Photo/Illutration Kio Momoi, right, and a male plaintiff speak with reporters on June 22 after the Sapporo High Court ruling. (Takayuki Kakuno)

SAPPORO--The Sapporo High Court gave different rulings to two plaintiffs in a freedom of expression lawsuit filed over their removal from a site in 2019 where Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was giving a speech.

The Sapporo District Court ruled in March 2022 that Hokkaido police had infringed on the freedom of expression of both plaintiffs and ordered compensation totaling 880,000 yen ($6,140).

But on June 22, the high court said that only Kio Momoi, 27, had her freedom of expression violated and ordered Hokkaido police to pay her 550,000 yen.

The 35-year-old male plaintiff was denied compensation on grounds police were carrying out their duties prescribed by law.

At a news conference after the ruling, the male plaintiff said Abe’s assassination in July 2022 and the bomb attack near Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in April clearly influenced the high court ruling.

“This could lead to a society where we cannot say what we feel,” the plaintiff said.

Momoi said: “I don’t know what the difference was between what I said and what the man said (in 2019). What does this say about freedom of expression?”

According to the ruling, the incident took place on July 15, 2019, in front of JR Sapporo Station where Abe was speaking on behalf of a ruling Liberal Democratic Party candidate running in the Upper House election.

The man shouted that Abe should resign while Momoi expressed opposition to raising taxes.

The two were quickly hustled away from the scene by a number of Hokkaido police officers. Momoi was then shadowed by police for a considerable amount of time.

The high court pointed out that soon after Momoi began shouting, those around her did not appear excessively agitated. There was little likelihood that Momoi would become the target of violence from those around her or that she would become violent toward them, the ruling said.

Because there was no apparent danger to life, Hokkaido police overstepped their bounds in removing Momoi from the scene, the court said.

“She was prevented from continuing to express her opinion, and her freedom of expression was violated,” the court ruled.

It added that her freedom of movement was limited by the constant presence of police near her.

Video from the speech site newly submitted by Hokkaido police appeared to have swayed the high court to rule against the male plaintiff.

The court determined that those next to the man pushed him twice on his arm with their fists because they were angry that his repeated shouts interfered with their attempt to record Abe’s speech.

The high court added that the man ignored police orders to stop shouting.

It concluded there was a specific and realistic danger approaching, and that police acted appropriately in moving the man away.

(This article was written by Akimitsu Ishigaki and Kohei Uwabo.)

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