Sexual harassment complaints in Japan, commonly referred to as Sekuhara, rose by 35 percent in 2000, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.The traditionally male-dominated society registered 11,102 complaints in 2006, compared to 9,500 in 1999.
Half of the complaints were filled by the women, while the rest was reported by employers. The increasing number of reported cases points to a developing intolerance toward sexual aggression in Japan, bolstered by a 1999 measure that revamped labor laws by banning sexual harassment and discrimination at work. The Equal Employment Opportunity Law increased social awareness, as did international pressure to improve women's rights.
In roughly 10 percent of the cases, women said they had been treated incorrectly after refusing to have sex intercourse with their male superiors. Additionally, most plaintiffs claimed their companies were not willing to do anything about their complaints.
Several high profile cases have made news recently:
- One of Japan’s most famous cases occurred in 1999, when the governor of Osaka, a former TV star nicknamed "Knock" Yokoyama, was accused of sexually harassing a 21 year old university student. He resigned in December 1999 and was ordered to pay the woman $107,000. The monetary compensation marked a historic achievement in Japan.
- The case was followed by that of a female university student who claimed she was harassed and forced into a sexual relationship by her 40-year-old piano teacher. In July 2000, the Sendai District Court awarded her $87,000.
- And in a bizarre case, in 2007 a Japanese man working for a government office was found guilty of sexual harassment for forcing a female colleague to pluck his beard. He was ordered to pay more than $5300 in damages. The Legal Herald reported that the man had "repeatedly asked the woman to pluck his beard, and she was finally forced to give in.” The judge declared: "Asking a woman to pluck your beard is inappropriate and illegal."
