Tokyo court rejects foreigner’s accusation of police discrimination

The Tokyo District Court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a foreign woman from South Asia who claimed to have been discriminated against by police officers in the Japanese capital. The woman, in her 40s, and her 6-year-old Japanese daughter had sought ¥4.4 million in damages from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government over the alleged discriminatory treatment.

The incident occurred in June 2021 when a male stranger accused the woman’s daughter of kicking his son in a park. The man reportedly made derogatory remarks towards the woman and her daughter, saying, “Foreigners are not worth living.” The woman and her daughter claimed that one of the police officers who arrived at the scene sided with the man without proper investigation, based on a sense of discrimination towards foreigners.

However, Presiding Judge Masaki Katano ruled that there was no illegality in the police’s actions. The judge defended the police questioning of the daughter and expressed doubt about the alleged discriminatory behavior by the officer. The woman expressed disappointment with the ruling, stating that it encourages racial discrimination.

Her lawyer, Atsuko Nishiyama, criticized the ruling, stating that it was based on the assumption that a police officer would not engage in such conduct. Nishiyama hinted at the possibility of filing an appeal against the decision.

The case highlights the challenges faced by foreign residents in Japan and raises questions about the handling of discrimination complaints by law enforcement authorities.