MOF punishes former top bureaucrat over sexual harassment

April 27, 2018

Tokyo- Japan's Ministry of Finance said Friday it will impose a punishment on Junichi Fukuda, who resigned this week as top bureaucrat at the ministry, concluding that he sexually harassed a female reporter.

His behavior deserves a salary reduction of 20 percent for six months, the ministry said.

Claiming that one of its female reporters had been sexually harassed by Fukuda, TV Asahi Corp. lodged a protest last week with the MOF over the top bureaucrat's actions and the subsequent response.

On the punishment, the MOF said Fukuda, former vice minister of finance, has failed to provide arguments or evidence that refuted the broadcaster's claim.

"It is very regrettable that trust in public administration has been eroded," Deputy Vice Minister of Finance Koji Yano said at a news conference. "We apologize deeply."

The ministry offered an apology to the woman through TV Asahi, Yutaka Ito, head of the ministry's Secretarial Division, said at the news conference.

Yano said that the ministry will end its investigation of Fukuda.

Tendering his resignation on April 18, Fukuda said sexual harassment allegations against him had made it difficult for him to perform his duties, although he denied the wrongdoing reported by weekly magazine Shukan Shincho earlier this month. The cabinet approved his resignation on Tuesday.

The MOF had put on hold its punishment for Fukuda and postponed the payment of his retirement allowance of up to 53 million yen.

According to the ministry, disciplinary action cannot be taken against retired national government employees, but a certain amount can be deducted from their retirement allowances with their consent.

Earlier on Friday, Minister of Finance Taro Aso said at a press conference that Fukuda has damaged public confidence in the MOF.

In a meeting with senior MOF officials at his office on Friday morning, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said, "I want you to perform your duties with concentration as the Japanese public is looking warily at your ministry."

In a written answer to a question submitted by an opposition lawmaker concerning Aso's reported remark that having only male reporters collect information from vice ministers would solve the problem, the government said it does not think that eliminating female reporters is a reasonable measure. The remark by Aso was also reported by Shukan Shincho. Jiji Press