Japan rules against road over ancient port behind 'Ponyo'

Japan rules against road over ancient port behind 'Ponyo'
(AFP) – Oct 1, 2009

TOKYO — In a rare win for heritage activists, a Japanese court Thursday halted plans for a road bridge over the scenic and ancient port that helped inspire the animation hit movie "Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea".

The court ruled that the impact would have been too grave on picturesque Tomonoura port -- which is lined with traditional Japanese houses and faces the Seto Inland Sea -- located in western Hiroshima Prefecture.

It was the first time a Japanese court halted a public works project in order to preserve a landscape, according to public broadcaster NHK.

"This is an epoch-making ruling," said one of about 160 plaintiffs, mostly local residents, who had sued the prefecture demanding the project be scrapped.

The prefecture and Fukuyama city, where the port is located, first planned the project -- a 180-metre (590 foot) bridge and a connecting road on reclaimed waterfront land -- 26 years ago to ease traffic congestion.

The International Council on Monuments and Sites, a non-governmental group set up with the support of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), had appealed against the Tomonoura project.

Presiding judge Akio Nose noted that the port is an asset of the people, according to Jiji Press news agency.

Oscar-winning animator Hayao Miyazaki spent about two months in a clifftop house overlooking Tomonoura as he sought inspiration for his latest film "Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea", a tale of a fish-girl, a human boy and the sea.

"It was a very good ruling," Miyazaki told reporters. "This is not just an issue in Tomonoura. When you envision the future of Japan, it makes a very important step forward."

The film was a blockbuster in Japan and hit screens abroad this year.

Hiroshima Governor Yuzan Fujita said he regretted the ruling, and said the prefecture would decide what to do after examining the decision carefully.

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