Investigation into the Japanese prison system and its particularly strict rules, and meeting with a former prisoner. At the end of 2018, the detention of Carlos Ghosn made the general public aware of the living conditions in Japanese prisons. Are they the hell that his wife describes? In Tokyo, the journalists met Isanori, a former prisoner now free to speak. He does this anonymously, because few people in Japan dare to criticize the prison system. For having set up a scam, Isanori discovered at the age of 23 a universe where the slightest action is regulated, minute by minute: eating, drinking, going to the toilet, in which position to sleep, looking out the window... Even wiping your face with a towel in the summer requires special permission. When moving in groups, the guards impose a military way of marching: arm outstretched, hand at shoulder height – even the fingers must not be bent. "They want your body itself to have learned the rules, thinks Isanori. If you're not able to follow such simple rules, that means you're not ready to reintegrate into society." A highly codified Japanese society, where group values take precedence over individual freedom.

00:00 The Japanese prison system
2:17 Yamaguchi Jail
5:24 In the canteen, the meal lasts 13 minutes
7:30 At 23 he discovers prison
9:11 The Carlos Ghosn case
14:08 He lived the nightmare of Japanese police custody
18:55 The fate of former prisoners
21:40 A tough but effective system
23:28 Iwao Hakamada, the prisoner who waited 48 years for his execution

© BABEL DOCBABEL PRESS
Director: Constantine Simon

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