Tokyo District Court revokes Junpei Yasuda's passport issuance refusal

In a lawsuit over the issuance of a passport to Junpei Yasuda, a freelance journalist who was captured and released by an armed group in Syria, the Tokyo District Court ruled that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' decision to deny the passport was illegal and canceled the decision. I told you.

Mr. Yasuda, who was detained by armed groups in Syria for more than three years, applied for a reissue five years ago after his passport was taken away during his detention, but the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Mr. Yasuda had not returned to Turkey. Issuance was refused on the grounds that entry into the country was prohibited.

In response, the Tokyo District Court handed down a ruling on the 25th in a case in which Mr. Yasuda asked for a passport to be issued.

Presiding Judge Yukio Shinada acknowledged the need to restrict Mr. Yasuda's travel to Turkey and surrounding countries, but stated that regarding other countries, ``Even if Mr. Yasuda were to travel to Turkey, the relationship of trust between Turkey and Japan would be affected.'' It cannot be said that this will harm Mr. Yasuda's ability to travel.It is illegal to restrict Mr. Yasuda's travel.''The decision to deny him a passport was rescinded.

On the other hand, Mr. Yasuda's request for a passport to countries such as Turkey was not granted.

After the ruling, Yasuda held a press conference in Tokyo and said, ``I think we should be happy that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' punishment was rescinded, but it was not recognized that there was a problem with the Passport Act, which is the basis for the restrictions.'' It's a shame," he said.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs: ``We would like to discuss with the relevant ministries and agencies and decide on a response.''

Regarding the ruling, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs commented, ``The judgment was handed down in which the country's claims were partially rejected.From now on, we will carefully examine the contents of the judgment and consult with the relevant ministries and agencies before deciding on our response.'' .