Japanese #MeToo Symbol Wins Rape Claim in Higher Court

27-01-2022 

Malina Wiethaus

Japan and Human Rights Researcher 

Global Human Rights Defence 

On Tuesday, journalist Shiori Ito got awarded damages after winning a high-profile rape case in a Japanese higher court. The former senior television reporter, Noriyuki Yamaguchi was ordered to pay 3.3. million yen in damages to Ito, as the court ruled in favor of Ito recognizing he had sexual intercourse without her consent back in 2015 (Kyodo, 2022).  

This decision falls back to prior decisions made in Tokyo’s lower courts in 2019. The 32-year-old journalist stated that she was raped while being unconscious, at a hotel by Yamaguchi, with whom she had dinner prior to the rape. Yamaguchi, a 55-year-old former Washington bureau chief of a television broadcaster, had promised to give her a job, which was the reason for the dinner at a Hotel in Tokyo (Kyodo, 2022). 

The journalist had initially sued Yamaguchi for 11 million yen in damages, winning the case. Yamaguchi countersued her for 130 million yen claiming the accusations to be untrue, especially in regard to him drugging her. The higher court ruled in his favor, ordering her to pay him 550,000 yen in damages. After being ordered to pay 3.3 million yen in damages to Ito after Tokyo's District Court ruling in 2019 recognized her allocations, Yamaguchi appealed the ruling in January 2020. Last Tuesday, she won the case again, receiving 3.3 million yen in damages (Kyodo, 2022). Her refusal to give up on the case, even after the criminal investigation against Yamaguchi was dropped, represents the struggles one must overcome to be heard (Lloyd Parry, 2022). 

Shiori Ito has become a lead figure in Japan’s #MeToo movement, inspiring other women to come forward. She initially sparked the #MeToo movement in Japan, after the launch of her book in 2017, sharing her personal experience of sexual assault (Kyodo, 2022). In 2020, the journalist was among the Time’s 100 Most Influential People, acknowledging her courage (Kyodo, 2020). 

Sources and further readings: 

KYODO NEWS. (2020, September 24). #MeToo movement journalist among Time’s 100 Most Influential People. https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2020/09/cb1c67891f50-metoo-movement-journalist-among-times-100-most-influential-people.html 

KYODO NEWS. (2022, January 25). Symbol of Japan #MeToo movement again awarded damages in rape case. https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2022/01/f56446fc03a4-symbol-of-japan-metoo-movement-again-awarded-damages-in-rape-case.html 

Parry, R. L. (2022, January 26). Japan’s MeToo champion, Shiori Ito, wins rape claim case against TV star. World | The Times. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/japans-metoo-champion-wins-case-affirming-rape-claim-vb8l72zv7 

Time. (2020). The 100 Most Influential People of 2020. https://time.com/collection/100-most-influential-people-2020/