Library Team
The Library Team Defense Force (図書隊防衛部), or Library Defense Force (図書隊) (LDF), in Library War is a paramilitary organization in Japan which serves to defend libraries against the Media Betterment Act (MBA) enforced by the Media Betterment Committee (MBC) via Media Betterment Corps and other pro-MBA independent factions. Different from the normal librarian department (業務部), which performs librarian functions like modern librarians, the LDF's main goal is to provide self-defense from the MBC during library raids, though their jurisdiction only extends so far as in the confines of library facilities in connection with the LDF, meaning they cannot extend their effort even into the city where an LDF base is located. However, there are provisions around this, such as in accordance with Library Law Article 30 regarding book collection in that LDF Library Officers or above can choose to buy any book they want, even books targeted for censorship by the MBC. The LDF has ten bases throughout Japan in ten regions of Japan: Hokkaidō, Tōhoku, Hokuriku, Chūbu, Kantō, Kansai, Chūgoku, Shikoku, Kyūshū, and Okinawa. Each of the bases act under the provisions of the local government, and houses a public library where civilians can read and check out books.
In the early years of the conflict the library forces were not well organized, so coordination with neighboring forces was often delayed which caused problems in times of armed conflict. One such incident in Library War occurred on February 7, 1999, in Hino at the Hino Library which later became known as the Hino Nightmare (日野の悪夢). The incident was caused by an independent group which sided with the Media Betterment Committee raiding the Hino Library and caused the deaths of twelve people who were against the Media Betterment Act. Since that day, the library forces armed themselves in self-defense and have become much more organized; the public even acknowledges the LDF as having more combat experience than the police or the Japan Self-Defense Forces. The incident also caused the formation of library bases in ten regions, and the system of library forces in operation at the beginning of Library War.
The Library Defense Force has several branches which contribute to the organization as a whole. At the top is the Administrative Department where library administrators work doing daily administrative duties such as planning, organizing, staffing, budgeting, or directing. The Department of Defense works on defending against the Media Betterment Committee, and one section of the department consists of the Library Task Force, an elite group of soldiers who go through rigorous training in order to respond during difficult operations. At the Kantō Library Base, there are about fifty members in the task force. The Logistical Support Department works on stocking books and supplying the Department of Defense with military equipment, though it does not get involved with general outsourcing. There is also a Human Resources Department in charge of human resources, and an intelligence agency. There are approximately 30,000 members in the Library Defense Force throughout Japan. The German Chamomile is used in the insignia of Library Officers and above because the flower was a favorite of the late wife of the Library Defense Force commander Kazuichi Inamine.
