crime

3 nursery school teachers arrested over abuse of children

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What can you say? Threatening them brandishing cutter knives? Hanging them upside down? So far not sexual but only investigating just starting.

as it was also found that the school had made its staff sign an oath not to disclose what took place there. Not suspicious at all?

 brought to light after the city received a report in mid-August. It had met with Sakurai for its probe but kept the case secret for more than three months. Three months? Three months, that’s a long time for a child.

11 ( +13 / -2 )

abusing toddlers

Abuse of any human is sick and criminal, but in my mind, abusing toddlers is about as sick as it can get. Hopefully in this case and any like it the authorities will decide the abuse was criminal, and the criminals will have this on their record, and be prevented from working with children in any capacity ever again. Same with anyone else involved found to have been aware but done nothing or to have covered up the abuse.

11 ( +11 / -0 )

They were in charge of a group of 1 year olds. The mentality that they thought they were disciplining basically babies is sickening. 1 year olds don’t need disciplining. Most who work at these ‘schools or daycare centers’ aren’t required to have any professional or academic credentials. They’re uneducated and untrained to deal with children let alone 1 year olds.

10 ( +10 / -0 )

I hope these evil witches will be indicted and found guilty and spend a long time in prison.

9 ( +13 / -4 )

What a distressing story for parents who need to use a nursery for their young children.

Group abuse syndrome…..”She does it, so I will too”.

Very shocking!

8 ( +9 / -1 )

Do these people not require a licence for work with kids after some basic training like (hanging kids upside down and brandishing knives) are not acceptable! Jes you need a licence to paint finger nails here!!wtf!

Glad they have been named and shamed!

7 ( +10 / -3 )

Here's my question: if the city knew about 15 cases of abuse and this is only coming to light now, why is it only teachers being arrested and not the city employees who knew about it and did nothing?

7 ( +9 / -2 )

Sickening.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Disgraceful!

6 ( +6 / -0 )

indigo - where are the evidence???

exexalien - In a previous article, it was mentioned that another employee at the daycare reported the abuse.

indigo - WTF?? this is not evidence.

Irrelevant, as clearly explained in the article, if you had bothered to read it:

*"The three, who left the nursery recently, admitted the abusive behavior, also including forcibly removing their pants and brandishing a cutter knife in a threatening manner, but said they were trying to discipline the children, according to the city."*

Why are you so eager to jump to their defense?

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Two of the teachers, Karoi and Rie are in their late forties

Really helps to read and comprehend what one is reading before commenting!

The police said the former teachers are Sachi Miura, 30, Kaori Komatsu, 38, and Rie Hattori, 39. They were arrested for their actions in June against three toddlers.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Hope these three idiots and the head of the nursery school enjoy some of the same kind of discipline and more in prison.

3 ( +6 / -3 )

WTF?? this is not evidence.

Actually it is evidence. An eye witness statement is generally regarded as useful, if not always reliable evidence by courts.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

The other day the news was about a need for more children, but would you want to send them to daycare when things like this happen? There's no way this behaviour is isolated.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

The city and prefectural governments on Saturday started carrying out a special audit of the school, questioning its head, Toshihiko Sakurai, and having him present the three teachers' work records, according to officials.

Of course, Principal Sakurai was totally unaware of grievous abuse happening at the nursery under his direction, never promulgated directives to staff authorizing such abuses, and will cooperate with the authorities to prosecute these three minimum wage bad apples.

Sakurai can bow and apologize for confusing the trust of parents, change the name of the school, hire new staff and re-open.

2 ( +8 / -6 )

Disgusting. I despise those teachers

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Here's my question: if the city knew about 15 cases of abuse and this is only coming to light now, why is it only teachers being arrested and not the city employees who knew about it and did nothing?

Well, maybe because it was a cover up and many people knew about it. Susono is a tiny community where everyone knows each other. Small town where lots of love affairs go on as well.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Educational law forbids corporal punishment of students but it has gone on for ages. This horrid affair is likely not unique in its extremes.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Wow.....they're 1 year old!!!!

Children can be mischievous and noisy.....but to do those things is just so wrong.

Hopefully it hasn't affected them to much......

