Dear IKEDA Yukihiko,
the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan,
On 10 March 1993, the UN Commission on Human Rights unanimously adopted the following resolution on forced evictions, known as resolution 1993/77. The resolutions affirms that the practice of forced evictions constitutes a gross violation of human rights to homeless or inadequately housed people, and emphasizes that ultimate legal responsibility for preventing forced evictions rest with governments. Japanese government attended and agreed with the resolution.
"The resolution, unlike the treaty, is not always operative", Dr. HOSAKA Mitsuhiko, the professor of Nihon Fukushi Univ. said, "Japan ratified `the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights' which treats the rights to housing and evictions. When a government agrees with a resolution and ratified an international operative agreements which reflect the genius of the resolution, which is interpreted that it is hard the government to contravene the resolution". It should be allowed ethically that Japanese government performs or tolerates the practice to contravene this resolution.
A hundred and more homeless people live in underground passage between Shinjuku station and metropolitan city hall away from rain and coldness. They are in face of the crisis of their lives in this severe winter. Unkindly, Tokyo metropolitan government will execute the forced eviction to homeless people under the pretense of constructing a moving walkway.
Each homeless person has own reasons to lose their homes. People who do not try to understand this problem will say it is their faults, but even if so, their rights to live should not be violated.
Thus, it is obtain what the Tokyo metropolitan government is going to do is forced eviction which is defined critically by UN Commission on Human Rights. Japanese government has a moral obligation to Tokyo metropolitan government stop the plan to construct a moving walkway.
From the reasons above, we would like to appeal to the Japanese government, especially the the Ministry of Foreign Affairs which attended the UN Commission on Human Rights; HAVE THE TOKYO METROPOLITAN GOVERNMENT STOP SUCH A VIOLENT AND ILLEGAL FORCED EVICTION.
12th January, 1996
Shinjuku problem
INOKEN Home Page