Osaka Court Recognizes 128 Plaintiffs as Minamata Disease Sufferers

From Jiji

September 27 2023

OSAKA – The Osaka District Court on Wednesday recognized 128 plaintiffs rejected from a special Minamata disease relief program as sufferers of the disease, or mercury poisoning caused by polluted industrial wastewater. 

Presiding Judge Yuki Tatsuno ordered that 2.75 million yen in damages be paid to each of the 128 people who sued the central government, the prefectural government of Kumamoto and chemical maker Chisso Corp., which caused the pollution.

The plaintiffs had demanded 4.5 million yen per person, claiming that they were unfairly excluded from the special program.

The ruling is the first for a series of similar lawsuits filed with the Tokyo, Niigata and Kumamoto district courts, as well as the Osaka court, and is likely to influence the rulings to be issued later. A total of about 1,800 plaintiffs are involved in the lawsuits.

The 128 plaintiffs are from the neighboring prefectures of Kumamoto and Kagoshima, both southwestern Japan, and live in 13 prefectures mainly in the Kinki region in western Japan.