Tokyo and four other Japanese prefectures plan to propose in February that the government legalizes casinos in Japan, it was learned Friday.
On Thursday, the governors, including Osaka Prefecture Governor Fusae Ota, will submit a proposal on the legalization of casinos to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, informed sources told Jiji Press.
They will also meet with Yoshitada Konoike, minister in charge of disaster prevention and special economic zones, to urge him to work for enactment of special legislation to allow prefectures to operate casinos.
In Japan, gambling such as “keiba” horse racing, “pachinko” pin ball and “keirin” bicycle racing is permitted on the basis of special laws.
But casinos, for gambling involving slot machines, roulette and card games, are currently outlawed under the criminal code.
Politically, the matter is not easy, a Cabinet Secretariat official said.
The governors of Tokyo and the four prefectures of Osaka, Shizuoka, Wakayama and Miyazaki plan to launch a joint study group for the introduction of casinos in Japan.
There are growling calls for casinos to be allowed in Japan, from local governments which claim that tax revenues from such establishments could contribute to stabilizing their fiscal condition.
The Osaka prefectural government and the city of Atami in Shizuoka Prefecture have already asked the central government to permit casino operations in special zones the go
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