Photo/Illutration Flowers and messages for Saaya Hirose at a park in Asahikawa, Hokkaido, on March 28, 2022 (Daijiro Honda)

Watching the news day after day, one difference from the past that struck me is the prevalence of reports in which the names of crime and accident victims are withheld.

I have mixed feelings about this, as I am of the generation of newspaper reporters who had it drummed into us that when reporting a tragedy, the coverage should be detailed and the victim must be identified by name. And that, we were taught, was the way to prevent similar tragedies from recurring.

Fear of being slandered is said to be a key reason victims or their families do not want to be identified. Cruel words of abuse are hurled at grieving people on social media. Such actions, while truly outrageous, simply reflect the distorted reality of our society.

A recent report about the tragic death of a man who claimed he had been sexually abused by the late Johnny Kitagawa noted that he is believed to have taken his own life.

The man was said to have been slandered as an attention-getter who was after money. Injustices of this nature have no place in society.

In the case of Saaya Hirose, a junior high school student who committed suicide two years ago in Asahikawa, Hokkaido, her bereaved family chose to reveal her name to the media.

I was deeply moved by her mother, who said her daughter’s name was “the proof of how hard she tried to live."

This precious name was “entrusted” to us reporters to do our job. I felt the tremendous responsibility placed on us.

“Shukou kin wo tokasu” is an old adage of Chinese origin that translates literally as “people’s mouths can melt metal,” but means that irresponsible rumor and insult can spread and destroy justice.

And this saying is actually prefaced by another--“Shushin shiro wo nasu” (literally, people’s hearts can build a castle)--which means that if many people follow their consciences, society’s ills are bound to be rectified.

Japan marked this year’s “Hanzai Higaisha Shukan” (Crime Victims’ Week) from Nov. 25 to Dec. 1.

I must ask this question: What sort of society is it that doesn’t let victims come forward and identify themselves?

--The Asahi Shimbun, Nov. 27

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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