Danger lurks for unwary teens

少年少女をねらう罠

According to police, the four elementary school students, aged 11 and 12, were lured by a young jobless man to his apartment, presumably with offers of money and part-time work. They were held captive there for four days, handcuffed and blindfolded. One of them managed to escape and seek help. The man, who was said to have a record of picking up young girls on Shibuya streets, is believed to have committed suicide.

Many lessons can be drawn from the incident. One is that many teenage students are defenseless against the dangers lurking in amusement quarters like Shibuya. So it was with the kidnapped girls, who appeared to harbor no suspicions about their would-be abductor. There seems to be an appalling lack of social maturity among today's teens.

For schoolchildren, summer vacation is a period of temptation. Amusement and shopping centers in big cities are tempting to teenagers looking for adventure. Parents and teachers must properly inform them of the pitfalls in their midst. The kidnapping case is a timely wake-up call.

The Shibuya incident is not an isolated incident involving teenagers. Shocking cases have occurred in other parts of the country in recent weeks. In Nagasaki, for instance, a junior high-school boy confessed to kidnapping and murdering a kindergarten boy.

These and other incidents point to an urgent need to examine the crisis surrounding teenagers and to restore an environment in which children can be safely raised. What happened in Shibuya reflects some salient features of present-day society. One is the widespread use of cellphones. Police say the kidnapper used his cellphone to lure unsuspecting students. The message is that cellphones can be a convenient tool for crime.

Another feature is the attraction of high-fashion goods — the sort of things that are available in trendy districts like Shibuya. Some girls are affluent enough to buy expensive brand-name products. But some who aren't turn to "low-end" transactions to raise cash, such as selling their underwear to men.

Yet another feature is the extensive use of fliers for recruiting part-time and temporary workers. This reflects, of course, the new employment situation that gives increased weight to such jobs. The flip side is that many fliers seek sex and other questionable services. Children must be informed about such deceptive ads.

Statistics show a rapid rise in juvenile delinquency. In each of the past several years the number of missing girls taken into police custody has exceeded 13,000. Crimes involving teenage boys and girls have increased; last year, the number of these cases reached 400,000 — an increase of about 40,000 from 10 years earlier.

As Education Minister Atsuko Toyama points out, the prevention of crimes involving children is the duty of families, schools and communities. The focus must be on adults that commit crime, rather than problems that children face.

Adults are, for example, responsible for the sex trade involving teenage girls. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department reportedly had obtained an arrest warrant for the Shibuya abductor on suspicion that he had solicited sex from a junior high-school student. It is possible that he had kidnapped the four girls for a similar purpose.

Child pornography is another area of concern. Japan is under fire from Western nations for being a major producer of this despicable material, as was pointed out during a U.N. review of a Japanese government report under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The government seems to have been lax in dealing with this problem.

To keep children from falling into the hands of crime, police and administrative agencies must tighten their scrutiny of amusement quarters. They must step up prevention efforts in crime-prone places.

For younger teens it must be difficult to keep a balance between mind and body. In a way, the Shibuya incident is a measure of teen instability and vulnerability. Children need help in coping with the emotional and psychological pains of growing up. Providing that help is the responsibility of adults.

The Japan Times Weekly
Aug. 2, 2003
(C) All rights reserved

      4人のうち1人が逃げ出して助けを求めたため事件が発覚した。室内からは男の死体が発見され、自殺したものと見られている。 少女たちは渋谷のような歓楽街に潜む危険に無防備である。監禁された少女たちも犯人に対し何の疑念も抱かなかったようだ。

      この事件ばかりでなく、全国で未成年者がからんだ事件が続いている。長崎では、中学生による幼稚園生の誘拐、殺害事件が起きた。

      これらの事件は、10代の少年少女をめぐる危機的状況を十分に調査し、その安全な育成ができる環境を回復する必要を示している。

      過去数年間に警察に保護された行方不明の少女は年間1万3000人を超えている。昨年、10代の少年少女の関係した犯罪は約40万件に達し、10年前に比べ4万人増えている。

      遠山文部大臣の言う通り、児童の犯罪は家庭、学校、地域社会の責任である。児童だけの問題ではなく、周囲の成人の問題とも捉えるべきだ。

      今回の事件の犯人に対して警視庁は中学生への買春の容疑で逮捕状を取って行方を追っていたという。4人の小学生を誘拐したのは同様の目的だった可能性がある。

      日本では児童ポルノが野放しであることは、子どもの権利条約に関する国連報告も指摘しているが、政府はほとんど対策を取っていない。

      児童が犯罪の罠に陥らないよう、警察、関係当局は繁華街、特に犯罪発生率の高い地域の監視を強化する必要がある。

      今回の事件は、少年少女の不安定な状態と誘惑に対する弱さを示している。情緒不安定な思春期の子供たちを助けるのは成人の責任である。