The Supreme Court on Nov. 30 upheld a high court ruling that had found a 62-year-old Buddhist monk "guilty of trespassing" for entering a Tokyo condominium to distribute political fliers for the Japan Communist Party in December 2004. The ruling fined him ¥50,000.
The Supreme Court's Second Petit Bench attached importance to the fact that notices in the entrance hall of the building prohibited the insertion of leaflets and pamphlets into door mailboxes. The court decided that the monk, Mr. Yosei Arakawa, infringed on the residents' peace and privacy.
Although Mr. Arakawa was inside the building for about seven or eight minutes, he did not do anything considered likely to cause fear among residents. In the past, he had distributed leaflets in the same building without protests or warnings from the residents' association.