PETALING JAYA: Sunway Medical Centre, Sunway City (SMC) has been ranked No. 1 in Malaysia in Newsweek's World's Best Hospitals 2026, reaffirming the hospital's continued commitment to clinical excellence, patient safety and patient-centred care.
Very few women in Japan speak out about sexual assault but Hikari – not her real name – came forward in 2024 to accuse Osaka’s then top prosecutor of raping her six years earlier. -- ST PHOTO: JENSEN LIM / Asia News Network TOKYO : A Japanese prosecutor who took the unusual step of publicly accusing her boss of rape said Monday her mental health had deteriorated in her quest for justice.
Very few women in Japan speak out about sexual assault but Hikari came forward in 2024 to accuse Osaka's then top prosecutor of raping her six years earlier. Kentaro Kitagawa, head of the Osaka District Public Prosecutor's Office, was arrested and admitted the assault but later withdrew his statement, saying the sex was consensual.Speaking at a news conference in Tokyo on Monday on condition that she is not named and her face is not shown, Hikari said the stress was difficult to bear. "My doctor said that the longer I confront the more my mental state deteriorates, becoming life-threatening," she said. "I barely manage to keep going through my fight, but every day I find myself thinking about dying," she said. She said she had made a request to the justice ministry that a third-party panel be set up to investigate cases involving others in the legal profession, and to implement measures to prevent harassment. "I am certain that there are other instances of harassment and additional offences besides those involving me," Hikari said.Before filing her case in 2024, she was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder . Last month, Hikari also filed a civil lawsuit against the government, Kitagawa and other related parties seeking damage totalling 83 million yen . She says people close to Kitagawa, especially an assistant prosecutor -- whom Hikari says is his lover -- spread malicious rumours. These included identifying her as the victim -- her name had not been made public -- and that she had been attracted to Kitagawa, consented to sex and was not drunk.Hikari filed a criminal complaint against the assistant prosecutor in 2025, but the Osaka prosecutor's office dismissed it, only imposing a reprimand. Hikari has said she was not used to drinking strong alcohol and lost her memory halfway through an office gathering in 2018.Hikari kept quiet after it happened, as Kitagawa had pleaded with her not to go public, saying it would be a damaging scandal for the prosecutor's office, she said, and even threatened to kill himself. -- AFPPhilippine business group warns Middle East tensions could hit economyUS-Israel attacks kill at least 555 people in Iran, says Red CrescentSRC lawsuit: I didn't know RM42mil went into Najib's account until I was sued, says witnessIPs, superyachts and more: Can budget spark Hong Kong’s purple patch?
Rape Accusation Mental Health Sexual Assault In Japan Kentaro Kitagawa Osaka District Public Prosecutor Trial Awaiting Stress And PTSD Civil Lawsuit Workplace Harassment
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