its funny since they don't want western values ruining their culture yet they didn't have censorship until westerner's showed up in their country.
WRONG!
Article 175 of the Criminal Code(1907) said:
A person who distributes, sells or displays in public an obscene document, drawing or other objects shall be punished by imprisonment with work for not more than 2 years, a fine of not more than 2,500,000 yen or a petty fine. The same shall apply to a person who possesses the same for the purpose of sale.
The article was amended in 2011 to include "recording media containing [obscene] electronic or magnetic records," as well as materials distributed by electronic means.
The only thing you almost got right was "until westerner's showed up in their country" and almost because westerners appeared in Japan in 1543, if you are mentioning when in relation to the opening of Japan in the late 1800's then its correct in the sense that lead to the Meiji Restoration and the tightening on pornographic publication, that was fairly new since printing press? they didnt had one, those were woodblock images.
We could talk about the "Allied" occupation of Japan that certain had a influence but that goes both ways, the bunny girl is very obviously taken from Playboy Club Bunny Girl.
I dislike this argument since its repeating a myth, a misconception of Japan censorship law regarding pornography being created by the American Occupation, as they predate then.