Stalking offenders need treatment not just punishment: Japan author April 3, 2023 (Mainichi Japan) Japanese version Junko Uchizawa, author of the 2019 report "My 700-day war with a stalker" and resident of Shodo Island, is seen in the town of Shodoshima ブランド財布コピー  Kagawa Prefecture, on Jan. 31 コピー激安通販  2023. Uchizawa is calling attention to the importance of treatment for offenders. (Mainichi/Sahomi Nishimoto) SHODOSHIMA ブランドスーパーコピー激安  Kagawa -- The January murder of a woman by her ex-boyfriend in the west Japan city of Fukuoka is being considered a case of abrupt violence after the man had been following a restraining order. There are countless cases of stalking in which the perpetrator, seeing themselves as a victim, is driven by hatred, unable to "forgive" the other. A writer based in this west Japan town on Shodo Island is emphasizing the importance of treatment for offenders. While many victims live silently in fear of retribution, Junko Uchizawa used her tenacity as a writer to overcome the suffocating fear of her own experience with a stalker in "My 700-day war with a stalker," a report published in 2019. In April 2016, the now-55-year-old writer broke up with a man who lived in the prefecture's capital, Takamatsu. The man persistently sent her messages over social media, begging her to start over. Uchizawa told him, "If you keep sending more messages, I'll have to talk with the police." The content of the man's messages then escalated, such as "I won't forgive being treated as a stalker," and "I'll go to your island and mess you up." That spring, Uchizawa contacted a police station on the island after the man sent her a message saying he actually came to the island. Uchizawa was advised to file a victim's report over his threats, and the man was arrested several days later. Hiring a lawyer, she reached a settlement that included absolutely no further contact from the man. However, several months later, she received messages from him on a social media account she barely used. Many defamatory statements were also posted to online message boards, and the man was arrested again. Akiko Kobayakawa, chairperson of Humanity, a Tokyo-based nonprofit which provides counseling to both victims and perpetrators of stalking, categorizes stalkers' mentality into three stages. In the first stage, labelled "Risk," the perpetrator demands to "start over" with the victim. In the second stage, "Danger," this escalates to critical and offensive remarks and physically lying in wait for the victim. The third stage, "Poison," is marked by threats, violence or trespassing into the victim's home. Kobayakawa acts as a third party, intervening to help the stalker overcome their feelings of attachment for the victim. Intervention is possible in stages one and two, but due to the increased threat of violence in stage three 偽ブランド  measures involving police need to be prioritized, such as the protection of the victim and arrest of the perpetrator. According to Kobayakawa, most perpetrators come to their senses if police intervene. A National Police Agency (NPA) study in 2014 to 2015 found that while most stalkers stop after being warned コピーブランド服  around one-tenth will resume pursuing their victim within a year. The main factor is that perpetrators with too much attachment can no longer be reasoned with, so warnings are no longer effective, Kobayakawa explained. Akiko Kobayakawa, chair of the nonprofit group Humanity, which offers counseling to both victims and people who commit stalking, is seen in a photo provided by the person herself. In the Fukuoka incident, the suspect had not been urged to seek counseling to control his impulses to follow the victim. He had appeared to be following the emergency restraining order under the country's Anti-Stalking Act, but the woman was stabbed to death near JR Hakata Station 50 days after it was issued. Kobayakawa pointed out, "There are perpetrators who impulsively become desperate after being issued an emergency restraining order, so protecting the victim becomes extremely important." Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), often used for the treatment of mental health issues, is the main form of treatment for repeat offenders. "For high-risk stalkers who cannot stop their impulses through thought, CBT is not enough," Kobayakawa said. The effectiveness of the "conditioned reflex control technique (CRCT)," used to treat addictions to alcohol, drugs and gambling, is apparently becoming clear in reducing offenders' desires. Using CRCT, impulses are reduced through a reflexive conditioning to simulated experiences. However, few medical facilities offer the treatment and there are few cases of offenders receiving it, as it is not required under current laws. According to the NPA, of the 993 offenders who were urged to seek treatment by police nationwide in 2021, just 164 (16%) did so. In Kagawa, the police work with four medical facilities in the prefecture to explain treatment options to all offenders and their families. However, a Kagawa Prefectural Police official disclosed that getting offenders' consent as required becomes a barrier, and convincing the offenders to voluntarily seek treatment is often difficult. The police in Fukuoka Prefecture, who handle the country's highest number of consultations about stalking, have tackled the issue through measures such as providing up to three counseling sessions to offenders for free. The suspect in the recent murder case was not urged to undergo treatment because police did not believe he exhibited any "extreme thoughts or incoherent behavior" during interviews. "It's unreasonable to have the officer on the scene deciding whether the suspect needs treatment," Uchizawa said, adding that she wants specialists to handle persuading offenders into treatment, and the care itself. She proposed that every prefecture assign at least one counselor to handle offenders. After Uchizawa's stalker was arrested for the second time, she bargained with the police and prosecution for him to get treatment, but was not understood. Even an acquaintance told her, "It's so kind of you, hoping for his treatment like that." In response, Uchizawa maintained, "That's not it. Even if offenders go to prison, most are out in one or two years. I just want offenders' attachment to their victims to be resolved so that we can live in peace." "As the police and mechanics of the court system focus on punishing offenders, a lot of stalking victims are left behind. It isn't right for victims to have to live in anxiety," she said. (Japanese original by Sahomi Nishimoto, Takamatsu Bureau) Font Size SML Print Go to The Mainichi Home Page Related Articles 'Gallery stalkers' targeting university art students at graduation exhibits Central Japan slashing shows abuse risk remains in remote relationships No name on trash, no collection: Rule raises privacy concerns in Japanese city