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Ministry: Fatal Nago school trip broke political neutrality law
THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
May 22, 2026 at 18:43 JST
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Education minister Yohei Matsumoto speaks at a news conference on May 22 in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward. (Yusuke Morishita)
The education ministry on May 22 said a Kyoto high school’s field trip that ended in tragedy in Okinawa Prefecture not only breached safety rules but also broke the law on political neutrality.
It was the first time the ministry has concluded that a school’s activities violated the Basic Law on Education.
Doshisha International Senior High School’s peace studies tour carried 18 students in two boats to observe the construction site of a U.S. military base off the Henoko district of Nago in Okinawa Prefecture on March 16.
At 10:10 a.m. that day, the two boats, the Fukutsu (1.9 tons) and the Heiwa Maru (under 5 tons), capsized.
Hajime Kanai, 71, captain of the Fukutsu, and 17-year-old student Tomoka Takeishi were killed. Fourteen others, including students and crew, were injured.
The transport ministry filed a criminal complaint against Kanai on May 22 on suspicion of operating a passenger-carrying boat without proper registration.
While the maritime investigation continues, the education ministry also criticized the school for the “grossly mismanaged” and “biased” tour.
It has issued a guidance notice to the school’s operator, the Doshisha school corporation, demanding improvements.
PROTEST BOAT
At a news conference on May 22, education minister Yohei Matsumoto said the school’s educational content concerning the U.S. military base project in Henoko constituted a violation of Article 14, Paragraph 2, of the Basic Law on Education, which bans political activities.
The ministry had conducted an April 24 on-site investigation at the school corporation.
Officials interviewed representatives from the corporation, the high school, and Kyoto Prefecture, which has jurisdiction over the school, regarding safety management and educational activities.
The ministry concluded that the school’s curriculum lacked balance.
“It could not be confirmed that various viewpoints were sufficiently presented, including in the pre- and post-trip studies, and it is considered to have been handled with a bias toward a specific viewpoint or way of thinking,” the ministry’s report said.
The boats used for the tour belonged to a citizens’ group that promotes peace and democracy. It opposes the construction of the U.S. military base off Henoko as a replacement for the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan, also in Okinawa Prefecture.
The group often uses vessels for at-sea protests.
“A considerable number of teachers were aware that the captain (Kanai) was routinely engaged in demonstration activities with a protest boat, and that the vessel carrying the students was a protest boat,” the ministry’s report said.
The school had previously taken students to the “Henoko tent village,” a hub for sit-in protests near the site of the base relocation project.
Field trip guidebooks included a message from the anti-base group: “Those who agree with our actions, please first join us in the sit-in.”
Matsumoto noted that for several years, a pastor had explained the protest activities during the trip’s opening worship service, citing this as another reason for the ministry’s conclusion.
Enacted in 1947, the Basic Law on Education has been the foundation of postwar education in Japan. It prohibits introducing the political views of a specific party into schools or using schools as a stage for political activities.
Although Okinawa residents and politicians have long demanded a reduction in U.S. military facilities in their prefecture, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party has insisted the bases are needed for the security of Japan.
POLITICAL REACTIONS
Junya Ogawa, head of the opposition Centrist Reform Alliance (Chudo), warned that the education minister’s decision concerning the law could prove detrimental to teaching.
“It could create a chilling effect in the educational field,” he said at a May 22 news conference. “As the final person responsible at the ministry, he should be more cautious in making value judgments.”
Ogawa said the issue of safe vessel navigation management and the issue related to the educational content should be considered separately.
“Unnecessarily politicizing the accident is not necessarily desirable,” he said. “There are pros and cons to reclaiming the coast to build a U.S. military base. This could amount to an outright rejection of learning about it on-site, seeing it, and experiencing it firsthand.”
Komeito Secretary-General Makoto Nishida also criticized Matsumoto’s decision.
“If the education ministry is going to step in that far, it needs to properly explain why and to ensure that a chilling effect does not occur in the educational field.”
On the other hand, Kazuya Shinba, secretary-general of the Democratic Party for the People, praised the ministry’s decision, saying: “I think it is a matter of course. I want to express my deep respect for the ministry.”
ROUGH CONDITIONS
Doshisha International Senior High School was also faulted for severe safety lapses.
The boats were deployed despite a high-wave advisory in effect on the day of the accident.
No teachers were aboard the boats, a preliminary site inspection was not conducted, and the school’s crisis management manual was deficient, the report said.
“There were also extremely significant problems with the governance for making appropriate decisions as a school, and the responsibility of the school corporation and the school in this matter is extremely heavy,” Matsumoto said.
The Doshisha school corporation accepted responsibility for the accident.
“The accident occurred as a result of a failure to sufficiently ensure safety in an educational activity where student safety should have been the top priority, and we are keenly aware of our grave responsibility,” it said on its official website.
It mentioned measures to prevent a recurrence, such as reviewing the safety management manual and formulating and applying unified safety standards for off-campus activities.
The school also said it would verify the appropriateness of educational content and building a continuous checking function.
Kyoto Governor Takatoshi Nishiwaki said he will consider reducing the private school operation subsidy provided to the school.
“It is clear that the school has violated various laws and regulations, including those pertaining to school safety,” Nishiwaki said at a news conference on May 22.
The prefecture oversees private high schools within its jurisdiction and provides between 200 million yen and 300 million yen ($1.26 million and $1.89 million) annually to Doshisha International Senior High School.
This year’s payment is scheduled for June.
CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION WIDENS
Transport minister Yasushi Kaneko called the accident “extremely regrettable, coming at a time when we have been strengthening safety regulations and working to prevent a recurrence of the Shiretoko sightseeing boat accident” that killed 26 people in Hokkaido in 2022.
The transport ministry’s criminal complaint against the deceased captain was filed with the Nakagusuku Coast Guard Office.
An investigation by the Okinawa General Bureau of the Cabinet Office found that Kanai was operating a commercial service without a license.
Over a four-year period, Kanai had transported Doshisha students six times at the school’s request, and he received a “gratuity” for each trip, investigators said.
To conduct such business activities, the boat operator must be registered under the Marine Transportation Law and official safety management regulations.
Kanai was not.
The captain of the Heiwa Maru is also being investigated for possibly operating an unregistered business, and the ministry plans to file criminal complaints against members of the citizens’ group if their involvement in illegal boat operations is confirmed.
The citizens’ group declined to comment about the complaint against Kanai, saying “the investigation into our council is still ongoing.”
A violation of the Marine Transportation Law carries a maximum prison term of one year, a fine of up to 1.5 million yen ($9,430), or both.
The 11th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters is conducting its own investigation into the accident on suspicion of professional negligence resulting in death and injury.
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