Hokkaido Governor Suzuki said, “If it is confirmed that the operators are not providing proper welfare services for persons with disabilities, we will consider necessary measures such as recommendations and orders based on the Comprehensive Support for Persons with Disabilities Act”.
A 29-year-old man, a former employee of a workshop for the disabled, was accused of quasi-forced sexual intercourse and quasi-forced indecency for sexually assaulting two women with severe intellectual disabilities. It was held at the Otsu District Court on the 15th. Presiding Judge Yasushi Hatayama handed down a sentence of 5 years imprisonment for “an extremely despicable and vicious crime”.
On the 4th of December, the Hokkaido facility held an information session for the residents’ families, reported the abuse, and apologized. In the future, it is said that an “abuse verification committee” will be set up to consider measures to prevent recurrence.
The officials have confirmed that six male workers were involved in 38 cases of physical and mental abuse on 13 male residents.
The abusive acts included leaving naked residents unattended for long periods, forcing the residents to eat food that had been spilt, and forcibly moving wheelchair users’ body parts that had stiffened.
Officials reported to the city that they were trying to cover up suspicion of abuse by falsifying records, but the city decided that there was no problem after hearing from the agency. The business group is fully funded by the city, and the chairman of the board is a former executive of the city.
A court here ordered the former head of a facility providing support for people with disabilities to pay compensation to a young woman, who herself has an intellectual disability, for sexual abuse she suffered while working there.
In one of the video clips, a staff member placed the seated man on a luggage cart and proceeded to punch him twice in the face after being bitten. The other clip showed a different staff member kicking the man in the leg from the side to stop him from kicking a window while seated on the floor.
The number of confirmed cases of abuse of persons with disabilities in Hyogo Prefecture in FY2020 rose to 143, compared to the previous year. The number of cases increased by nearly 40% from 104, the prefectural government found. The increase is higher than the 1.09 times increase from the previous year in the national survey conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
An employee at facility for people with disabilities in Ome City, Tokyo was arrested on suspicion of injury for beating and injuring a resident man. The man subsequently died, and the Metropolitan Police Department is investigating the circumstances.
In fiscal year 2020, the number of people with disabilities who were abused at home or in institutions in Japan totalled 2,665 as identified by local governments nationwide. This was an increase of 267 from the previous fiscal year. The number of consultations and reports also increased to 9,421, 902 more than the previous year, both of which are the highest numbers ever, the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare (MHLW) announced the number on March 29.
Barrier Free Japan