Groped, Scared, Disgusted: Stories Of Dealing With Chikan in Japan

We reached out to seven women who shared their first-hand accounts of dealing with assaults and harassment on Japan's rail system. They shared their stories hoping that it will help destigmatize the issue and bring it to the forefront of public discourse.

Back in April 2018, a video went viral online. It showed a foreign man groping a woman on a Tokyo train. The clip spread across Japan’s online communities and networks, causing outrage and disbelief. The strong reactions were a positive sign. People openly discussed sexual assault in Japan. But the truth is, it still happens often. Being groped in Japan is called chikan (痴漢). Gropers take advantage of crowded, public spaces. They know victims fear causing a scene. Packed trains give them anonymity and cover, and the lack of space makes it hard to react. That’s why many victims stay silent or don’t report it.

What’s Being Done?

© Photo by Pixta: yoshimi

Over the years, Japan has continued to try and find ways to fight the issue. Some solutions have included the introduction of women-only train carriages, and signs encouraging commuters to speak up if they witness an assault take place, playing on the group mentality that often keeps people quiet; ‘together we can stop chikan.’ In 2010, the Saikyo Line, a line notorious for groping, had cameras installed in an attempt to deter future assaults. More recently, a number of other anti-chikan initiatives have been put into place, including pervert branding stickers put in place by the Saitama Prefecture Police Department and a “learning corner” added to the Molestation Eradication Project website (since September 2024) to help people understand what to do if they are a victim or witness a groping.

But chikan eradication is still a work in progress. As a 2024 nationwide Cabinet Office survey revealed, 10.5% of people aged 16 to 29 have experienced groping or similar indecent acts in public spaces, most often on trains or in stations. Among them, 13.6% of women and 3.6% of men reported being victims. Of these incidents, 62.8% occurred on trains, and 34.5% happened during peak commute hours between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. Alarmingly, around 80% of victims chose not to report the crime. Given the insidious nature of the behavior and the difficulty in prosecuting cases, the real number is likely far higher.

Real Experiences

© Photo by Pixta: Graphs

We spoke to seven women, both foreign and Japanese, who were eager to share their stories in the hope that speaking out about the issue would help others find some solidarity in their collective experiences. In the name of full transparency, all the women in this article are personal acquaintances, and these experiences have been shared as a response to social media callouts and conversations we’ve had in person. Here are their stories.

Megumi, 25, Japanese/American

I have had it happen to me twice. Once, when I was in ninth grade, five boys on the train started taking pictures of my legs and trying to look into my skirt, laughing about it. The first time it happened, I was frustrated and felt hopeless. We were surrounded by adults, and I wondered why none of them stepped in to say anything.

The second was when I was a freshman, a senior in high school, who was standing right next to me, just started touching my hips. I was scared frozen. The way he started touching me was so casual. I got off eight stops early and walked because I couldn’t bear it any longer.

Ako, 26, Japanese

When I was a junior high school student, it took me an hour on the packed train to get to school every morning. It (chikan) happened to me almost every day. There were subtle incidents, like being stuck next to a person who was reading a book, holding it at the same height as my breasts. When the train would shake, the hands holding the book would touch my breasts.

At first, I thought it was an accident, but as I turned my body, their hands would follow me. When I realized that it might be chikan, I’d get off the carriage, wait for the next train and was, as a result, late for school. I never felt like I could stand up to it. I always felt so empty after these situations happened, so I tried to avoid thinking about it.

Looking back, I think it has affected me emotionally and relationship-wise. I had no experience or knowledge about men at the time, so it made me think that’s what guys want and it’s normal. I learned that it wasn’t right when I was older, but by the time I was 15, I already had the wrong idea of how girls should be treated.

Jo, 37, Australian (11.5 Years in Japan)

I was living in Osaka, working an administrative job for a recruitment company at the time. I had to take the subway, and I never bothered with the ladies’ carriage. I’m taller than all my female Japanese buddies, so I never felt threatened or at risk.

Listening to my iPod (this was back in my mid-20s), I stood on a train that was crowded but not too packed. It was spring, and I had a skirt on. I was about the second row from the door, close enough to see my face reflected in the window. Something touched the back of my thigh—probably someone’s bag or just an accident, I thought. Then it moved slightly up my inner thigh… then higher… until it was pressing against the outside of my underwear. I completely froze, wanting to faint and vomit at the same time.

I could see the guy’s face in the window’s reflection. He stared at my reflected face with no expression at all. It was like a horror movie. I shifted my whole body before his hand could move anywhere else, and as I was just starting to think, “Ok, what am I going to do next…” the train stopped, and I stepped off at that station.

Older me is quite angry that no one I told (including my boss) suggested that I contact the police. I even remember one guy at work telling me that I needed to be more careful, as I was cute and had long, gaijin legs. In hindsight, it makes me want to jump in a time machine and go punch him in the face. I still love Japan more than anywhere, but this was just a really awful thing that happened.

