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Details of 2001 (Gyo-Tsu) 82 | Judgments of the Supreme Court
Representatives or regular election of members of the House of
Councillors to be held after this judgment is handed down, be in
violation of Article 15(1) and (3), Article 43(1), and the proviso of
Article 44 of the Constitution.
3. A suit to seek declaration that Japanese citizens who are residing
abroad and have no address in any area of a municipality in Japan are
eligible to vote in an election of members under the single-seat
constituency system in the next general election of members of the
House of Representatives and in an election of members under the
constituency system in the next regular election of members of the
House of Councillors on the grounds that they are listed on the
overseas electoral register, is a legal suit to seek declaration on legal
relations under public law.
4. Japanese citizens who are residing abroad and have no address in
any area of a municipality in Japan are eligible to vote in an election
of members under the single-seat constituency system in the next
general election of members of the House of Representatives and in
an election of members under the constituency system in the next
regular election of members of the House of Councillors on the
grounds that they are listed on the overseas electoral register.
5. In cases where it is obvious that the contents of legislation or
legislative omission illegally violate citizens' constitutional rights or
where it is absolutely necessary to take legislative measures to
assure the opportunity for citizens to exercise constitutional rights
and such necessity is obvious, but the Diet has failed to take such
measures for a long time without justifiable reasons, the legislative
act or legislative omission by Diet members should exceptionally be
deemed to be illegal for the purpose of Article 1(1) of the Law
Concerning State Liability for Compensation.
6. Given the facts that despite the absolute necessity to take
legislative measures to establish a system for allowing Japanese
citizens who were residing abroad and had no address in any area of
a municipality in Japan to exercise the right to vote in national
elections in order to assure the opportunity for such Japanese citizens
to exercise the right to vote, for more than ten years from when the
bill to enable such Japanese citizens to vote in national elections was
abandoned until the general election for members of the House of
Representatives was held on October 20, 1996, and no legislative
measures were taken to enable such voting, such legislative omission
should be deemed to be illegal for the purpose of Article 1(1) of the
Law Concerning State Liability for Compensation, and the State shall
pay such Japanese citizens 5,000 yen as compensation for nonpecuniary damage in order to compensate mental distress suffered by
them from being unable to exercise the right to vote in the election.
(There are dissenting opinions and a concurring opinion concerning 1,
2 and 4 to 6.)
References
(Concerning 1, 2 and 4) Article 15(1) and (3), Article 43(1), and Article
44 of the Constitution
(Concerning 1 and 6) Article 21(1) of the Public Offices Election Law
(before amendment by Law No. 62 of 2000), Article 42 of the Public
Offices Election Law (before amendment by Law No. 47 of 1998), and
Article 15(1) of the Basic Resident Register Law
(Concerning 2 to 4) Article 42, Chapter 4-2 (Overseas Electoral
Register), and Article 49-2 of the Public Offices Election Law, and
Article 8 of the Supplementary Provisions for the Public Offices
Election Law
(Concerning 3) Article 4 of the Administrative Case Litigation Law
(Concerning 5 and 6) Article 1(1) of the Law Concerning State
Liability for Compensation, and Article 41 of the Constitution
Article 15(1) and (3) of the Constitution
1. The people have the inalienable right to choose their public
officials and to dismiss them.
3. Universal adult suffrage is guaranteed with regard to the election of
public officials.
https://www.courts.go.jp/app/hanrei_en/detail?id=1264
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