‘Because of a woman’ Mori left… Hashimoto’s’sexual harassment kiss’ appeared

Mori Yoshiro (84), who stepped down due to derogatory comments on women, has been elected the Japanese Olympic Minister Seiko Hashimoto (56) as the chairman of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games Organizing Committee. The organizing committee approved the Hashimoto Prize as the next president at the board of directors and council meetings held on the afternoon of the 18th.

In accordance with the principle of prohibiting concurrent positions, Prime Minister Hashimoto announced his intention to resign to Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on the afternoon of that day and officially took office as Chairman of the Organizing Committee. The controversy continues as the new chairman Haji-min Hashimoto is the closest aide to Chairman Mori, and the past, such as suspicion of sexual harassment, has emerged again.

Seiko Hashimoto, elected chairman of the new Tokyo Olympics organizing committee, is the Japanese House of Councilors and the Tokyo Olympics Officer. [EPA=연합뉴스]

The new chairman Hashimoto is an athlete and politician who participated in the summer and winter Olympics seven times in speed skating and cycling. In 1992, he won the bronze medal in the women’s 1500m at the Albertville Winter Olympics. He participated in the 1988 Seoul Olympics and participated in the torch relay as a representative of Japan.

He was first elected as a member of the House of Councilors in 1995, served as a deputy member of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and has been in charge of the Olympic Games since September 2019. Since she is a woman in her 50s from an athlete and knows the progress of the Olympics well, she has been mentioned as the influential next president since Mori’s resignation.

Seiko Hashimoto, the new chairman of the Tokyo Olympics Organizing Committee, participated in the Seoul Olympic Torch Relay on September 15, 1988 as representative of Japan. The athlete who wore the sportswear bent in the middle right was Chairman Hashimoto at the time. [지지통신 제공]

However, as soon as the facts of his internal affairs became known, allegations of sexual harassment reignited. Hashimoto’s new chairman hugged Daisuke Takahashi (高橋大輔), a popular figure skating player at a party after the closing ceremony of the Sochi Winter Olympics in 2014, when he was in charge of the Japan Skating Federation’s chairman, was released in a weekly magazine.

After the report, Takahashi said, “It wasn’t compulsory,” but as it happened between the president of the Federation and the athlete, criticism that it was a de facto sexual violence using a dominant position arose.

The weekly magazine’Shukanbunshun’ (週刊文春), which reported this at the time, published an article titled “Hashimoto is a habitual molester” in the latest issue released on the 17th. The article contained the testimony of a former female lawmaker that the new chairman Hashimoto has a habit of forcing a kiss to both men and women when he is drunk. In addition, the testimony of having’exposure’ was mentioned, such as that he would show his body at a drinking party.

An article by Shukanbunshun who reported Hashimoto as a “perpetual molester”.

On social media (SNS), opinions against the appointment of Hashimoto continue, referring to the past. Attorney Masaki Kito, director of the Link Law Firm, tweeted, “(Hashimoto) has a sexual harassment problem and I don’t think it is suitable as a successor to Mori, who retired due to gender issues.”

It is also pointed out that the new chairman Hashimoto has a close relationship with former chairman Mori. According to Japanese media, it was Chairman Mori who chose Hashimoto, who was in the sports world, as the political world, and the two have usually referred to each other as “a father-like person” and “a daughter like a daughter.” Therefore, although Hashimoto has taken over as chairman, it is predicted that it will be difficult to escape from Mori’s influence.

Seiko Hashimoto (center) and Yoshiro Mori, then secretary of the Liberal Democratic Party (left), announcing their running for the election for the House of Councilors in 1995. [지지통신 제공]

Chairman Hashimoto must make important decisions, such as whether to host the Olympics, which are scheduled to open on July 23, as well as the size of the spectators and whether to implement a torch relay starting in March. The Mainichi Newspaper pointed out on the 17th that “It is also a task to restore the image of the Olympic Organizing Committee damaged by the Mori crisis.”

Meanwhile, on the 17th, Maruyama Tatsuya, governor of Shimane Prefecture, Japan, expressed his opposition to the Tokyo Olympics, saying that he would not cooperate with the torch relay. Governor Maruyama mentioned the situation of the new coronavirus infection (Corona 19) in Tokyo at the Olympic-related meeting that day. I do” he said.

Until now, only Shimane Prefecture has expressed its intention to refuse to participate in the torch relay, but Japanese media reported that if such a decision is followed, negative public opinion is likely to spread to the hosting of the Olympics.

Tokyo = Correspondent Lee Young-hee [email protected]