Removing a Protester Is Found Illegal

The Supreme Court dismissed both appeals of plaintiffs and defendants in the case policemen excluded the protesters against then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe from the audience of his campaign rally on the street in Sapporo, Hokkaido, in 2019. Although the court decided that the exclusion of a man had been appropriate, it found that removal of a woman by police officers had been violating her freedom of expression and Hokkaido Prefectural Police been responsible for it. The police will have to revise its way of guarding politically important person.

The plaintiffs are Masae Osugi and Kio Momoi. They were at the public rally of the Liberal Democratic Party, with attendance of Abe as a speaker, for the election of the House of Councillors at downtown Sapporo in July 2019. When they chanted “Step down, Abe” or “No tax increase” while Abe was making his speech, policemen of Hokkaido Prefectural Police removed them from the cloud.

 

Article 4 of Police Duties Execution Act determines that “the police official may restrain or evacuate persons who are liable to suffer harm within the limits of necessity to escape harm at the scene.” The law assumes danger such as natural disaster, incident, destruction of a structure, traffic accident, exposition of hazardous materials, appearance of a rabid dog or runaway horse, severe crush, or the like.” It does not explicitly suppose protester’s chanting against a politician.

 

The police argued that their exclusion of two protesters had been legally correct, because there had been a situation of dangerous and urgent. However, Sapporo District Court decided in March 2022 that the situation had not been fulfilling the legal condition for removing them from the site. But Sapporo High Court found in June 2023 that the exclusion of Osugi was necessary and appropriate.

 

First Petty Bench of the Supreme Court found that there had been no realistic and concrete danger around Momoi at the time, while a danger existed around Osugi whose arm had been pushed by a frustrated person. An abrupt approach of Osugi to Abe also made a reason for the police officers to recognize a danger of an important person.

 

However, the court recognized importance of respecting freedom of expression. Through the decisions in every level of courts, they realized that the protests were expression of political opinion. Hokkaido Prefectural Police released a comment that it would make the best on guarding, seriously accepting the decision of the Supreme Court.

 

The coercive removal of protesters in a campaign speech invited broad criticisms against activities of police. When Abe was assassinated in his campaign speech at Nara in 2022, it was argued that the criticisms against police might have weakened the guard for Abe. However, gun shooting and chanting are different. The decision of the top court required the police further sophisticated guarding of a very important person.

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