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No sexist heckles in Tokyo!

To Toshiaki Yoshino, President of Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly, and other assembly members:

As a citizen who respects Japanese women’s rights and opportunities, I ask you to fully prosecute and explain the recent sexual harassing exclaims towards representative Ayaka Shiomura in the assembly. These harassing outbursts are inappropriate for a member of one capitol’s assembly these days and threaten the improvement of women’s status in Japan. I urge you to investigate and punish the wrongdoer(s) and ensure they publicly apologize.

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Recent signers

No sexist heckles in Tokyo!

Last week in Tokyo’s city assembly, Ayaka Shiomura was doing her job when male representatives attacked her verbally: “Why don’t you get married, then?” “You can’t give birth, can you?” This type of outrageous sexual harassment will never end in Japan unless we raise our voices to stop it!

Representative Ayaka Shiomura was looking to help women with reproductive difficulties as one way of solving the city’s demographic challenge. But instead of engaging on this important topic, several male representatives verbally attacked her with outrageous sexual slander. This anachronistic chauvinist behavior by our politicians sets the standard for how the public treats women all across Japan.

The LDP holds the majority in the Metropolitan Assembly and is trying to sweep the incident under the carpet. But they've started to feel the heat and just yesterday one of the hecklers apologized publicly to Shiomura. But they weren't alone -- if we keep building up pressure, we can urge the assembly to prosecute and demand an official public apology from all hecklers this Wednesday. Sign the petition -- as soon as we reach 15,000 signers, Avaaz will deliver our voices directly to the assembly.

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