Being a Buddhist, he imposed a moratorium on executions during his time as Minister of Justice.

[3] He was defeated in the 2009 election by Yasuhiro Nakane, a member of the Democratic Party of Japan.

He has remained engaged in discussions over the death penalty in Japan since leaving politics.

[4] On October 3, 2015, he spoke at a World Day against the Death Penalty event in Tokyo, along with Hideo Hiraoka, who was justice minister under the Democratic Party of Japan.

This article about a Japanese politician born in the 1930s is a stub.