Against the Japanese black box of abuse

Follow us on Google

Japanese journalist Shiori Itō is raped in 2015. But unlike usual in her home country, she doesn’t want to keep quiet about it. In “Diaries of Abuse” she documents her path to justice. ARTE is now showing the Oscar-nominated documentary on TV.

“It would be better if you didn’t make this public,” says Shiori Itō’s sister on the phone. The small red and white lights of the tunnel pass by the car window in the dark – there is no end in sight. “That” is one night at the beginning of April 2015, and what was done to Itō in a hotel room: a well-known Japanese television journalist with connections to the highest levels of government raped her after a business lunch. And Itō doesn’t want to keep quiet about it. Even though allegations of abuse in Japan are usually swept under the carpet and disappear – like in a black box.

Itō went to the police in 2016, but she didn’t get any help there – on the contrary. So the then 28-year-old made the allegations public at a press conference in May 2017. Within a few days, she became the face of the Japanese #MeToo movement and a hate figure for her opponents. They question Itō’s credibility, insult her and even threaten her with murder. Nevertheless, she continues to raise her voice – for herself and for other victims. She files a civil lawsuit against the television man and writes down her experiences in the book “Black Box Diaries” (2017). It served as the basis for the documentary.

In personal videos, with diary entries, secret recordings and images from surveillance cameras, Itō reports on her trauma and fears in a depressing and impressive way – from going public to the verdict, which represents a decisive turning point in Japan’s handling of sexual abuse. Itō shows her fight for recognition and justice and against a system that protects perpetrators and leaves victims alone. The moving film was nominated for an Oscar for best documentary in 2025. (This article was created in cooperation with teleschau.)