Japan's Secret Shame - BBC2

By Mandy Cooper
( What's on TV )
published

Japan's Secret Shame. Picture shows: Shiori Ito in Tokyo
(Image credit: BBC/True Vision Productions Ltd)

Journalist Shiori Ito reveals how sex crimes in Japan are rarely reported and when they are the odds of a prosecution are stacked against the woman

‘If you want to fight this legally, go for it.

There is no way you will win’.

This is one of the emails shown in the opening credits of this one-off documentary that Noriyuki Yamaguchi sent to fellow journalist Shiori Ito after she accused him of rape.

In a country where sex crimes are rarely reported, you can understand why he was confident that the law and society would be on his side.

And he was proved right.

Japan's Secret Shame. Journalist Shiori Ito in Tokyo, Japan

Japanese journalist Shiori Ito takes her case further and publishes a book Black Box about her experience

Shiori tells the story of why she went public and its consequences: from bringing a civil case against her rapist because he was never criminally charged to hate mail she received.

In the era of #MeToo, this makes for disturbing but compelling viewing.

TV Times rating: *****

Mandy Cooper
Mandy Cooper
TV Times Highlights Editor

As TV Times Highlights Editor I get to hear about all the latest TV shows coming soon. Here at TVT HQ we are in the privileged position of selecting the best programmes from across all the channels and streaming platforms. Our mission is to make it easier for our readers to decide what to watch - and give them lots of choice of genres - all the latest shows, plus some nostalgic choices we call hidden gems, too. My career began with a postgraduate degree in periodical journalism (ahem, yes old school!) in 1991 and I’ve worked in TV media since 2000.