In a move welcomed by a local group of Korean residents, Japan's first ordinance aimed at deterring so-called hate speech went into effect Friday in the city of Osaka.

Osaka's ordinance defines hate speech as communication that defames and aims to exclude a particular group based on race or ethnicity, and disseminating such messages to a large number of people, including via online transmission.

It covers hate speech used at demonstrations, in public speeches, and the dissemination and viewing of DVDs of such activities, and aims to curb the posting of footage, images and words the city judges defamatory.