B11. Sexual Harassment, Sexual Violence and Campaigns against it in Japan

New links on victim-blaming added 16 Jun 2021:

「日本の #MeToo：沈黙を破り始めた女性たち」This article is describing about how Japanese society making people to keep quiet and pointed out Japanese society is tough for victims. BBC News Japan, 25th April, 2018

「日本は性暴力に麻痺している――詩織さんケースで捜査、報道、社会の問題点を検証する」, by Reiko Miyake. This is an article based on an interview to Shiori Ito, talking about why sexual violence is hidden in Japanese society and the problem of police’s investigation etc. Business Insider, 24th November, 2017.

「#MeTooを阻むもの　性被害者の二次被害を防ぐには」 This is an article about what causes victim blaming in Japanese society using Shiori Ito’s case. 朝日新聞デジタル、27th Feburary, 2020.

Shifting attitudes toward sexual violence in Japan これはすでにwebpageに載っている記事ですが、私がvictim blamingについて調べていた際に大変参考になったためおすすめです。The Japan Times の記事なので、以前LINEでお伝えした方法を使ってVPN接続してからこのタイトルの記事を探すと読めるかなと思います。Japan Times, 6 Jan 2018.

New link added 25 May 2021 She Accused the Mayor of Sexual Assault. Then the Town Turned on Her. Assemblymen in Kusatsu, Japan, organized an election to recall their sole female colleague, saying she had damaged the town’s reputation with her allegations. This story about the case of Shoko Arai focus on how attitudes towards female victims of sexual violence prevents them speaking out. New York Times, 9 Dec 2020.

New link added 25 May 2021 Lifting the lid on Japan's harassment problem An article that looks at stories about sexual harassment in the news, the impact of the Me Too movement in Japan, levels of different kinds of sexual harassment and violence against men and women, victim-blaming and the issue of sexual consent. NHK World, 31 Jan 2019.

"Flower Demo" fighting sexual violence in Japan This article looks at the recent 'Flower Demo' protests by women, and tells briefly the stories of some women involved, as well as explaining how the movement started. It also reports on a campaign by three groups, Human Rights Now, Spring and Voice-Up Japan to change the law on sexual assault in Japan. Kyodo News, 5 Mar 2020.

Shifting attitudes toward sexual violence in Japan This article looks at the case of Shiori Ito, a journalist who spoke out after being raped by a prominent male journalist close to the Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, and at the stories of other women who have spoken out after suffering sexual violence. It describes a number of organisations statred by women to help the survivors of male violence and also explains the process of 'blaming the victim' which often silences women who have suffered sexual violence and makes them afraid to speak about their experiences. Japan Times, 6 Jan 2018.

Japan woman with PTSD from alleged sexual violence by teacher goes public to stop abuse "A Japanese woman who in her junior high school days became an alleged victim of sexual abuse by one of her teachers has found the strength to face up to her damage more than 20 years on from the apparent attacks." The article explains how she only came to see herself as a victim some years after the abuse ended, and how she is now speaking out about it and gathering information on levels of abuse of students by teachers. Mainichi Shimbun, 2 Aug 2020.

Elimination of All Forms of Violence against Women This government webpage introduces in English the policies of the Japanese Government in this area, which mainly seem to focus on 'spousal violence' (violence by partners) but also includes a campaign against violence against women in general and measures of human trafficking. Cabinet Office, Gender Equality Bureau.

Shiori Ito, symbol of Japan's MeToo movement, wins rape lawsuit damages A Japanese woman whose rape accusations against a prominent TV journalist turned her into a symbol of the country’s fledgling #MeToo movement has been awarded 3.3m yen [$30,000] in damages. Guardian, 18 Dec 2019.

Japan's not-so-secret shame In the #MeToo era, it's high time for Japan to change its archaic and sexist approach to sexual assault. An opinion piece by Teppei Kasai. Aljazeera, 30 Jul 2018.

Sexual Harassment A webpage for foreign ALTs (Assistant Language Teachers) working in Japan that discusses how sexual harassment in Japan may be seen both within Japan and from outside and challenges some stereotypes. It also explains legal definitions of sexual harassment in Japan. AJET (Association for Japan Exchange and Training).

Japan's attitude to sexual harassment toughens Despite Japan's reputation for lagging behind other advanced economies in its treatment of sexual harassment cases, its citizens appear less tolerant of such behavior than their peers in other Asian countries and they want tougher penalties for offenders, according to a recent survey. Nikkei Asian Review, 12 June 2018.

