politics

Assemblyman in Mie reveals same-sex couple's address online

37 Comments

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Kobayashi, 47, then posted on his blog on March 30 a photo of an envelope showing the pair's names and postal address, with a comment saying that demanding an answer by sending an unsolicited letter was "very aggressive and malicious."

He doesn't seem to understand he is a public servant! So in his mind asking your government representative a question is aggressive and malicious, how do these clowns get elected? Ah it's an LDP member.

38 ( +41 / -3 )

demanding an answer by sending an unsolicited letter was "very aggressive and malicious."

Actually I’d say sending a letter was very polite and private. Maybe next time the Assemblyman would prefer people who have issues to go directly to the media, or post them publicly on social media, or publish them on websites or forums etc.

Contacting one’s representatives by mail to request action or explanation is a proper way to act. This particular representative clearly doesn’t understand his duty and shouldn’t hold his position for a day longer.

31 ( +32 / -1 )

Above the article Kyodo is also revealing the couple ID ... is it necessary?

17 ( +20 / -3 )

I hope Kobayashi's sleazy intimidation tactic backfires and he receives many more letters open letters. Disgusting behavior for a civil servant.

15 ( +18 / -3 )

There is a word for this in Mexico. It is called Doxing, and it is a crime.

20 ( +20 / -0 )

Wow! What a jerk this assembly member is. The Prefecture prosecutor should prosecute the assembly member under their new ordinance. What he did was outrageous. The couple should also sue the assembly member into oblivion but I suspect the Japanese courts won't support such a suit. I hope I am wrong.

15 ( +17 / -2 )

Japanese LGBTs hit another bump in the road on their long, hard journey to social acceptance having to deal with the bothersome antics of this boorish LDPT ("Liberal" "Democratic" Provincial Troglodyte) specimen.

8 ( +11 / -3 )

Why is he still an assemblyman after this incident?

13 ( +16 / -3 )

So now to double down the press and this website further invades the privacy of this couple by starting their names.

8 ( +11 / -3 )

Whether gay or straight, that's a hell of a way to treat constituents. Kobayashi should be drummed out of office for being a total jerk.

13 ( +13 / -0 )

This is a Mie politician from the LDP causing unnecessary trouble and embarrassing the prefecture. I hope Mie people remember this at election time.

8 ( +9 / -1 )

Above the article Kyodo is also revealing the couple ID ... is it necessary?

Exactly! Some random politician's blog in Mie Prefecture vs. national news of Kyodo. Most people would have never known if it weren't this article probably printed all over Japan.

9 ( +11 / -2 )

This is an invasion of privacy. I hope the two men sue the politician.

10 ( +12 / -2 )

I think some misunderstand.

The article using the couple's names because they gave their names publicly and have gone public.

The problem is that their address was revealed.

So even if I don't agree with the article using their names, we don't really know if the writer and they agreed on doing so.

But if I remember correctly government reveling the address of citizens publicly without their consent is illegal this applies to municipal, prefectural and national public servants.

The question is does that include elected officials?

5 ( +6 / -1 )

He should resign in return for a one year suspended sentence

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

Again, the story is lacking many details. Japanese news said that it was an open letter, and the couple specifically stated that the contents of the letter and any eventual response will be fully posted on their social media. The address part is not clear, and if they did not consent to that, indeed the politician trespassed privacy; he disputes that.

He also said that he removed his post after his office and his family, including his children being continuously harassed online, by phone and by mail.

There are also two sides to any story, and ideally the news outlets should research and publish both, instead of throwing bits of sensationalist and incomplete facts.

-3 ( +3 / -6 )

@Antiquesaving

So even if I don't agree with the article using their names, we don't really know if the writer and they agreed on doing so

We know they didn't agree as it was done "without their consent"

a photo of an envelope showing the pair's names and postal address,

This brings to mind the Letter of Markle to her father over copyright and it was determined that copyrights of letters are owned by the writer not the receiver So putting a picture of writing from, inside or outside the letter would be a breach of copyright laws?

1 ( +3 / -2 )

I think some misunderstand

Not really. The couple’s name is irrelevant for the story. The only name relevant is the politician’s. He’s a public figure and needs to be held accountable accordingly.

