A lawyer, center, is seen explaining details of the ruling to related parties in front of the Tokyo District Court in the capital's Chiyoda Ward on Sept. 27, 2021. (Mainichi/Naoaki Hasegawa)

       TOKYO -- A publisher has been ordered by a Tokyo court to take down part of an online list of historically discriminated areas on Sept. 27, after the Buraku Liberation League and 234 people from the areas filed a suit demanding the list's deletion over violation of the right to privacy.

       The Tokyo District Court on Sept. 27 ruled that publisher Jigensha must remove part of the list. Presiding Judge Shinji Narita acknowledged that it violates most of the plaintiffs' right to privacy, saying, "The list's publication could lead to discrimination in marriage and employment." The company's representative was also ordered to pay a total of 4.9 million yen (roughly $44,080) in compensation.

       According to the ruling, Jigensha, based in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, announced in February 2016 that it would publish a book listing Dowa area place names, otherwise known as Buraku communities. In addition, the company released on its website at around the same time a list of Buraku Liberation League executives' names and home addresses.

       Though the Tokyo Legal Affairs Bureau demanded the publisher take down the lists in March 2016, the company's representative instead posted a new list of place-names online, and did not delete the league executives' list for about two weeks.

       The latest ruling states: "In the light of historical circumstances, people could be at risk of discrimination and slander if it becomes known that they reside or are legally domiciled in the Dowa area." It also pointed out that it becomes easier to find out if people are from the Dowa area if the list of place-names is released.

       It was also ruled that printing and online publication of the list must be prohibited, because "it will be impossible or extremely difficult to recover after people face discrimination in marriage and employment." The defendant insisted the "suspension of printing and publication is an infringement of academic freedom," but the claim was dismissed as "having no purpose for the public interest."

       A Jigensha representative was ordered to pay sums of between 44,000 to 5,500 yen (approx. $396 to $49) per person. Meanwhile, the ruling did not acknowledge the violation of right to privacy for some plaintiffs who make their home address and registered domicile public. Therefore, place names in 16 of the 41 prefectures on the online list were not ordered deleted. The plaintiffs plan to appeal.

       The company's representative explained, "It's a defeat even for it to be partially deleted, so we will appeal."

       Senichi Moriyama, a professor emeritus at Fukuoka Prefectural University familiar with the Buraku issue, said, "If the list of place names is available online, a discriminatory mindset may also spread among younger generations less interested in the Buraku issue."

       (Japanese original by Koji Endo and Kazuhiro Toyama, Tokyo City News Department)

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