The Supreme Court's grand bench on Jan. 20 ruled that the city government of Sunagawa in Hokkaido has violated the Constitution through its longtime practice of letting a Shinto shrine use a city-owned plot of land without charge. The top court's precedent-setting ruling should serve as a warning to the central and local governments that they should strictly uphold the constitutional principle of separation of state and religion. It will have an impact across the nation because many religious facilities, of various faiths, stand on public land. Some have cultural or historical value.
It is also noteworthy that the Supreme Court tried to avoid immediate removal of the shrine in question — the Sorachibuto Shrine — from its current site. While ruling that the city government's practice is unconstitutional, it sent the case back to the Sapporo High Court, telling it to find a way to resolve the unconstitutionality of the land use without necessitating removal of the shrine. This could perhaps be done by selling or renting the land to the shrine's regular worshippers.
The top court said that the shrine users' right to freedom of religion should be protected. It is clearly taking a practical approach — enforcing the principle of separation of state and religion while trying to avoid confusion.