OSAKA -- An Afghan national filed a suit against the Justice Ministry and the Osaka Immigration Bureau on Friday, demanding that the government rescind a decision to reject his application for refugee status, court officials said.
The 25-year-old plaintiff, known only as Abdullah, has filed a suit at the Osaka District Court in which he claims the government's decision is illegal as he could face persecution if he is repatriated.
Abdullah, a member of an Afghan minority group known as the Hazara, fought against Islamic forces in the country in 1994 and was hospitalized for six months with a leg wound, the lawsuit says.
He then left Afghanistan because of his tribe's persecution by Islamic groups. He arrived in Japan in November 1996 and applied for refugee status in May 1998, the lawsuit says.
According to the lawsuit, the Justice Ministry rejected his application in May 1999 for no reason.
Abdullah has received a government deportation order and has been detained at an immigration facility in Ibaraki, Osaka Prefecture.