Japanese government plans to open hotline for male sexual abuse victims

The announcement came on the heels of Japan's top male talent agency getting hit by sexual abuse claims surfacing against its late founder Johnny Kitagawa

Tokyo: As part of emergency steps unveiled on Wednesday, the Japanese government is planning to open a hotline for male sex victims possibly in September, Kyodo News reported.

The announcement came on the heels of Japan’s top male talent agency getting hit by sexual abuse claims surfacing against its late founder Johnny Kitagawa.

---

The temporary helpline will be set up exclusively for men and boys, since the government believes male sex victims may be hesitant to bring forward their cases due to public confusion about the subject, as per Kyodo News.

Kyodo News is a nonprofit cooperative news agency based in Minato, Tokyo.

The government will also provide a consultation service with lawyers who are knowledgeable about issues in the arts and entertainment sectors.

The emergency measures were decided during a meeting of relevant ministries and agencies to combat sexual abuse of adolescents and young adults.

The meeting’s chairman and minister in charge of child policies, Masanobu Ogura, stated that “child sexual abuse can easily go undetected and leave people suffering long-term trauma.” “We will put measures into action, starting from those we can apply immediately,” he added.

The government will also consider law revisions that would require reporting of sexual abuses, including indecent acts, to authorities in nursery schools and elsewhere, as well as strengthening measures against cases involving individuals who take advantage of their stronger positions in the workplace and through kinship ties.

The latest revelation comes as some former members of Johnny & Associates Inc recently come out to allege they were assaulted by Kitagawa, one of Japan‘s most revered characters in the entertainment industry. He passed away in 2019 at the age of 87.

The charges against Kitagawa drew international attention after a programme was aired about the sex abuse scandal in March, which included interviews with claimed victims.

In response to the scandal and calls for changes to the law, the government established the ministerial meeting in June, and had planned to come up with concrete measures by mid-July, Kyodo News reported.