World News | Japanese Govt Panel Finds Rampant Coverups, Mishandling of Harassment Cases in Military

Tokyo, Aug 18 (AP) A panel of experts that investigated harassment cases in Japan's military and Defence Ministry said Friday it found widespread coverups and reluctance among supervisors to deal with cases, and recommended fundamental improvements.

The investigation was commissioned by the ministry after a high-profile sexual assault case was brought by a former soldier.

Also Read | UK Killer Nurse Lucy Letby Faces Life Sentence For Murdering Seven Babies.

The panel said about 80% of the reported cases involved abuse of power and that sexual harassment accounted for about 12%.

It said in a report that more than 60% of the victims in 1,325 cases reported to the panel never sought help from counsellors in the military or ministry due to a lack of trust in the system or a fear of retribution.

Also Read | Jack Ma on Poverty in China: Rural Education Can Change Entire Poor Areas, Says Alibaba Founder.

The panel said many of the 400 people it interviewed who had sought help from supervisors or counsellors said they did not receive appropriate help and faced coverups, pressure to drop cases, broken confidentiality or a lack of understanding.

The report urged the ministry and the military to raise awareness about harassment and introduce an appraisal system for those in supervisory positions that includes their handling of harassment cases, such as ensuring protection for victims and witnesses from retribution.

“In order to create an organization that does not tolerate harassment, we will firmly take steps based on the recommendation (in the report),” said Satoshi Mikai, head of the ministry's staffing and education bureau, as he received the report.

Several damage suits have been filed recently against the government by former and serving personnel who said their sexual harassment cases were covered up or mishandled.

Former soldier Rina Gonoi demanded publicly last year that the Defence Ministry reinvestigate her case, saying she was repeatedly assaulted by several servicemen, causing her to abandon her military career. The military had dropped her case when she initially filed a complaint in 2021, saying there was insufficient evidence.

The army acknowledged her mistreatment last September after an internal probe and apologised. Four of the five perpetrators personally apologised a month later to Gonoi. The ministry in December dismissed the five servicemen and punished four others.

Gonoi filed a damage suit against the five perpetrators and the government in January, saying she felt their earlier apologies were insincere. She is seeking 5.5 million yen ($37,800) from the perpetrators and 2 million yen ($13,740) from the government, saying it failed to prevent the assaults, properly investigate or respond appropriately.

Separately, an air force service person filed a lawsuit in February against the government seeking about 11.7 million yen ($75,600) in damages, saying it had failed to protect her from verbal sexual harassment from a male colleague and covered up the problem for more than a decade. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)