* This case is different from the proceedings for national compensation and information disclosure filed by Toshio Akagi's bereaved family. Lawyers, plaintiffs, and support groups are also different.

[Case overview]

We request disclosure of administrative documents to various ministries and local governments, but the Ministry of Finance has an unusual hurdle.

That is, the Ministry of Finance does not interpret the subject of the disclosure request in a straightforward manner, and asks for an amendment that "the meaning is not always clear", that is, to correct or rewrite the subject of the disclosure request. Then, he asks you to write the "subject of the administrative document" and the "date of creation".

However, can the person making the disclosure request know in advance the subject and date of creation of the administrative document? It's almost impossible.

The Information Disclosure Law (Act on Access to Information Held by Administrative Organs), Article 4, Paragraph 1, Item 2 stipulates that "the name of the administrative document and other matters sufficient to identify the administrative document related to the disclosure request" should be stated. According to this, if you write "matters sufficient to identify", you should be able to request disclosure even if you do not know the name of the document. In fact, ministries other than the Ministry of Finance have not made such amendment requests.

Moreover, the Ministry of Finance stated in Paragraph 2 of the same Article, "When the head of an administrative organ finds that the disclosure request has a formal defect, he / she will respond to the person who requested the disclosure (hereinafter referred to as the" disclosure requester "). A reasonable period of time can be set and the amendment can be requested. In this case, the head of the administrative organ shall endeavor to provide the disclosure requester with information that can be used as a reference for amendment. While requesting amendments based on the provisions of the first sentence, the only "reference information" in the second sentence was to indicate the URL such as "administrative document file management book".

(Document requesting amendment of administrative document disclosure request)

Is it possible to search for "official documents with such contents" in the administrative document file case book? If it could be searched, many official documents about the Moritomo case would have already been excavated and elucidated.

In fact, even if you search the administrative document file management book (https://administrative-doc.e-gov.go.jp/servlet/Fsearch) with "Moritomo Gakuen", it is clear to the Diet that it will appear. Even the "Investigation Report on Falsification of Approval Documents Related to Moritomo Gakuen Project" published by the Ministry of Finance itself on the Ministry of Finance's website will not be hit, only with the answers and documents related to the Cabinet decision.

In the request for examination of the case where the same non-disclosure was made in a disclosure request different from this case, "an example of the amendment that the Ministry of Finance considers appropriate, which shows what kind of amendment should be made to comply with the disclosure of administrative documents. I asked for it, but the Treasury has not responded to this either.

This response by the Ministry of Finance infringes the right to request disclosure.

Many "non-disclosure decisions due to malformation" were issued in response to my disclosure request, but due to the circumstances of the proceedings, I narrowed down the scope to two points.

The first is "a document that shows the instructions, commands, and orders given by the Director of the Finance Bureau of the Ministry of Finance regarding the Moritomo Gakuen project", and the second is "instructions and orders given regarding the handling of storage, viewing, etc. of Akagi files". Is the question.

The former is important for knowing how far the instructions of the director of the Finance Bureau have reached, and the latter is important for the situation of the Akagi file and the possibility of tampering with the Akagi file. It's a problem, but neither has been disclosed by the Treasury.

The right to request disclosure is an important right, as Article 1 of the Information Disclosure Law clearly states, "The right to request disclosure of administrative documents." In order to correct the Ministry of Finance's stance of infringing this right, we will file a lawsuit for state compensation.

[What is required in the proceedings]

1. 1. National compensation for infringement of disclosure claim

2. 2. Canceling the "non-disclosure decision due to malformation" and disclosing the official document with the subject I requested

Regarding 2., the subject of the administrative document I requested is the following two.

(1) A document that shows the instructions, commands, and orders given by the Director of the Finance Bureau of the Ministry of Finance regarding the Moritomo Gakuen project.

(2) The original of Exhibit Otsu No. 11 submitted by the government in the proceedings for damage compensation pending in the Osaka District Court with Masako Akagi as the plaintiff and the government as the defendant. The document entitled "Instructions for Amendment") "was created by the late Toshio Akagi, who was a staff member of the Kinki Local Finance Bureau, and is kept at the Ministry of Finance or the Kinki Local Finance Bureau until the government submits it to the court in June this year. A document that shows the content, date and time, and the instructor or authorizer of the instructions given regarding the handling of storage, movement, and viewing of the document. For example, document management records, management books, transfer orders, etc.

[Social significance of this case]

Anyone should be able to easily disclose information (request for disclosure). Otherwise, it cannot serve as a means of protecting democracy. However, the Treasury, like every time, asks for amendments without reading the subject line of the disclosure request obediently.

This will save time for the Ministry of Finance, and by threatening the citizens who requested disclosure, "I don't know how to write it," it is "difficult for me" and "requesting disclosure." It is useless, "and by instilling the image that the hurdles are high and difficult for disclosure requests, it has the effect of atrophiing disclosure requests. If such an operation is allowed, the information disclosure system will become a mere ghost.

The information disclosure system must be properly "usable" and "promotion of fair and democratic administration under the accurate understanding and criticism of the people" (Article 1 of the Information Disclosure Law) must be realized. We need to change the current attitude of the Ministry of Finance and sternly hold its responsibilities.

In addition, the administrative document requesting disclosure in this case is different from the document requesting disclosure in the "Truth in the falsification case of the Ministry of Finance! It's about the case.

It is not fully clear what kind of instructions were given by the Director of the Finance Bureau of the Ministry of Finance in the unforgivable act of falsifying administrative documents.

In addition, the Ministry of Finance refused to answer the "Akagi File" in the Diet, saying that it would not reveal its existence at first. As a result of Mr. Masako Akagi's trial as a plaintiff, it was finally submitted as evidence material, but in addition to masking, for example, by extracting the part with inconvenient description from the file created by Mr. Akagi, or after Mr. Akagi's death Where is the guarantee that you haven't added any other documents?

If an administrative document showing the storage status of the "Akagi file" came out, what was the situation (for example, was it thrown into a locker and left unattended, or was it placed within reach of anyone? I understand).

Democracy is only possible with surveillance and criticism. In order to protect and develop Japan's democracy, it is inevitable to elucidate the whole picture of this Moritomo case.

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