The arrest of three members of an antiwar group who distributed fliers opposing the Self-Defense Forces dispatch to Iraq represents a threat to freedom of speech, members of the group said Friday.

Tokyo police arrested the trio on Feb. 27, alleging they were trespassing at SDF residential quarters in Tachikawa, Tokyo, on Jan. 17. They are suspected of distributing fliers urging SDF members and their families to consider whether the Iraq dispatch was appropriate.