Journalist Files Suit Over Defamatory Online Posts
A Japanese journalist at the center of a high-profile rape case has filed a lawsuit against three people over their defamatory social media posts.
Ito Shiori met reporters after filing the suit at the Tokyo District Court on Monday.
Ito says she became a victim of online defamation after she held a news conference three years ago when she give her account of being a victim in a rape case.
The posts include libelous comments and repeated postings of illustrations.
Ito is seeking a total of more than 70,000 dollars in damages from a female manga artist who tweeted illustrations about the rape case and two men who re-tweeted the illustrations.
Ito says the posts run counter to the facts and caused her to suffer psychologically.
Ito compared the online defamation to being pelted with rocks, and said such treatment could drive people to suicide.
She said she took her case to court for the sake of others who are also suffering.
Ito had filed a civil case against a former TV reporter of Tokyo Broadcasting System Television, or TBS, after prosecutors declined to pursue it in a criminal court.
Last year, the Tokyo District Court ordered the defendant to pay damages to Ito for the 2015 rape case. The case is currently being heard at a higher court.
