Foreign minister sued over 'secret' fund documents

A non profit organization on June 15 filed a lawsuit in the Tokyo District Court against Foreign Minister Tanaka Makiko, demanding a revocation of the recent ministry decision to deny access to documents on state "secret" funds.

Based on the Law Concerning Access to Information Held by Administrative Organs, the Freedom of Information Citizens' Center in April requested that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs release documents on "secret" funds used by the minister's secretariat in the Japanese embassies in the U.S., France, China, and the Philippines in February and March 2000. But the foreign minister on June 1 rejected the NPO request.

The plaintiff group argues that denying citizens' right to know governmental information is unlawful and that the ministry fears the exposure of the inappropriate use of "secret" funds. (end)