Security cameras on trains being considered to reduce groping

Monday 31st August, 12:00 PM JST

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nipponreddog at 04:48 PM JST - 1st September

The problem is the responsibility of JR. It is improperly allowing more passgengers on its trains than is reasonable. There should not be any crowding and groping, regardless of "rush hour". Simply cease admittance once the seats and standing room is filled. When was the last time you took a JAL on ANA flight and had people standing wall-to-wall in the aisles? Ever "groped" (ok, except for stewardesses) on a Japanese plane?

I don't know why a "victim" does not sue JR for "contributory negligence and mental anguish" for its role in overloading its transport vehicles for profit.

JR--run more trains (sure it cost you more!), and quit cramming paying passengers in like sardines!
griff at 05:48 PM JST - 1st September

perhaps if people had more fulfilling sex lives they wouldn't feel the need to grope women on trains
isthistheend at 08:42 PM JST - 1st September

Nipponreddog, you're dreaming! It would be nice, but it'll take AT LEAST 30 years before your ideas will reach the board meeting. And by then, Japanese population may be slowed down so they won't need the extra trains.....
helloklitty at 09:13 PM JST - 1st September

perhaps if people had more fulfilling sex lives they wouldn't feel the need to grope women on trains

Especially if they get fulfilled just before riding the train.
ca1ic0cat at 02:53 AM JST - 2nd September

I don't think groping has much to do with sex; I supect it has more to do with power and excitement. But you never know what's going on in the perv's mind, do you? I do know that groping isn't a big problem in NYC. Never heard of it in London but I haven't spent as much time there. It might be that, because western women are more empowered (by J standards) that men would expect to be confronted if they did grope and so they don't. In Japan the expectation seems to be that you are going to get away with it. Oh well, enough pop psychology for now....
KitsuneYoukai at 04:57 AM JST - 2nd September

"More fulfilling sex lives"? Oh! Please, give me a break.

What consistutes groping. As packed as those trains get at busy times a touch might appear as grouping but may not be. The train jerks your body. So, the statement that the Judge made is correct. Perhaps the cameras will help in eliminating the possibility of false accusations.
dolphingirl at 01:21 PM JST - 2nd September

I don't think cameras are a practical solution to the groping problem. As some other people have stated, where are these cameras going to be and if the train is packed will the cameras even catch anything!

Overcrowding on the trains is not the only reason for groping either. I was on a train that wasn't very crowded and an old man started humping this girl who was standing in the corner! I was shocked and disgusted and looked around to see that everyone else was ignoring it! I tapped the man on the shoulder and he immediately stopped and got off at the next stop.

The problem is women, especially young women, are not taught their rights. And men should be taught to respect women. They are not objects but equal members in the Japanese society! Secondly, some Japanese people don't seem to know what to do when they witness such an event so they do nothing. Or perhaps more disturbingly, they don't care. In any case, people need to be educated about their rights and responsibilities. And teaching some ethics would be a good idea too!
Klein2 at 03:05 PM JST - 3rd September

I think that women should have dye markers that will explode when lifted from the skin. Why not? They do it for bank robbers. If a guys hand finds its way under a woman's clothing..anything.. even a waistband, then BANG!! Dye everywhere under the woman's clothes and all over the guy's hands. It could be activated by wire or radio even. The dye could be washable, or only detectable by UV, etc.

We could catch the perps RED HANDED!!

It won't stop all the mashers, but it could cut down on the gropers.
kokorocloud at 09:40 AM JST - 4th September

I agree that this is not a problem that can just be solved by policing the issue-- the fact that this sort of thing is known to happen so frequently and it's pretty much one of those things that people think of automatically when talking about Japan is quite telling. And disturbing. It does happen in other countries, but when it's something that's almost glorified as it is over here (it's the subject of MANY manga, anime, etc.), there is something seriously wrong here. Cameras might be a good idea in one sense, but they will not fix the problem. There is no sense of respect it seems, and it will continue unless both men and women come to the conclusion that this sort of thing is totally unacceptable and not apart of a civilized society.
nipponreddog at 12:37 AM JST - 5th September

Nipponreddog, you're dreaming! It would be nice, but it'll take AT LEAST 30 years...<

You may be right on the timing. But nevertheless, JR is directly accountable for creating the conditions that make large scale daily groping possible. And, as I posted, it is purely for profit--they overload their vehicles with paying customers to the point people are squished together. More trains, limited passenger entry, less groping.
RandomTask at 10:25 AM JST - 6th September

So JR needs to fix the crowded trains and strangers should stop ignoring people in trouble / discomfort. If only they taught kids in school to punch anyone touching a girl on a train, or a set phrase to make them stop...
nipponreddog at 04:03 PM JST - 6th September

Cameras are certainly not the solution. Unless they are used to document that a particular train car is not being overloaded or overbooked.
isthistheend at 09:11 PM JST - 6th September

Dolphin girl and random task have summed it up. People here ignore any troublesome thing thinking "its none of my business" or "I don't want to get involved"; but if it involves a foreigner, I wonder if that would be different? That's maybe one thing about having a homogenus population, nobody will move on their own. It would be easy to make a set phrase, but do you know that even at some very prestigious companies, the sexism issue is rampant today, 2009?! Yes they have the phrases in place, no sexual harassment, and no seniority/junior harassment, but it doesn't work past the facade of having it. In this sense, I think Japan lags behind "western" standards when it comes to "equality" for women in the work place, and any place outside the home. I've heard that inside the home everyone knows who's the boss. So why the extreme dichotomy?
JuliusSeizure at 10:48 PM JST - 6th September

As much as I would like to contribute to this conversation there is not much to say on the topic other then that it's more a cultural quirk. As this hands-on approach of getting intimate with a women is not limited to Japan (Italy comes to mind). Situations where a lot of men and women are packed like sardines should be avoided in a pro-active fashion and maybe a cctv cam or two will scare off more then a few would-be assailants. I hope common sense will prevail one day and they'll just add a few extra carts to the train so everyone can stay at an arms length of one-another.
alphawolf at 12:53 AM JST - 7th September

The security cameras can also reduce the number of false groping claim..

aw