Apr 5 10:37 PM US/Eastern
TOKYO, April 5 (AP) - (Kyodo) — Plaintiffs seeking the disclosure of diplomatic documents relating to the 1972 reversion of Okinawa to Japan on Monday requested the Tokyo District Court to allow media to record the sentencing proceedings audio-visually.
"As we are struggling to secure our right to know in this lawsuit, we filed this request as part of the effort to enhance the openness of the court," Keiichi Katsura, who leads the group of 25 plaintiffs, told a press conference.
Currently, courts only allow media to film judges and those involved in lawsuits for several minutes before the start of court proceedings.
The suit came after a former Mainichi Shimbun reporter was convicted in the 1970s for his news coverage of the negotiations behind Okinawa's reversion to Japan from U.S. administrative control, stirring concerns over the infringement of the people's right to know.
The latest legal battle has drawn public attention, with a former high-ranking diplomat testifying as to the existence of a secret pact over Okinawa's reversion.
The district court will hand down the ruling on Friday.
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