The Dangerous Obsession With Schoolgirls In Japan: A Socio-Legal Perspective

Damayanti Bhattacharjee, Jindal Global Law School, O.P. Jindal Global University

ABSTRACT

Many schools across Japan are of the believe that regulating the dress-code of their female students and how they express themselves physically, is going to keep them ‘safe’ from sexual harassment and increase their focus on their education; this primarily stems from the belief that female students being ‘provocative’ in nature simply incites boys, thus portraying the long-standing culture of ‘victim-shaming’. However, the true issue does not lie in the manner in which female students clothe themselves, but rather in the lack of stringent laws to control the growing rates of pedophilia and sexual harassment cases in Japan, both inside and out of the schools. In this article, I have taken an analytical approach towards this issue, both from a sociological as well as legal perspective. Through the same, I dig deeper into this obsession with schoolgirls and the ‘cutesy’ culture that is highly prevalent in Japan. This is done, while further analysing the laws in place, which aim to protect minors, from prostitution, and from being coerced into pornographic practices among others. The analysis from a legal point of view portrays that, while on the forefront, the laws in place, showcase that they aim to protect minors, there is a lack of stringent reforms and further amendments to bring about the same. On the other hand, from a sociological perspective, the analysis brings up the truly male-dominated culture that is still prevalent which prevents any positive reform to take place; the same implies that in a culture which is primarily male-dominated, the same focuses on protection and entertainment of the same. This, ultimately in a manner promotes pedophilia, which has already been rather normalized in the Japanese culture, as of today.