Tokyo: It is not a joke - people in Japan are indeed taking laughter very seriously. The local government in the country's Yamagata prefecture has now passed an ordinance calling on residents to laugh at least once every day to promote better physical and mental health, and as expected, the law has been the subject of trolling and criticism on social media.
The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) introduced and passed a law last week calling on residents to "snigger, chortle and guffaw" on a daily basis and asked business operators to "develop a workplace environment that is filled with laughter", South China Morning Post reported citing local media reports. The eighth day of every month has also been designated for residents "to promote health through laughter".
Why laugh every day?
Why the need for such a bizarre initiative? The answer lies with a recent research by the Yamagata University's Faculty of Medicine, where studies have shown laughter being linked to better health and increased longevity. A 2020 article by scientists at the university said that mortality and cardiovascular disease were higher in subjects with "a low frequency of laughter".
Other research has also established a link between laughter and life enjoyment, positive psychological attitudes and elevated levels of competence, trust, openness and conscientiousness. The rule says citizens will "deepen their understanding of the beneficial health effects of laughter" through the law.
How people reacted to the bizarre law?
Members of the Japanese Communist Party (JCP) and the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDPJ) have criticised the law, saying it is unfair to those who had difficulties in laughing apart from infringing on their constitutional rights. "To laugh or not to laugh is one of the fundamental human rights that are guaranteed by the constitution regarding freedom of thought and creed, as well as inner freedom," said Toru Seki of the JCP.
However, the LDP hit back at the dissenting voices, saying that the ordinance does not force people to laugh and asserts respect for any individual's personal decision. Amid criticism that people should not be forced to laugh, the local authority made it clear that the ordinance has no penalty clause for anyone who is unable to laugh once a day.
Bizarre laws in Japan
This is not the only law in Japan which appears bizarre. The Asian country also has some unusual laws like damaging currency, which carries a sentence of upto one year, and insurance companies are not legally obliged to pay out if someone dies in a duel. People can also be fined if they are caught taking out household trash on the wrong day of the week.
Japan also has an anti-dancing law, dating back to 1948, which prohibited any form of dancing in many nightclubs and bars. However, the notorious ban was lifted in 2014 after a lengthy legal battle, allowing dance lovers to groove in bars without any restrictions. Interestingly, even receiving too much change at a supermarket is a punishable offence in Japan.
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