Sued 20 Times Over NHK Party Issues as Election Watcher Chidai Opens Up About the Dangers of SLAPP Lawsuits

Court Recognizes Case as a SLAPP Lawsuit

Takashi Tachibana (58), leader of the “NHK Party” (NHK kara Kokumin wo Mamoru Tō), and lawyer Katsuya Fukunaga (45), who has represented multiple lawsuits involving the party and even ran for national office under the NHK Party banner, had filed a lawsuit against election watcher Chidai (47). They claimed that Chidai defamed them and violated their sense of honor through statements on social media. Chidai is also the author of “What Was the NHK Party?”

Regarding the fourth complaint sent to him by Fukunaga, Chidai posted on his SNS on April 25, 2025:

“What is this SLAPP lawsuit? All of these people should be thrown into jail together! An anti-social cult group! You filthy cults!”

Fukunaga claimed that phrases like filthy SLAPP lawsuit, all of these people should be thrown into jail together, and anti-social cult group! You filthy cults! damaged his honor and emotional reputation.

The court ruling on February 6 dismissed the plaintiffs’ claims and ordered them to bear the costs of the trial—meaning Chidai won the case.

Additionally, on April 28, 2025, Chidai posted on note multiple mentions of Fukunaga, stating:

“This is the result of them committing criminal acts and unlawful acts one after another, shamelessly and blindly accumulating them.”

Fukunaga argued that it was the NHK Party—not himself—who engaged in criminal and unlawful behavior, claiming he was not involved. He sued Chidai for defamation and violation of honor. However, the February 9 ruling also fully favored Chidai.

Chidai explained:

“The most important point is that the expression ‘Katsuya Fukunaga is engaging in a SLAPP lawsuit’ was recognized as truthful. In other words, the court effectively acknowledged that the lawsuit he filed against me is a SLAPP lawsuit.”

What is a SLAPP lawsuit?

Legal experts explain:

“A SLAPP lawsuit is one filed not with the expectation of winning, but to harass the other party, suppress speech, or create a chilling effect so that others think, ‘If I criticize this person, it will be too much trouble, so I’ll stop.’ It’s essentially intended to intimidate third parties.”

Chidai continues to fight SLAPP lawsuits filed by the NHK Party and its affiliates. The author conducted an interview not only about the recent rulings but also about Chidai’s ongoing battles with the NHK Party and the broader threats posed by SLAPP lawsuits.

“It’s fine to criticize me. Keep writing as much as you want.”

Chidai first met NHK Party leader Takashi Tachibana about nine years ago, in November 2017, during the Tokyo Katsushika Ward council elections.

“It was my second report since I started my election watcher activities. At JR Kameido Station’s south exit, I spotted Tachibana, who was a candidate, and called out to him.”

“He seemed friendly and approachable, but I thought he was a bit of a strange old man,” Chidai said.

Later, he saw Tachibana again near Shin-Koiwa Station. Seeing him get into a dispute with a Communist Party candidate, Chidai recalled thinking:

“Someone who can’t even resolve such minor issues through discussion and has to call the police to make a fuss lacks the qualities of a politician.”

In his report on the Katsushika Ward council election, Chidai wrote an article describing him as a troublesome old man. While not exactly a strong criticism, at that time Tachibana was still reportedly generous in attitude:

“It’s fine to criticize me. Keep writing as much as you want.”

The relationship between the two sharply deteriorated after April 2018. Chidai published an article on note titled “The 2018 Nerima Ward Council By-Election: The NHK Party’s Stance”, marking his first criticism of Tachibana and the NHK Party.

Soon after, attacks from the NHK Party, Tachibana, and party affiliates began—starting with a negative campaign against Chidai on social media. Then, successive SLAPP lawsuits were filed.

“The first NHK Party-related lawsuit targeted an article on a news media outlet run by a publisher, claiming defamation against the publisher. The court rejected Tachibana’s claim, and the publisher won. That could also be considered a SLAPP lawsuit. Afterward, they filed suit against me personally, and Tachibana lost. Next, Manabu Kubota, an NHK Party candidate in the Tachikawa City council election, sued me for defamation. I countersued and won, and the court officially recognized it as a SLAPP lawsuit.”

Defendant = villain image

On May 12, 2019, in a Nico Live video distributed by Manabu Kubota, Tachibana said:

“This lawsuit was not, from the start, about getting money from Chidai-kun. It’s what’s called a SLAPP lawsuit. A SLAPP is a lawsuit meant to inflict economic damage on the other party. The legal fees are to be paid by the parties themselves, win or lose.”

As Tachibana said, the financial burden fell heavily on Chidai.

“Whether to hire a lawyer is up to you, and if you don’t, there are no legal fees—but few people go that route. If someone is okay with losing, they might file as a pro se litigant to spend less. In my case, since I work in the world of speech and commentary, I couldn’t risk losing due to a procedural error, so I hired a lawyer. That meant finding a way to cover the fees, which was tough at the time. I had people supporting me, but I still had significant out-of-pocket costs.”

Nowadays, many people support him, so legal fees are no longer an issue. But what made things hardest for Chidai wasn’t just the money.

“Even if the NHK Party sues someone, unless the defendant is famous, most people wouldn’t know or care. But the NHK Party has a unique way of doing things: they make a big public spectacle, saying ‘This person is the defendant, therefore they’re a villain.’ The general public easily interprets defendant = bad person, which damages your image. Every time I checked those videos, it left a bad feeling.”

Chidai has faced numerous SLAPP lawsuits from NHK Party-related individuals. Just how many has he had to contend with?

“Tachibana, the NHK Party, and party affiliates didn’t just sue me—they targeted anyone who wrote on note or retweeted what I wrote. Counting all of them, there are 20 cases. Regarding me personally, lawyer Fukunaga filed four cases, and six were filed by other NHK Party affiliates. I lost only one case; the rest I won. Some are under appeal, and a few have concluded without a verdict yet, so it’s not completely over. That said, at the district court level, results are decided, and nothing is actively being litigated right now.”

Looking ahead, Chidai said:

“I think this will slow things down, but lawyer Fukunaga said he would sue up to 200 cases and is still recruiting plaintiffs. But after losing this many, I doubt anyone will step forward. Still, he says he’ll continue, and of course I’ll respond.”

Chidai’s battle with the NHK Party is far from over.