Suraj's case: lawsuit filed against the government

Regarding the case of Suraj, a Ghanaian national who died during government-sponsored deportation last year, a lawsuit for state compensation was filed on the morning of Friday, August 5, 2011. Suraj's wife and mother are the plaintiffs, and the lawsuit seeks damages against the government and the nine immigration officials who accompanied him on the deportation.

Normally, only the state is held responsible, but documents that emerged during the preservation of evidence revealed facts that could be interpreted as intentional assault rather than negligence, such as the immigration officials using a cable tie (which is not recognized as a restraining device) that they had purchased at their own expense on Suraj at the time of deportation, and stopping filming halfway through despite having filmed the deportation process.As a result, it was determined that the immigration officials, along with the state, should be held responsible.

Incidentally, when the petition for preservation of evidence was filed, the Ministry of Justice initially refused to submit the interview materials of the immigration officials in question. However, the court issued a landmark disclosure order, which resulted in the documents being released and the actions of the immigration officials described above becoming clear. The Ministry of Justice was clearly trying to conceal these important facts.

In the afternoon, a press conference was held at the Tokyo Judicial Press Club regarding the lawsuit. Many reporters attended the conference, including from overseas media such as The Economist.