Japan Press Weekly

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2016 November 2 - 8 [SOCIAL ISSUES]

Supreme Court rejects appeal for injunction against SDF’s monitoring of citizens

A group of 75 plaintiffs seeking an injunction against the Self-Defense Forces’ activities monitoring citizens’ movements issued a statement on November 4 denouncing the Supreme Court for dismissing their final appeal.

Representatives of the complainants’ group and their lawyers held a press conference in Sendai City. They strongly condemned the top court for failing to fulfill its responsibility to protect people’s fundamental human rights.

Meanwhile, the statement notes that during their nine-year court battle, both the district and high courts recognized the state’s violations of the public right to privacy and personality. It goes on to emphasize that their legal fights have achieved significant results by shedding light on the SDF’s covert intelligence actions.

The plaintiffs’ group leader, Goto Toyo, said, “I feel angry by the rejection of our appeal just before the dispatch of SDF members to South Sudan. The Constitution should have a role in defending the general public, not the defense authorities.”

In June 2007, Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo revealed internal documents of the Ground SDF Intelligence Security Command which showed that the authorities were monitoring citizens who called for opposition to the SDF dispatch to Iraq and collecting their personal data on a daily basis.

In October of that year, 76 people living in the Tohoku region filed a lawsuit demanding suspension of the spy operations and state reparation. In February 2016, the Sendai High Court recognized the claim by one of the plaintiffs and ordered the central government to pay him compensation. The other 75 made a final appeal to the Supreme Court.

On October 26, the highest court rejected their appeal.

Past related article:
> Court decision convicting SDF of spying on the public is finalized [February 18, 2016]