Japan’s plan to beat ‘chikan’ sex attacks on public transport? A grinning otter badge

Pervert-deterrent badge featuring a cute animal looking up a schoolgirl’s skirt raises eyebrows – and questions about appropriateness

Critics say the image detracts from the seriousness of a problem the country is struggling to get to grips with

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The winning design for a pervert deterrent badge in Japan. Photo: General Molester Prevention Activity Centre

Published: 3:00pm, 19 Dec 2019Updated: 9:24pm, 19 Dec 2019

An otter in handcuffs as he attempts to look up a schoolgirl’s skirt has been selected as the winning entry in an annual competition to create a badge designed to deter “chikan” perverts – the gropers who plague Japan’s public transport system.

But while the message behind the campaign by the General Molester Prevention Activity Centre is undoubtedly a serious one, the use of a cuddly, grinning otter has raised some eyebrows.

“Using a cute-looking river otter as a symbol of chikan just doesn’t make the point effectively,” said one poster on the JapanToday website.

Another added, “Making ‘characters’ the focal point of the campaign softens the image of a very real problem! Get hard, focus on it from the standpoint that it’s a crime, let these perverts know they could go to jail.

“Stop the pussy-footing around these issues and get serious!”

The winning image, with a prize of 50,000 yen (US$456), was by a male high school student in Miyazaki Prefecture, who told the organisers he hoped the image would “help people to not be molested and injured”.