Yuri, 25, Japanese  

My first chikan experience was when I was 16 years old. An old guy started grinding himself on me on the metro. At first, I didn’t notice, but then it continued for so long that I turned around and when I looked back, I saw he had an erection. I was so scared I couldn’t do anything. I think my school uniform made me a target.

Another experience I had was that I was touched by the same man three times. After the third time he tried to touch me, I ran after him, but there were so many people at the station and he was so fast. When he was far enough away, he looked back at me and laughed, as if to say he’d won. I’ve come to realize that I really have to be wary if the train is full. I’m still scared to use the train when it is packed, so I usually use the women-only carriage.

Noemi, 26, Japanese

I think I was 13 or 14 years old. I was on a packed train and a guy behind me started rubbing himself on me. Also, when I was around the same age, I was on a packed train, and the guy next to me was moving weirdly. He was crossing his arms, but somehow he reached around me and started touching the bottom of my bra, along the inner bra wire. He was slowly sliding his finger back and forth under my bra. It felt like it lasted for ages. I was frozen, I did nothing, I just got off the train, and went to school. I felt disgusted, angry, confused, but mostly scared.

When I was young, this type of harassment was just something we had to go through in silence. So I’d like to ask people who witness harassment to intervene if they can. I am mad, but not at myself for not standing up to it. I’m mad at the men who get away with it.

Manami, 26, Japanese

There was no physical groping in my case, but I wanted to share my story to have a broader discussion about what people consider sexual harassment to be here in Japan, and the extent to which women face it in their daily lives.

It happened about a year ago, on my daily commute. I was getting the same morning train every day and started to recognize some faces in the same carriage. One day, I noticed a man, probably in his 60s, standing uncomfortably close to me. There was some room to move around, so I did just that, but he started following me around. At first, I thought I was overreacting, but this continued for the next three days.

When I first had a hunch he might be following me, I was too unsure to do anything, so I just kept quiet. But after it happened three days in a row, it was clear it wasn’t just me. Still too self-conscious to confront him, make drastic movements, or ‘run away,’ I simply decided to leave home a bit early and get on a different train.

I felt defeated—pissed that I had to change my schedule to avoid his harassment. But what enraged me the most was knowing he could be doing exactly the same thing to other women.

K, 23, Japanese

When I was a university student, I was on a train heading from Shimokitazawa to Shibuya. After a few minutes on the train, I noticed someone was touching me on the hips. I wasn’t 100% sure, so I kind of waited to see if he kept touching me or not.

After a few minutes, I realized he was definitely a chikan because he started to try to touch my breasts. From that time, I was only thinking about how I could catch him. My train got to Shibuya Station, and everyone was getting off. I moved against the flow of people and stayed on a train. He was behind me, so if I didn’t get off the train, he couldn’t either. After everyone got off, there was only him and me. I grabbed his shoulder bag and asked him, “Did you touch me?” He said “no,” he didn’t. He kept saying no over and over, but I took him to the station staff.

I was shocked at how brave and confident I felt. I remember at that time no one helped me, even though people around me should’ve noticed that I was fighting a chikan when I grabbed his bag or took him to the station staff. It’s a little bit scary to ask strangers for help, but I think it’s incredibly important.

Recurring Themes: The Fear of Speaking Up

© Photo by iStock: O2O Creative

A common theme that ran true for many of the women interviewed for this article was that their assumptions of how they thought they would have behaved were challenged when they found themselves being assaulted. As Megumi explained, “I wish I could say that I spoke up, but that bravery seems to disappear when you’re in the middle of being touched.” Noemi suggested that to combat the issue, the wider public must take responsibility for looking out for fellow commuters and stepping in if they see something inappropriate:

“I know how it feels to be scared and not be able to do anything. I want to tell people that if they see something like that happening, they should try to intervene and stop it.”

What To Do If You’re Assaulted

© Photo by iStock: coward_lion

If you can, speak up.

If you find yourself being assaulted, you are in the full realm of your rights to speak up and make a scene. As we saw in these stories, finding the courage to do so can be difficult. However, once the awkward barrier of silence has been broken, it’s much more likely that others will step in to help intervene.

Find the station attendant.

There you can report the situation. You can also take the perpetrator with you, or if somebody else has stepped in to help, chances are they’ll hand over custody to a station official.

Leave the situation, if needed.

If you’re too scared to say anything, leave the situation as quickly as possible. Get off at the next stop, find a moment to collect yourself, and don’t be ashamed of being upset. Your safety should always be the number one priority, so do what feels safe.

Speak to someone about it.

Sometimes the best way to work through an event is to talk it out, whether with friends, family or a professional. Sexual assault is, unfortunately, an all too common occurrence, one that’s typically swept under the rug, which enables more perpetrators to get away with their actions. In speaking, we raise awareness, and with that awareness comes diligence. If you’re finding it difficult to find someone to speak to, consider contacting Tell Japan, an English language network of counselors and mental health support workers.

Have you ever experienced being groped or experienced chikan on the train in Japan or your home country? What did you do? What do you wish you had done? Share your thoughts with us in the comments or contact us about it.

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This article has been republished for 2025.

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