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Imagine treating the kids with the knife cutter that's a child abuse

2 ( +2 / -0 )

YubaruToday  07:38 am JST

"Most who work at these ‘schools or daycare centers’ aren’t required to have any professional or academic credentials."

You have no proof of what you are stating, as it is required to have at least one licensed hoikushi (保育士)certified person on site at a licensed day care provider. In fact many municipally run facilities require EVERYONE who works with the children to be licensed.

Close to 20,000 daycare centres in Japan are unlicensed and unregistered but they're still allowed to operate. Here's proof: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1301491/japan-number-unlicensed-child-care-facilities/

Having licensed/registered, qualified staff at these centres s not necessary. so your comments are irrelevant. In addition, requiring one licensed staff is completely meaningless if the rest aren't. Where's your proof that everyone who works with children have to licensed?

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Miura is suspected of pushing a girl in the face on June 1, while Hattori allegedly hit a boy on the head on June 10. Komatsu is suspected of holding a boy upside down by his feet on June 27.

when do the parents get to do the same thing to them? We all want to see it happen.

I really hope they don’t have any offspring. Don’t need more of that in society.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Anyway, that’s by far not unique to that specific Japanese nursery there. The very youngest and also the oldest cannot defend themselves and are treated or tortured similarly at many other places here and globally too. Of course not the majority, but surely in quite significant numbers.

1 ( +4 / -3 )

They need to introduce accepted discipline guidelines so they will not have lane excuses for their abhorrent behavior.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Here's my question: if the city knew about 15 cases of abuse and this is only coming to light now, why is it only teachers being arrested and not the city employees who knew about it and did nothing?

The city employees are the ones who investigated and brought this to the police. Not exactly "did nothing".

1 ( +1 / -0 )

That an individual could do something like this is not to be completely unexpected; there are a lot of terrible people in the world.

What's particularly amazing about a case like this is that there were three of them altogether in one place, working in collusion. How this behavior wasn't checked by others sooner is unbelievable.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

The vast majority of workers in nursery schools, everywhere in the world, are probably fantastic people. At least that is what I hope to be true. Still, there are bound to be a few bad apples, as difficult as it is to comprehend.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

If it were any of my kids. . . well . . .

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Really makes you wonder what goes on in those daycare centers. They only got away with it thus far because the kids can't talk to their parents about it just yet. The authorities should put the parents in charge of these 3 witches as their punishment.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Miura is suspected of pushing a girl in the face on June 1, while Hattori allegedly hit a boy on the head on June 10. Komatsu is suspected of holding a boy upside down by his feet on June 27.

On accident?

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

"Most who work at these ‘schools or daycare centers’ aren’t required to have any professional or academic credentials."

You have no proof of what you are stating, as it is required to have at least one licensed hoikushi (保育士)certified person on site at a licensed day care provider. In fact many municipally run facilities require EVERYONE who works with the children to be licensed.

-3 ( +0 / -3 )

dagon

Sakurai can bow and apologize for confusing the trust of parents, change the name of the school, hire new staff and re-open.

Yup. Japan's justice system is like a shampoo bottle:

"lather, rinse, repeat."

-4 ( +6 / -10 )

Milestag: "Most who work at these ‘schools or daycare centers’ aren’t required to have any professional or academic credentials."

Oh, come on, now! Most have to know how to play the piano.

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

> garypenDec. 4  10:38 pm JST

"The three, who left the nursery recently, admitted the abusive behavior, also including forcibly removing their pants and brandishing a cutter knife in a threatening manner, but said they were trying to discipline the children, according to the city."

Why are you so eager to jump to their defense?

admitted the abusive behavior does not look credible.

unbelievable that people make this kind of statement. it is like the people asking to go to jail. it does not make sense. need to see those statements from their mouths.

-4 ( +0 / -4 )

exexalienToday  09:04 pm JST

employee at the daycare reported the abuse,

WTF?? this is not evidence.

-5 ( +2 / -7 )

Two of the teachers, Karoi and Rie are in their late forties. I suspect they must have enjoyed holding babies up by their feet and bashing their faces for very many years already. Sakura Hoikuen School may not be and surely is not the only infant school in Japan to hold babies in the air by their feet and bashing their faces. And in other countries in the world as well.

-7 ( +1 / -8 )

where are the evidence???

-11 ( +0 / -11 )

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