3 ( +5 / -2 )

@James

Read what I wrote again.

Now read the article again.

This the couple did and made their decision public via social media,

My comment was on the article using their names, the article refrained from using their address because they did not put that out themselves.

They did openly put their names out publicly on social media after the fact.

As I said I don't agree with the article using their names but seeing they also went public with their names ( though they really didn't have much choice after what this guy did) it can be taken as consent to continue doing so.

Again I feel unless they were asked in this situation the journalist should have held back doing so.

And as I mentioned we don't know if the journalist spoke or communicated with them and they accepted using their names.

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

Japanese news said that it was an open letter, and the couple specifically stated that the contents of the letter and any eventual response will be fully posted on their social media. 

How is this confusing or unclear?

Never in any news paper, political situation has anyone confused that open letter includes the address of the person sending it.

It is basic common sense.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

Care to share your thoughts with this Neanderthal? Contact Takatora here: 三重県議会議員 小林たかとら (tsu-coexistence.blogspot.com)

3 ( +3 / -0 )

This disgusting excuse of a tax-payer funded worker needs to know who is paying his salary and who he is accountable to. I wonder how he would feel if his address and details of his private life were splashed everywhere.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

This fool has breeched privacy laws. Their sexual orientation is irrelevant. He cannot post people’s private information without their consent. He has broken the law then refused to retract it. He should be fired and facing court.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

ricky:

There is a word for this in Mexico. It is called Doxing, and it is a crime.

I think the word doxing (from docs) is now universal.

That guy looks like a creep, anyway.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

As Japan does not legally recognize same-sex marriages, many municipalities including Iga in the prefecture where the couple live started introducing a partnership certificate program so that sexual minority couples have equivalent rights to married couples.

Mie in general and Iga in particular are extremely progressive places that place great importance on supporting all kinds of minorities including religious, LGBT, and foreigners in general. Iga in particular is so progressive and the people there are MUCH more open minded than the people in Tokyo and its surrounding areas.

Love Mie. Love Iga

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

And where is the news here?

In a country ranked 120th in gender equality,where people like Mori's thinking are widespread and where human and animal rights are low compared to all the G7 countries and western world what to expect?

Parity and dignity for people of same sex?

Japan won't and will never change.

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

It is sad to read that this has to happen. He is making a lot of issues for people, especially the victims he put the address details.

He should just move on. Now he makes a foul of himself. There is still a privacy law in Japan which he clearly doesn't respect. He should be mentioned on the website as the greatest foul.

I'm really worried that japan as a modern nation will never change.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I don't know why he's so concerned about that, since Japanese men practiced wakashudō.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

I'm really worried that japan as a modern nation will never change.

Well it will and does but like everything, Japan move extremely slowly.

All we need to do is see how long it took or more likely how relatively recent it was that Japan granted equal rights to children born from marriage between a Japanese woman and foreign man.

Until 1981 only Children born to Japan father's were given Japanese citizenship and even as Japan granted children of Japanese mother's the same Japan then revised the citizenship laws to make it harder to keep it without giving up any other citizenship they had from birth.

Japan changes but it is often 2 steps forward one step back making changes very very very slow.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

 with a comment saying that demanding an answer by sending an unsolicited letter was "very aggressive and malicious."

Ah, the old "But the mean people sent me a letter (sniff)" opening move, well played.

The couple had asked Kobayashi in person to delete their address from his blog and demanded an apology, but the assemblyman said they should retract the inquiry in return.

Followed by a brilliantly executed piece of "I'll say sorry if you say sorry first" tactics. He has clearly studied the 18th century Bulgarian masters.

This the couple did and made their decision public via social media, but Kobayashi still refused to comply because he said they had not contacted him in person about the retraction.

And topping it all off with a "PSYCHE! I got what I wanted so I don't gotta give you what I said I would" coup de main.

He wins the 2021 Pitiful, Emotionally Stunted Man Child Games!

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Just going to prove that the Liberal Democratic Party is neither liberal, nor democratic.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

It's not a matter of Sexual preference here, but of Japanese PPI Law, He (his Office) broke that, and should now be held accountable - Plain and simple.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Now the question I have is, if he or his Office were to be found Guilty, would that bar them from Political activities in future... ?

1 ( +1 / -0 )

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