2009, which includes new roles for the National Archives of Japan; 2. Revision of the National Diet Library (NDL) Law and Copyright Law in July 2009 that seeks to enhance web archiving with regard to the government and public organization in relation to NDL; 3. Proposal to enhance the effectiveness of Section 9 of the Library Law, which stipulates that it is the duty of national and local governments to ensure free access to official publications at public libraries. This presentation analyses such policy changes in Japan and identifies the challenges in implementing the policy initiatives over the immediate future. The analysis will also discuss the relationship and potential collaboration between libraries and archives in making a better contribution to improving community well-being by ensuring that an appropriate level of access to government information is available in the context of the existing electronic environment.