'My boss raped me': Japanese prosecutor's fight for justice

The Australian

4 days ago

Very few women in Japan speak out about rape, and Hikari, too, kept quiet for years about her alleged assault by her boss, Osaka's former chief prosecutor.
However, Hikari (not her real name) finally dared to take the step, which came at great cost to her career -- she is also a prosecutor -- and her personal life. She does not regret it.
"My life has stopped since the assault," Hikari told AFP in an emotional interview.
"My husband was crying the other day, in a voice that I have never heard in my life, punching the wall and saying he cannot take it anymore," she said.
Hikari alleges that Kentaro Kitagawa, then head of the Osaka District Public Prosecutor's Office, raped her following an after-work party in 2018.
Kitagawa was not arrested until June 2024, later charged and his name made public.
He told an initial hearing in October that he had "no intention of fighting the case" and apologised for "causing serious and severe harm to the victim".
However, he changed his tune in December when his lawyer told reporters that Kitagawa "did not recognise that (Hikari) was unable to resist... and believed that she had consented".
Kitagawa, according to one media report, changed his mind after Hikari held a news conference and alleged that the prosecution had leaked information from the investigation.
- 'A nightmare' -
Hikari says she was not used to drinking strong alcohol and lost her memory halfway through the office gathering.
Colleagues told prosecutors that she got into a taxi to go home and that Kitagawa forced himself into the vehicle.
The next thing she knew, she said, she was in Kitagawa's home and was being raped.
"It was like I was having a terrible nightmare," Hikari told AFP. "I couldn't resist because I was terrified that I could be killed."
Hikari said she kept quiet after it happened.
Kitagawa had pleaded with her not to go public, saying that it would be a damaging scandal for the prosecutor's office, she said, and even threatened suicide.
He retired about a year after the incident but Hikari felt he still had influence over some officials and could hurt her career.
"He was a very influential and powerful man, so I was afraid that no one would listen to me if I complained about the assault," she said.
- 'Safe environment' -
The trauma still gnawed away at her.
Finally, after being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and taking time off work, she filed her case in 2024.
"In order to live, to get back to a peaceful life with my family, and to get back to my job as a prosecutor, I felt that (Kitagawa) needed to be brought to justice," she said.
"I just want to work in a safe environment... I want to save victims through work," she said.
She returned to work in September, only to find that malicious rumours were circulating.
These included identifying her as the victim -- her name had not been made public -- and that she had been attracted to Kitagawa, consented to sex and was not drunk.
Hikari believes the rumours were spread by people close to Kitagawa.
She has been on leave ever since.
She said her husband, with whom she has a child, is her biggest supporter but that he "is struggling with how to save me".
- Face hidden -
Kitagawa's lawyer has not responded to an AFP request for comment sent on June 30.
Hikari hasn't revealed her name and has held news conferences and interviews on the condition that her face won't be shown.
A handful of other victims of similar crimes have gone further. These include journalist Shiori Ito, who won a landmark civil case against a prominent TV reporter she accused of raping her.
In 2021, Rina Gonoi accused fellow soldiers of sexual assault and three of them were later given suspended sentences.
Both women were praised for their bravery in coming forward but also received a barrage of online hate.
The latest government figures show that 8.1 per cent of Japanese women, or one in 12.5, have had non-consensual sex.
Just 1.5 percent contacted police and 55.4 percent stayed silent.
However, Seisen University Professor Kaori Okamoto said that now "the idea that it's okay to talk about sexual violence is spreading".
Okamoto, a clinical psychologist who has been helping victims, said the number of people consulting support centres is also increasing.
Even though there is no major #MeToo movement like those in the United States and South Korea, modest-sized rallies against sexual violence sprang up across Japan after several alleged rapists were acquitted in 2019.
Law changes have also helped. The definition of rape was broadened in 2017, while the need for victims to prove violence or intimidation was removed in 2023.
"In the past, many thought that even if you report the assault, you're only going to get hurt and you're not going to catch the culprit," Okamoto said.
- Career ladder -
Hikari said sexual harassment is "rampant" in the Japanese legal world.
Public records show that 21 people at prosecutors' offices have been disciplined for sexual violence in the past 16 years, she said.
"Officials feel they can do anything as they climb the career ladder," Hikari said.
"The prosecutors have no shareholders, no sponsors and no external pressure," she said.
Her supporters submitted a petition to the government in January calling for a long prison sentence for Kitagawa and strict punishment for the assistant prosecutor.
The petition has more than 68,000 signatures.
"The reason I still continue to speak publicly is because I want to keep saying that the victims are not at fault," Hikari said.
"I don't know your faces, but at least I want to say that I'm by your side."
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