The volatile mix of gender-identity politics and sexual violence has rocked the Western world since Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein's downfall. It could spread to Japan in due course. India provides a salutary example of the dangers of the woke slogan, "We believe her," and the backlash it spawned.
The worst Group of 20 country for women, India has a grave problem of sexual violence against women, girls and boys. In December 2012, it was rocked by the brutal gang rape and murder of a young woman in Delhi. Responding to the revulsion that swept the land, the government created special courts to fast-track sexual assault cases, toughened punishment for sex crimes and lifted due process safeguards for alleged offenders.
The last is open to wide abuse. Laws that promote gender equality are contradicted by others that infantilize women in sexual relationships as passive victims without agency. Official statistics show that in 26 percent of the 38,947 rape cases in 2016, rape was alleged because of false promise of marriage. The women had consensual sex in the belief that marriage would follow.