Japan to pardon half a million criminals

Japan will pardon more than half a million petty criminals at a ceremony to celebrate the enthronement of Emperor Naruhito next week, an official said Friday.

"We will implement the pardons with a policy to promote social rehabilitation by increasing the criminals' desire to rehabilitate themselves," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters in Tokyo, Kyodo News reported.

Most of the pardoned criminals will include traffic offenders and those involved in minor thefts.

The government had offered a similar pardon decades ago in 1993 to mark the marriage ceremony of Emperor Naruhito’s father.

However, those serving sentences will not be considered for pardons.