Japanese Justice Minister Masako Mori defended the country's judicial system and launched an attack on the former head of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance, Carlos Ghosn, who on Wednesday accused the Japanese judiciary of collaborating against him before he fled to Lebanon.
After Ghosn held his first press conference yesterday, Morey made a translated statement in several languages, then held two press conferences after midnight and on Thursday morning in defense of her country.
"I decided to do this because defendant Ghosn seeks to justify his illegal exit from Japan by spreading a misconception about our judicial system," she said at the second press conference.
She added that his escape from the trial itself "may represent a crime" that is unforgivable in any country, and added, "This is an inexplicable betrayal of trust for our children."
The Japanese justice minister also said that Ghosn did not provide real evidence to support what he said, considering that he is required to face a "fair judicial trial here" if he wants to prove his innocence.
Mori stressed that in Japan, a suspect can only be arrested under a court order issued by a judge, unlike some countries, and stressed that Japan will try to find a way to retrieve a branch of Lebanon.
Although the International Police (Interpol) issued an international arrest warrant at the request of Japan, Ghosn said that his lawyer may appeal against it, as Lebanese officials stated that their country does not have to extradite him.
| Ghosn spoke yesterday in his first public appearance since his arrival from Japan (Reuters) |
Ghosn charges
Ghosn had held its first press conference on Wednesday since its escape from Japan last month, and within two and a half hours, and in the presence of 150 journalists, he spoke in detail about his lack of confidence in the Japanese judiciary, and accused "Nissan" and the Japanese public prosecution of colluding with him.
Ghosn considered that he was "a hostage" in Japan, and that the accusations leveled against him were "baseless", and he refused to talk about the details of his controversial escape flight, which has many stories.
Immediately after the press conference ended, the prosecutor in Tokyo condemned Ghosn's statements, and considered that his accusation of "collusion" with the Nissan Group was "a categorically false and untrue claim."
Later, the discriminatory Attorney General in Lebanon summoned Ghassan Aouidat Ghosn to hear his testimony regarding the content of the request for arrest from Interpol, as well as to hear his testimony about a report submitted against him about "entering the enemy countries and meeting with a number of Israeli leaders."
A judicial source said that the Lebanese investigators had finished questioning Ghosn this morning, adding that the file was referred to Attorney General Oweidat for a decision.
A judicial source also mentioned that a Lebanese prosecutor imposed a travel ban on Ghosn after his interrogation.