as put forth in an 83-page opinion,  the osaka high court (outranked only by the japanese supreme court) has determined prime minister junichiro koizumi's visits to the yasukuni shinto shrine violate japan's constitutional barriers between church and state. 

in an article which appeared in the october 1, 2005 edition of la times. staff writer, bruce wallace, Link notes:  

"Yasukuni honors the souls of Japanese killed in wars since the 19th century Meiji era, including 14 who were tried and convicted of war crimes after World War II. The site includes a museum that presents Japan's march across Asia in the first half of the 20th century as a noble mission to liberate the continent from Western imperialism."

despite koizumi's claim his visits to the shrine consist of private expressions of mourning and prayers for peace,  the court noted the prime minister was transported to yasukuni in a state-owned vehicle and included his official title when signing the guest book. 

in the words of presiding judge masaharu otani:  

"The visits made an impression that the national government particularly supports the Yasukuni Shrine, therefore we consider this a promotion of a certain religion."  

the decision carries political rather than legal weight in that it doesn't bar the prime minister from future visits.

koizumi's responded by disagreeing with the court:

"I do not think my paying homage at Yasukuni violates the constitution.  I am not paying visits as an official duty." 

reaction has been predictably conflicted.

"Politically, I think Koizumi is correct," said Kazuhisa Kawakami of Meiji Gakuin University. "It is unjustified that another country interferes, and a lot of Japanese are angry at the intervention in domestic affairs."

"Now he has a duty to respect the law," said Mitsutaka Nakajima, a lawyer who headed the group that made the legal challenge in Osaka. "If he does go ahead and visit Yasukuni after this, it will be an act of outrageous boldness."