TOKYO (Reuters) – Fuji Media should apologise to victims of a sexual assault scandal and set up a mechanism to address human rights-related grievances involving the company, according to a report commissioned by the Japanese broadcaster and released on Monday.
The probe followed allegations in the Japanese media of sexual misconduct by Masahiro Nakai, a TV host and leader of the former boy band SMAP, which arose in December.
The scandal led to an exodus of advertisers and the resignations in January of the company’s chairman and the head of its TV unit. Fuji Media also announced last week that Hisashi Hieda, a long-time director at the company, would step down from his post.
The report, prepared by an independent team led by three lawyers and stretching to more than 300 pages, determined there had been an instance of “sexual violence that occurred as an extension of work duties” and that the company had not adequately addressed the need of victims for care and redress.
In a press release accompanying the committee’s report, Fuji Media said: “We apologise to all our stakeholders for any concern and inconvenience caused.”
Nakai, 52, has apologised for causing “trouble” and announced his retirement from show business. He has acknowledged reaching a settlement with one party but has not addressed the allegations directly.
(Reporting by Rocky Swift, Satoshi Sugiyama and Kentaro Okasaka; Editing by Edmund Klamann)
