A secretly circulated list at the Defense Ministry places certain “dinosaurs” into columns representing eastern and western Japan, resembling sumo’s “banzuke” ranking chart.

These dinosaurs are actually senior officers in the Self-Defense Forces who are known for regularly abusing their power.

The fact that such lists continue to be compiled at the ministry shows that abusers and harassers still roam the SDF, despite pledges to clean up the system.

Many insiders say the culture of the SDF has allowed the problem to continue.

“Our organization is fully immersed in the notion that one ‘should naturally endure this much as part of a fighting entity,’” said a senior Defense Ministry representative. “Many SDF commissioned officers were exposed to power harassment during their earlier days, contributing to the reproduced cycle of abuse.”

Last year, the Defense Ministry opened special investigations into abusive personnel after a former SDF member went public about being sexually abused.

The ministry received 1,414 complaints from SDF members from September through November last year, of which 1,256 were classified as abuses of authority by higher-ranking officials.

“So many complaints are coming in that I have yet to hear anything of my case,” said one SDF member who was a victim of a harassment. “Cases involving commissioned officers in especially high posts may be looked at earlier than other incidents.”

Three rear admirals--the second highest rank in the Maritime SDF--were punished between May and July this year for abusing their authority.

The Defense Ministry suspended one rear admiral in his 50s from duty for three days in June for verbally insulting subordinates, including repeating, “You idiot.”

“All of his staff were exhausted by his unreasonable orders,” recalled a Defense Ministry insider who knows the rear admiral in person.

Another rear admiral received a salary reduction for the month of May after shouting and slamming documents on a desk.

The other rear admiral was suspended for two months in July for uttering “you moron” at his subordinates.

The three rear admirals all insisted they did such things out of consideration for the SDF and their subordinates.

They told the ministry’s investigatory body that they wanted to “beef up their unit’s strength” and “provide education and guidance for the sake of their staff members,” according to sources.

An MSDF source, however, criticized them for “justifying themselves on the pretext of fulfilling their duties.”

Among all 44,000 MSDF officers, only 50 are rear admirals. They are responsible for controlling and disciplining their units.

A senior Defense Ministry official explained that such abuse has continued partly because of the peculiar working conditions in the MSDF.

Service members often must remain aboard naval vessels for prolonged periods under cramped conditions with their supervisors.

“With the entire crew stressed out, officers may be more prone to power harassment to vent their frustrations,” the official said.

Abuse has also been reported in the other branches of the SDF.

A captain in the Ground SDF was suspended from duty for four days in February for abusive words and actions, including telling a member to “quit now.”

An Air SDF captain was suspended for two days in June for verbally attacking other people’s personalities and using threats as a form of guidance.

Hiroshi Iguchi, a lawyer at the Daini Tokyo Bar Association who wrote a book on the issue of power harassment, called for countermeasures.

“What is important is making thorough efforts to ensure personnel can speak out as soon as they feel they are victimized by power harassment,” he said. “Their complaints should be kept confidential to ensure they will never be put at a disadvantage.”

Iguchi said effective approaches include allowing victims to share their problems on a hotline that directly reaches upper management.

“Power harassment, as is the case with any other workplace, cannot be eliminated from organizations where workers have no choice but to endure their circumstances and damage until their supervisors are relocated elsewhere,” he said.