Feminist Peace Network

From the Asia-Japan Women’s Resource Center (see below if you wish to support this statement):

Impunity is Not Acceptable! We Protest against HDPPO’s Decision not to
Prosecute the US Marines who Perpetrated Gang Rape in Hiroshima

Hiroshima District Public Persecutors’ Office (H.D.P.P.O) has decided to drop charges against four marines from US Marine Corps Iwakuni Air Station on November 15th, who allegedly gang-raped a woman in Naka district in Hiroshima City on October 14th. As a hope for a fair judgment on this case has been betrayed, we hereby express our grave doubt and concern over this decision. As a consequence, we demand H.D.P.P.O and Hiroshima Prefecture Police to overturn this decision and be held accountable how this unacceptable decision was made.

While initially intended to file extradition requests based on Japan-US Status-Of-Force Agreement, Hiroshima Prefecture Police changed its policy afterwards and continued an investigation without filing such requests. Deducing from this investigation process, we think it is extremely doubtful whether a fair investigation was carried out to bring justice to those perpetrators, taking sensitive nature of sexual violence into consideration. It is reported that four marines emphasized their act to be a result of a “mutual agreement�. Despite this report, however, the alleged victim affirmed it to be a gang-rape just after the incident and has filed a suit. She was in a car surrounded by four foreign men with whom she just made an acquaintance. In other words, she was in a situation where no call for help was possible. A robbery was also committed. Considering the situation she was in, we are very suspicious of fairness of either a decision by Hiroshima Prefecture Police not to request extradition of four marines or a denial of the case’s criminality by H.D.P.P.O.

A source of our suspicion lies in the fact that the various cases of sexual violence by American soldiers from the US base camp so far have not been penalized appropriately. Shielded by Japan-US Status-Of-Force Agreement, so many alleged American soldiers have got away with punishment. It is precisely a neglect of fair investigation and
prosecution on the side of the Japanese police and prosecutors, which allowed the existence of such impunity. For example, in 2002, a woman was raped by an American soldier from Yokosuka US base camp. Despite the reporting and accusation by the victim, the prosecutor office dropped the case without any explanation, just as in the case of Hiroshima. Dissatisfied with this decision, the victim then filed a civil lawsuit and won the case. Today, the victim is demanding a state compensation, in accusation of Kanagawa Prefecture Police’s lack of consideration towards a sexually violated victim.

As for the Hiroshima case, Hiroshima Prefecture Police refused to provide a clear reason for dropping the case, giving “sensitive nature of the case.� we are contend that it should be possible for H.D.P.P.O. to respond to the public concern while paying good attention to the privacy of the victim. We are deeply concerned that if the police and prosecutors office are not held accountable, and American soldiers who committed heinous crime go unpunished, Japan’s judiciary will lose credence, and women’s human rights will be jeopardized. We therefore demand that Hiroshima Prefecutural police and H.D.P.P.O should respond to our doubts and concerns, that they cancel their decision to drop the case and simultaneously bring the case to the criminal court, and that they explain the investigation process to the public.

If you wish to support this statement, please write to:

ajwrc.shomei at gmail.com

Filed under: Uncategorized, Atrocities