OSAKA -- A total of 58 citizens living in eight cities in Osaka Prefecture on Monday filed a 29 million yen damages suit against their respective municipalities, claiming their privacy was violated by the introduction in August of the national resident registry network.
According to the complaint filed with the Osaka District Court, the residents in cities such as Osaka and Toyonaka suffered psychological stress as a result of an "infringement of their privacy." They are seeking 50,000 yen each.
The suit follows another filed Aug. 5 against Toyonaka by municipal assemblyman Kazuyuki Ichimura, who had sought wider participation in Monday's suit through the Internet and other means.
Citizens in Amagasaki and Itami, both in Hyogo Prefecture, are expected to follow suit in January, according to Ichimura.
According to the complaint, the registry network poses a danger of being misused as a result of system disorders or the possible mishandling of information by staff members. Individual information is not guaranteed to be protected as private information protection bills have not been passed through the Diet, according to the complaint.
The national resident registry network, which was launched Aug. 5, links basic residency registries across Japan by encoding information about people -- mainly a person's name, address, date of birth and sex -- alongside an 11-digit number.