Osaka City officials explains the disclosure of a hate speech offender, at the city hall on Dec. 14, 2021. (Mainichi/Tatsuki Noda)

       OSAKA -- The Osaka Municipal Government disclosed the name of an individual on Dec. 14 based on the city's anti-hate speech ordinance, for distributing discriminatory handouts attacking "Zainichi" Korean residents of Japan.

       Named by the municipal government was Dairyo Kawahigashi, the head of an organization whose name translates to "the group aiming for Japan without Koreans."

       This is the fourth time the city government has disclosed the name of an individual or organization since the ordinance took effect in 2016. It is the second time the city has named Kawahigashi. He was also the first to be named under the ordinance, in December 2019.

       According to the city, Kawahigashi went house to house distributing at least 27 fliers slandering Zainichi Koreans in the Tsuruhashi district of the city's Ikuno Ward in December 2018. The disclosure of his name in 2019 came after he allegedly repeated discriminatory remarks targeting Zainichi Koreans in speeches he gave around JR Tsuruhashi Station in September 2016.

       "Distributing fliers from house to house gave Zainichi Korean people a strong sense of anxiety that even their own homes were unsafe and that their peaceful lives could be threatened anytime," commented Osaka hate speech evaluation committee chairwoman Akiko Yakura.

       Under the ordinance, after receiving a complaint, the municipal government consults the hate speech evaluation committee, which includes lawyers. The committee reports its findings to the city after hearing opinions from the organizations and individuals targeted, and the municipal government decides whether to disclose the offender's name.

       (Japanese original by Tatsuki Noda, Osaka City News Department)

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