Wednesday, March 9, 2005 at 07:19 JST
TOKYO — Supporters of chess legend Bobby Fischer in
Japan and Iceland vowed Tuesday to take legal action on
Friday against Japanese immigration authorities if they
refuse to release Fischer and allow him to go to Iceland
despite Iceland's move to issue him a passport.
"If they fail to free Fischer based on our request, we
will sue. We will wait until Friday before we take legal
recourse to free this man from unfounded imprisonment
for eight months," John Bosnitch, who heads the
Tokyo-based Committee to Free Bobby Fischer, told a news
conference.
"If this man is not free this week, we will seek eminent
persons around the world, political prisoners around the
world, to come out in favor of Bobby Fischer and send
letters to the United Nations and discuss whether Japan
is fit to be a member of the Security Council," Bosnitch
said.
Japan has launched a joint bid with Brazil, Germany and
India for permanent seats in an enlarged Security
Council whose setup dates from the end of World War II.
Of the four candidates, Japan has the most backing by
the U.S.
Fischer, 62, is being held at an immigration detention
facility in Ushiku, Ibaraki Prefecture, northeast of
Tokyo. Supporters, who have visited and talked to him by
phone, claim that Fischer is stressed and being
maltreated.
Officials of the detention center in Ushiku and Justice
Ministry's Immigration Bureau have refused to comment on
the case.
"We cannot comment on a case that is currently being
fought in court," a bureau official said, while a
spokesman for the detention center said rules prohibit
them from speaking on specific cases.
Current Justice Minister Chieko Nohno agreed last
December to consider Fischer's plea to go to Iceland,
where the chess giant is famous for his 1972 "match of
the century."
But Fischer remains relatively unknown in Japan, which
is not a major chess-playing nation. Most mainstream
Japanese media have given minimal coverage to Fischer's
legal woes. (Wire reports)
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