Japan court rules in favor of Sri Lankans over right to fair trial

The Tokyo High Court on Wednesday ruled in favor of two Sri Lankans who had demanded 10 million yen ($91,000) in damages from Japanese immigration authorities for infringing on their right to undergo a trial for refugee status.The court ordered the state to pay 300,000 yen each to the men, overturning a lower court ruling that rejected the plaintiffs' claim for the damages."The two men were effectively deprived of the opportunity to stand trial to see if they were qualified as refugees," Yutaka Hirata, presiding judge of the high court, said in handing down the ruling.The court acknowledged…READ FULL ARTICLE