The following is an English translation of a letter of protest that made the rounds today in Osaka after it became clear that our comrade N had been arrested yesterday. N has been directly involved in the occupation movement in Japan for years, and was arrested directly before a large protest against the World Championship in Athletics which was the ostensible reason for evicting the Nagai tent village this February and is also playing venue for the Japanese Emperor who headed the opening ceremony today, further cementing his image domestically and abroad as a 'gentle royal'. This arrest clearly proves that the Japanese state is not only bent on destroying the movement of day laborers here but also that criticizing the emperor is grounds for arrest. N's arrest follows the arrest of 5 people involved in the occupation movement last October who were all released after 8 months in jail two weeks ago, with the state unable to even fabricate evidence against them. Arbitrary imprisonment is a weapon of the state used to silence or abduct people unsatisfied with the state of affairs, and it is resorted to increasingly frequently nowadays. The Osaka police came up with a real creative reason for arrest this time: apparently N's truck was a diesel, a fuel type not permitted for its weight...N's arrest for this 'offense' is apparently the first ever in Japan. In other words, the state is showing its power by making a joke out of this.
*Although N is a well-known activist in Japan, all the news and
protest documents so far are not revealing his name for 'legal
reasons' so I'm going to leave his name as 'N' for the moment. The
following was written by one of the support organizations here:
Arrest the notorious tax money and address registration thief Mayor Seki instead!!
Yesterday, the Osaka police department forcibly arrested our friend, member of the Kamagasaki Patrol and comrade of Nagai park, N, at his workplace. One hour before his arrest, the police announced their intent to search N's workplace in an arrogant show of force. The reason for arrest? That N had been driving in a diesel truck, which, even if true, hardly constitutes any basis for arresting him. Clearly this is a trumped up arrest in order to remove NK from the protest against the 2007 World Championship of Athletics in Osaka and suppress these opposing voices.
At this year's World Championship of Athletics (WCA), the Seki administration, which continues to ignore the voice of Osaka residents, has held events and decorated the city, creating work for the construction industry, building banks etc. all while running the city budget into the red, losses which Osaka city hopes to pass on to its residents, with its traditional corrupt methods. According to statistics, the WCA has already lost 7 million dollars for the city. In other words, 7 million dollars of heavy taxes will be squeezed out of city residents. Despite this, famous athletes were unable to attend, tickets are not selling and although the city has made a substantial mobilization to sell tickets, it has been forced to hand out tickets at local schools in order to fill the stadium.
This is the same Osaka city which spent over two million dollars of taxes to evict squatters occupying Nagai Park this February 5th in order to open the WCA, leaving these squatters on the cold city streets. In the same way, tent evictions are being carried out around Nagai park under a campaign of harassment.
The residents of Osaka city must oppose the city and the Seki Junichi administration. If these scandals pass without any questions asked, then Japan is already a police state. Osaka is a fascist city. Those who don't think so should know that the conviction rate of defendants in court cases is 99.9% here. They should know that there is no room to fight arrests within the court system. This is already far beyond the limits of the constitution.
NK has not only opposed the eviction of squatters but also fought the removal of address registration for homeless people and squatters in Osaka city. He has stood on the side of and fought for the interests of the oppressed and those who live at society's lowest layer. Why is such an admirable young person a target for arrest?!!
The Osaka police should instead immediately arrest Mayor Seki who has continued to rob Osaka residents by heavy taxation, unconstitutionally stole the address/work/welfare and voting registration rights of Kamagasaki residents, leaving them with no rights whatsoever!!
Denounce this scandalous arrest!! Osaka police, release NK immediately!!
August 25th, 2007
Signed,
Comrades of the Japanese People's Committee Direct Action group
Send protests to:
Osaka Police Department
Osaka Chuo-ku Outemae 3-1-11
540-8540
Japan
TEL (+81)06-6943-1234
FAX (+81)06-6941-1022