Japanese Reporter Denies Defamation Of Skorean President

A Seoul-based Japanese journalist denied defaming South Korea's president at a court hearing Thursday, after being accused of damaging Park Geun-hye's reputation in the wake of April's Sewol ferry disaster.



Tatsuya Kato could face up to seven years in prison if found guilty of criminal libel based on an Aug. 3 article for Japan's Sankei Shimbun.



At a time when South Korea's government was under intense scrutiny for its response to the Sewol tragedy, which claimed more than 300 lives off the country's southwest coast, Kato had repeated unsubstantiated local rumors about Park.



These included allegations that the unmarried Park had held a clandestine meeting with a man during a seven-hour window on the day of the sinking.



"I wrote the article to inform Japanese people of South Koreans' awareness about the president. I have never intended to defame," Kato told the first trial session at Seoul Central District Court, according to local news agency Yonhap.



Park's office insists she was inside the presidential compound during the seven hours in question on April 16.



With the support of Reporters Without Borders, Kato's lawyers contended in their client's defense that his article was in the public interest – a decisive factor under South Korea's defamation law.



The trial comes at a time of heightened tensions between Seoul and Tokyo. The Japanese government officially protested Kato's indictment with South Korea last month.



Local media noted the Sankei Shimbun is viewed as a conservative newspaper with a history of stirring sensitive issues – such as campaigning for Japan to reverse an apology over forcing Korean women into sexual slavery during the last century.



The issue continues to be a source of dispute between Seoul and Tokyo, as 54 surviving so-called comfort women continue to call on Japan to atone for its past abuses with sincerity.



Reflecting their strained ties, President Park is yet to agree to a bilateral summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe - but Seoul's foreign ministry did confirm Thursday that director general talks had taken place earlier in the day.



www.aa.com.tr/en - Seoul-t'ukpyolsi