In corporate Japan, little movement on harassment policies: Reuters poll Three-quarters of Japanese companies have made no changes to sexual harassment policies over the last year and don’t plan to do so, a Reuters poll found, though awareness of harassment is on the rise. Reuters, 25 May 2018.

Why Japanese Men Still Don’t Get It: Structural Roots of Sexual Harassment By Muta Kazue. What do recent stories focusing on sexual harassment in Japan say about the social conditions of Japanese women? Professor Muta Kazue argues that, despite a growing awareness of the issues, such incidents will continue until Japan overhauls the underlying systems that perpetuate workplace discrimination against women. Nippon.com, 18 May 2015.

Japan women see turning point on sexual harassment after scandal Japanese women, long accustomed to enduring sexual harassment in silence, are speaking out after a high-profile scandal involving a top bureaucrat stirred debate and protests.Reuters, 24 May 2018.

Me Too rises in Japan as sexually harassed journalists speak out The Me Too movement, which was initially slow to spread in Japan, is now quietly reaching boiling point. This article includes the experiences of a number of female journalists who suffered sexual harrassment and who often faced silence when they protested about it. Japan Times, Apr 22, 2018.

*Japan sexual harassment survey reveals 150 allegations by women in media A third of cases involved inappropriate behaviour by government officials, police officers and MPs. Guardian, 22 May 2018.

Articles below added 27 Apr 2021:

NHK福祉情報サイト　ハートネット　性暴力被害 This is the page of NHK’s program ハートネットabout sexual violence. You can find some stories of experiences of sexual violence and organizations supporting survivors.

特定非営利活動法人　性暴力救援センター・東京 Sexual Assaults Relief Center Tokyo : SARC東京 This is the organization’s webpage supporting sexual violence survivors in Tokyo. It is called 「ワンストップ支援センター」which means that survivors can be considerate with survivors feelings and provide all supports they need in one place here. There are at least one organization called ワンストップ支援センター all around Japan and you can also see here https://www.gender.go.jp/policy/no_violence/seibouryoku/consult.html to find out more about other prefectures ワンストップ支援センター.

“How to Avoid Victim Blaming” Harvard Law School halt, harassment assault law-student team. This is about victim blaming, the definitions and how to prevent victim blaming.

「仕事の世界におけるハラスメントに関する実態調査2019」 連合　28/5/2019. This is the survey conducted in 2019 by 日本労働組合総連合会 (Japan Trade Union Confederation) about harassment in workplace.

”Will ‘Voice Up Japan’ Encourage Japanese Women to Finally Speak Up About Inequality?” Brooke Larsen March, 8, 2019 Savvy Tokyo

「性暴力被害事件における新聞報道と二次加害」杉 山 泰 子、境 原 三津夫 新潟県立看護大学. “Newspaper Coverage and Secondary Harm in Sexual Assault Victims” Yasuko Sugiyama, Mitsuo Sakaihara Niigata College of Nursing. This paper is about how media show sexual assault survivors and what happened on them and the importance and responsibility of the media.

“Editorial: Shiori Ito's case shows Japan must protect sexual assault victims” December 27, 2019, Mainichi Japan. This article shows the detail of Shiori Ito’s case who is the survivor of sexual violence in Japan. It also mentions about victim blaming and the situation that many victims in Japan keep silent after what they had experienced.

“What lies behind Shiori Ito's lonely #MeToo struggle” January, 26, 2020 The Japan Times. This article is about Shiori Ito’s case and the influence from the government against police to make injustice decision to protect the perpetrator, Noriyuki Yamaguchi.

『伊藤詩織さん勝訴、誰もが知っておくべき判決の「最重要ポイント」』2019.12.24現代ビジネス. This is about Shiori Ito’s case and focused on her civil lawsuit against Mr. Yamaguchi. She won the civil lawsuit, and it explains the important points of the court’s decision and the problem in Japanese criminal law.

「刑法を再改正し、 性犯罪被害者が尊重される 社会の実現を」JOICFP. This article is about Japanese criminal law about sexual assaults is not protecting survivors enough even it was changed in 2017.

“Shiori Ito: Japanese journalist awarded $30,000 in damages in rape case” December 18, 2019 BBC News. This article is about what happened on Shiori Ito and explain the situation in the videos.

“Shifting attitudes toward sexual violence in Japan” January 6, 2018 The Japan Times