Japan: Female journalist wins sexual assault lawsuit against officer worth $156000
Location: Japan, Nagasaki
Date: May 30, 2022
In what seems to be a case of the long arm of justice being served and a resolution after 15 years, a court ordered the Nagasaki city government to pay 19.75 million yen ($156000) to a female journalist. The perpetrator was an officer who ran a smear campaign against her after he sexually assaulted her in 2007. The CFWIJ is relieved to see such measures being taken against perpetrators and commends the Japanese court for coming to this decision. In a post MeToo world, institutions should be taking sexual assault allegations very seriously and create safeguards for women journalists.
The Nagasaki municipal government was ordered by a court Monday to pay around ¥19.75 million in compensation to a female journalist who was sexually assaulted by a male senior official. https://t.co/lRtvR5Uzt5
— The Japan Times (@japantimes) May 30, 2022
The city’s response to the assault was deemed inadequate and the court agreed that the victim had undergone trauma and was defamed because the city government did not take measures when the reporter filed her complaint in July 2007.
The plaintiff had said that she was sexually assaulted in July 2007, according to court documents. The plaintiff was meeting a muncipal department chief for an interview regarding a ceremony marking the Aug 9 remembrance of the bombing on Nagasaki in 1945.
The city governent conducted an internal investigation in October 2007 and found that the officer that he and the reporter had engaged in a sexual act but in his mind it was “consensual.”. The officer committed suicide in November of that year.
Lawyers representing the plaintiff said that the officer has abused his position because she had met him for an interview. The municipal government counter argued that since the interview was after hours it was not an abuse of his position as he was off duty.
The repercussions of the sexual assault on the plaintiff was post traumatic stress disorder and being unable to do her job. She was forced to take a leave of absence and she said she could not file the story which is an attack on press freedom. Later her information was leaked online leading to an onslaught of misinformation and backlash against her for speaking out.
In September 2007, the reporter left her job and in 2008 requested the municipal government to set up a committee to investigate her case which was rejected. She took her case to the Japan Federation of Bar Associations who after five years investigating the case, in 2014 said that the municipal government offer her an apology and make more safeguards to protect women. The municipal government refused to accept the recommendation leading the woman to sue them in 2019.
It is a testament to the resilience of this brave journalist to not give up in the face of a state institution that refused to hear her plea. With the perpetrator gone she had only her word against him, so this win comes off as a victory for victims of sexual assault everywhere. The CFWIJ aluds the tenacity with which this reporter refused to give up and demanded that her case be investigated. Her original settlement demand was for 74.77 million yen and the court ordered 19.7 million yen to be paid.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
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