Japan: Court throws out defamation lawsuit against journalist while activist sentenced in Okinawa for protests against US bases

The state of civic space in Japan is rated as ‘open’ by the CIVICUS Monitor, as civil society groups were able to undertake their work across the country without barriers, and peaceful protesters were also able to exercise their rights, in most cases, without restrictions. At the same time there are concerns about restrictions on press freedom and censorship. The government has also imposed tougher penalties for criminal defamation and a draft law on the establishment of a human rights commission has been pending since 2012.

In March 2025, Human Rights Watch reported that Japan's Foreign Ministry said it had informed the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights not to allocate any of Japan's voluntary funds to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (the CEDAW Committee). The request followed the committee's recommendation in 2024 that Japan should revise the country's Imperial House Law, which stipulates that only men can be successors to Japan's throne. The government had protested the committee's recommendation, urging it to delete it from its report.

In recent months, the court threw out a defamation lawsuit against a journalist but press freedom concerns remain. There have been multiple peaceful protests in Japan. However, in Okinawa, a women activist was sentenced for multiple acts of protests against the US bases there. Anti-war protesters were blocked at an arms fair while far-left activists were arrested at a protest.

Expression

Court throws out defamation lawsuit against journalist

On 14th May 2025, The Tokyo District Court dismissed the defamation lawsuit against journalist Eito Suzuki (pictured above), who has long covered issues related to the Unification Church, now known formally as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification.

In October 2023, the Japan branch of the Universal Peace Federation (UPF), a friendly organisation of the Unification Church, filed the lawsuit against Suzuki, claiming damages for statements made on social media. The posts in question alleged that money was paid to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for sending a video message to an event hosted by the UPF and others but did not specifically name the "UPF Japan branch" as the subject. The Tokyo District Court dismissed UPF's claim for 11 million yen (about USD 76,100).

Suzuki argued that the lawsuit was a "classic SLAPP aimed at suppressing free speech." A SLAPP, which stands for "strategic lawsuit against public participation", is a suit filed with the intent to harass and silence citizens who speak out.

SLAPPs are on the rise across Asia, increasingly used by corporate actors to silence journalists, human rights defenders and communities who speak out in the public interest. These abusive legal tactics threaten civic space, hinder access to justice, and undermine corporate accountability.

Press freedom concerns remain

Japan was ranked in 66th place out of 180 countries in the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) 2025 press freedom index, published in May 2025.

According to RSF, Japan is a parliamentary democracy where the principles of media freedom and pluralism are generally respected. However, since the rise to power of the nationalist right, journalists have complained about a climate of distrust, even hostility, toward them.

The system of 'kisha' clubs (reporters’ clubs), which allows only established news organisations to access press conferences and senior officials, pushes reporters toward self-censorship and constitutes blatant discrimination against freelancers and foreign reporters.

The 2013 Designated Secrets Protection Act criminalises unauthorised disclosure of “specially designated secrets” with five to ten years’ imprisonment. It also permits criminal penalties for journalists and others who merely publish secrets obtained from others. The UN Human Rights Committee has raised concerns “regarding the broad definition of information that can be classified as secret and the general preconditions for classification under the Act.”

Expression

Activist sentenced for protests in opposition to US military presence on Okinawa

In March 2025, a woman activist opposed to the U.S. military presence on Okinawa was convicted on 16 counts related to her protests over the past four years. On 6th March 2025, a three-judge panel in Naha District Court convicted Akino Miyagi, 46, of Higashi village, of offences against six sections of Japanese law, including the Road Traffic, Public Offices Election and Explosive Control acts.

She was sentenced to three years in prison — suspended for four years — and more than USD 2,000 in fines. She must serve extra time if she fails to pay the fine, said Presiding Judge Tetsuro Sato at sentencing.

After her sentencing, Miyagi said she is undeterred as a protester. “This sentencing will not change how I conduct my protest activities; I will continue doing them in the same way”, she told reporters outside the courthouse.

Peaceful Assembly

Protesters blocked at arms fair

According to reports, protesters were blocked by riot police outside an arms fair in Chiba, near Tokyo, where 20 Israeli weapons companies including Elbit Systems were showcasing the same technology used in Gaza.

Protests began on 21st May 2025, the opening day of the exhibition, when approximately 350 demonstrators gathered around the Makuhari Messe venue to protest weapons manufacturing and trade. They argued that such activities violate principles of international justice, support Israeli genocide in Gaza, and contribute to the military expansion of the Japanese government.

The DSEI Japan 2025 (Defense and Security Equipment International) arms fair featured 450 exhibitors from military companies worldwide that manufacture weapons.

Far-left activists arrested during protest, headquarters raided

Tokyo police arrested two individuals on 14th June 2025 during a protest march for allegedly assaulting riot officers, authorities said. The pair — an unidentified man and woman — were taken into custody on suspicion of obstructing official duties, according to the Metropolitan Police Department.

Both suspects have remained silent during questioning, but investigators believe they are affiliated with the Revolutionary Communist League, a far-left group known in Japan as Chukaku-ha.

The alleged incident occurred near the Toranomon area in Tokyo’s Minato Ward, where a protest march against constitutional revision and other causes was organised near the U.S. Embassy. Roughly 600 people joined the march, which called for the abolition of the U.S.-Japan security alliance, police said. Authorities believe the organising committee for the protest was effectively led by Chukaku-ha.

Police subsequently raided the Chukaku-ha headquarters in Tokyo on 24th June 2025 in connection with the demonstration, in which the two left-wing activists had been arrested.

Protests held on Palestine, by farmers, and against sexual assault in Okinawa

Over the last five months, multiple protests were held in Japan, without any restrictions reported.

There were a number of protests held in support of Palestine. Protesters took to the streets of Shibuya on 30th March, recognised as Palestine's "Land Day", calling for an end to Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and massacres in the Gaza Strip. Participants held Palestinian flags and raised their voices in protest, chanting "Do not break the ceasefire" and "Give back Palestinian land." On 14th May 2025, protesters gathered in front of the Japan National Press Club building in Tokyo to protest at the Israeli foreign minister being allowed to hold a press conference there. Another protest was held in Shibuya on 30th May 2025.

About 3,200 rice growers and dairy farmers, some driving tractors, held a protest in downtown Tokyo on 30th March 2025, demanding government measures for income security in the agriculture sector. The farmers said they were struggling to continue their jobs and earn a living. After the protest left Aoyama Park in Tokyo’s Minato Ward, it went through Omotesando and Harajuku districts and ended up at Yoyogi Park in Shibuya Ward.

In April 2025, rallies were staged in the southernmost Japanese prefecture of Okinawa as well as in Tokyo to protest against sexual assaults on girls and women by US servicemen stationed in Okinawa prefecture. About 30 residents stood in silence in front of the Okinawa prefectural government, holding flowers and signs that read "Never tolerate sexual violence" and "We cannot turn a blind eye to this."