The Tokyo High Court on Thursday ruled that the government's decision to deny a passport to freelance journalist Jumpei Yasuda is illegal.
Presiding Judge Hiro Misumi upheld a lower court ruling overturning the government's refusal to give him a passport.
According to Thursday's ruling, Yasuda, 50, entered Syria through Turkey for reporting work in 2015. He was captured by a militant group and freed after three years and four months.
Yasuda applied for a passport in 2019, but the Foreign Ministry refused to issue one to him because Turkey had banned his entry.
In the ruling, Misumi said that the passport law allows the government not to issue a passport to maintain Japan's relationship of trust with the countries that have banned entry and the international community.
Yasuda applied for a passport for a sightseeing trip to Italy, which was unlikely to undermine the relationship of trust with Turkey, the judge said, concluding that it is illegal to ban him from traveling to any foreign country through the refusal to issue a passport.
"The government's standard for denying passports is still unclear," Yasuda said at a news conference.
The ministry said it will decide on its response after studying the ruling and discussing it with related government agencies.
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