Japan's knife ownership law comes into focus after UK bans ninja swords

South China Morning Post

17-05-2025

Britain's ban on ninja swords has sparked a debate in
Japan on knife ownership and whether a similar law should be introduced to curb crimes involving such weapons.
One expert on Japanese swords says ninja swords, like those owned by criminals in the
UK , are rarely used in knife attacks in Japan.
From August 1, possession of curved, single-edged blades between 35cm (12.5 inches) and 61cm in length with a pointed 'tanto' tip will not be allowed in the UK. Individuals who are convicted of possessing such weapons, which are typically marketed online as ninja swords, may face up to two years in jail.
The law will also tighten the sale of bladed weapons, with stiff punishments for companies having such weapons on their retail websites and any person selling them to individuals below 18.
It was introduced as Ronan's Law, after 16-year-old Ronan Kanda, who was killed with a ninja sword near his home in Wolverhampton in 2022 by two boys, who also had a machete with them.
Announcing the law in March, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: 'We are acting with urgency to bring forward measures to prevent deadly weapons from getting into the wrong hands and will continue to do whatever is needed to prevent young people being killed on our streets as part of our mission to halve knife crime over the next decade.'
There were nearly 50,000 knife offences in Britain last year.