The Tokyo District Court ruled Wednesday in favor of the pro-Pyongyang group Chongryun, overturning an earlier action by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to deny the group a permit to assemble in Tokyo's Hibiya Park.</PARAGRAPH> <PARAGRAPH>The metropolitan government is considering filing an appeal with the Tokyo High Court, government sources said.</PARAGRAPH> <PARAGRAPH>'About 5,000 people will gather, and there is not much time left until it –

," said presiding Judge Norihiko Sugihara.

He said it would be difficult to compensate for cancellation of the gathering with money alone and that "there is urgency" in the need to suspend the metropolitan government's order.

"There are no special circumstances that allow (the metro government) to refuse the use of a public facility due to resistance from people opposed to the assembly," he said.

The General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, or Chongryun, planned an assembly Saturday in Hibiya Park to mark the 88th anniversary of a major Korean uprising against Japan's colonial rule.

A private-sector company that manages the park issued a permit Jan. 25. However, the metropolitan government revoked the permit the following day, citing "safety and security" concerns after rightwing groups complained about the gathering.

Chongryun asked the court Jan. 27 to annul the revocation.

"I understand the metropolitan government is continuing to try and stop the assembly from being held no matter what," Ko Dok U, Chongryun's vice chairman, told a news conference. "Though it said the move is due to rightwing groups, it should actually be in a position to stop such an act of obstruction (by rightwing groups), and it is not performing that duty."

A major uprising against Japan's occupation began in Seoul on March 1, 1919. The movement spread to other areas on the Korean Peninsula, reportedly involving more than 2 million people over the following three months. The uprisings were eventually suppressed by Japanese military police.