JUNE 23rd EDIT: The dotted line has been signed! The ancient law of ‘No Dancing After Midnight‘ has officially been dropped in Japan.

Nightclubs are now able to extend hours to 5am as opposed to 12am, with the law modification affecting 638 Japanese districts, with prohibited areas in Roppongi, Daikanyama, Aoyama and Nakameguro.

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On June 23rd Japan will be passing a law to allow nightclubs in Tokyo to stay open until 5am.

The current law enforces that there is no dancing after midnight, a legislation that was put in place during the US occupation of Japan back in 1948, and has only recently seen some flexibility.

In other words, this will be the first time this law has been altered in nearly 70 years!

Up until this date, DJs, promoters and club owners have been liable for prosecution if events ran past midnight, exactly an hour and a half prior to Sydney’s current lockout law.

It is quite interesting that Japan – arguably one of the most conservative nation’s in the world – is changing their views upon night-life. Perhaps the news of this might rub off an a certain Australian Premier?

[Source: The Irish Times]