A recent study by the Japanese Cabinet Office revealed that One in ten young people in Japan has been harassed on public transport or in public places. This alarming finding highlights the persistence of this problem, despite the measures taken by the government to combat it. The majority of victims are women, according to the report.

The study was conducted nationwide in February, surveying more than 36 thousand people between 16 and 29 years old. The results, published this month, indicate that 10.5% of respondents suffered sexual harassmentknown in Japan as “chikan”. About 90% of the victims are womenand about two-thirds of the incidents occurred on trains.

Many of those interviewed reported having been a victim on several occasionsand some even pointed out that They were bullied almost daily during their high school years.. These data reflect the severity and frequency of the problem, highlighting the need for more effective measures to protect passengers.

Since the beginning of this century, major Japanese cities such as Tokyo have implemented carriages exclusively for women as a measure to combat harassment. In addition, they were installed surveillance cameras on trains and stationsand strengthened the presence of railway police, uniformed and civilian. At the stations, posters warn about harassment and encourage reporting of these acts.

Despite these measures, some research participants demand a stronger response by the authorities. Police statistics indicate that in 2023, around 2,000 people have been arrested on suspicion of sexual harassment. Although, most cases go unreported. According to the study, the 80% of the victims did not report to the police or other authorities about the incidents. Reasons for not reporting include not recognizing the seriousness of what happened or considering that It wasn't worth reporting. to the authorities.

• «I have never been a victim of sexual harassment».
• «Periodic research may be necessary. I have also been the victim of harassment several times, but I never reported it because I didn't know who was responsible or because I was in a hurry to work or school. Furthermore, I didn't know how to react to ambiguous situations, such as when someone shook my hand or hugged me from behind and told me it was a mistake.».
• «Isn't that an exaggeration?».
• «It took a long time for the Office to carry out this research 💦. In recent years, harassment of boys and men has also increased».
• «I was also a victim of harassment 😱».
• «I don't understand what pleasure they find in harassment... How disgusting... Their brains are rotten».
• «So few victims?».
• «I often see comments online that aggressively defend crimes, but I've never seen them defend the idiots who harass them. They must be pretty crazy to do something like that.».

Source: Otakomu