The Naha branch of the Fukuoka High Court on Thursday overturned an earlier ruling that ordered the government to compensate an Okinawa landowner for forcing him to lease land to the U.S. military even after land-use contracts expired in 1996.
The central government "illegally occupied the land of the plaintiff, knowing that the measure would violate his right to the land," presiding Judge Hitoshi Watanabe said. The state is "liable to pay him compensation."
But plaintiff Shoichi Chibana gave up his right to seek damages when he refused a government offer of compensation made during attempts to secure the continued lease of the land, the judge said.
Last November, the Naha District Court ordered the government to pay 470,000 yen in damages to Chibana, who owns a lot used by the U.S. Navy, for illegally occupying his land for one year until the law allowing land expropriation for the U.S. military was amended in 1997.