Citizens alarmed by the recent sexist jeers against a female member of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly organized a gathering Monday evening to try to keep the legislative body from "drawing the curtain" on the matter.

The gathering in Shibuya Ward was organized by some 100 people, including university professors and people involved in gender-equality efforts. They agreed to urge the assembly to continue investigating all of the assemblymen who heckled Ayaka Shiomura, 36, of Your Party.

Shiomura was subjected to sexist taunts by her colleagues during debate on child-rearing policy last month. She was questioning senior officials in the metropolitan administration on plans to help current and future mothers when she faced shouts of "Why don't you get married?" and "Are you not able to have a baby?"

The heckles "imply a notion that women would better get married and raise children, rather than being active outside," Kanto Gakuin University professor Makoto Hosoya told the gathering.

Lawyer Megumi Hirose urged voters to elect more female assembly members and let them legislate steps to ban sexual harassment in the assembly.

Meanwhile, assembly member Mitsuko Nishizaki demanded that the assembly single out all the people who heckled Shiomura and punish them. So far, only Akihiro Suzuki, 51, has partially admitted to doing so. He has left his Liberal Democratic Party caucus in the assembly since his admission.