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Shoko Arai, 51, was voted out on Sunday in Kusatsu, which is legendary for its pure scorching springs and resorts. The dismissal request claimed Arai’s allegations had “degraded” the women of the Gunma prefecture city.
In complete, 92% of votes lodged demanded her elimination, in accordance with Kusatsu officers.
The controversy started in November final 12 months, when Arai revealed an e-book claiming she had been compelled right into a sexual relationship with the city’s mayor, Tadanobu Kuroiwa.
A movement to fireplace the mayor was voted down, and Arai was expelled from the meeting a month later. However, the expulsion was appealed, and finally reversed by the prefecture.
After she was reinstated, a gaggle of 19 residents led by council chairman Takashi Kuroiwa despatched a dismissal request to the council, prompting the residential referendum that unseated Arai final weekend.
The dismissal request additionally claimed that Arai’s statements to media concerning the assault allegations had harm Kusatsu’s fame. It pointed to a number of particular remarks Arai had made, together with ones that city women have been “treated as objects,” and that women typically turned mistresses to highly effective male resort homeowners to achieve privileges.
The request pointed out that the mayor had denied the allegations, and Arai’s wage as a council member was a “waste” of taxpayer cash.
In an official response to the council, Arai said the mayor and different council members calling for her elimination have been those damaging the city’s dignity and fame.
Her ousting on Sunday has pushed the resort city into the nationwide highlight. Since the weekend, the city corridor has obtained dozens of calls criticizing Arai’s dismissal, largely coming from outdoors the city, said Kusatsu official Kenji Hagiwara. Many callers known as the choice unfair and sexist.
“This is an unprecedented situation,” Hagiwara advised CNN. “We worry the image of this town is damaged.”
Sexism and energy in Japan
The hole widens additional in politics. As of October this 12 months, 46 of 465 decrease home lawmakers in Japan have been women. That’s fewer than 10%, in comparison with a 25% international common.
But seven years on, the marketing campaign has had restricted success, with gender discrimination and inequality nonetheless rife. The #MeToo motion led to concrete progress in different nations and a shift in cultural dialog — nevertheless it was met with resistance in Japan.
In a case that gained worldwide consideration in 2017, freelance journalist Shiori Ito alleged a high-profile journalist had invited her to dinner two years prior, after which raped her.
The response was removed from supportive — she obtained threats, backlash on social media, and even fled Japan, fearing for her and her household’s security. Even authorities tried to discourage her from pursuing authorized motion, she said.
The win was celebrated by her supporters as a step towards justice — however “a win doesn’t wipe away everything that happened,” she advised reporters after the ruling. “I need to face my emotional scars from now. This is not the end.”
Correction: This story has been up to date to mirror that Tadanobu Kuroiwa is the mayor of Kusatsu, and Takashi Kuroiwa is council chairman.
CNN’s Emiko Jozuka contributed to this report.
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