|
On July 18, 2019, police in Yokosuku raided a small hotel, where the rooms were often used for illicit sexual encouners. They arrested Kato Ichigawa, 18, a eunuch, and Kazuhide Yamaguchi, 27, a lawyer, charging them with homosexual activity. Kato Ichigawa, originally from Hakodate, Kyushu was the son of an old samurai family which he caused to lose much face by being caught in an indecent act with another boy, at the age of 17 . Chagrined and disgraced by this, Kato took his father's tanto (the knife often used in hara kiri) to his room and considered taking his own life. Instead, he castrated himself with the knife, and, having thus atoned for his misconduct, left home when he had recovered. Kazuhide Yamaguchi, to the detriment of his career as a lawyer, refused to remain in the closet and openly admitted his homosexuality. He tried, however, to be as discrete as possible. The pair appeared before Judge Sessue Morimoto in night court. The courtroom was nearly empty. A reporter from the local newspaper dozed in the last row of seats. When a person is apprehended by the police in the act of committing a crime, asking the defendant to plead guilty or not guilty is considered a mere formality . Therefore, Judge Morimoto was rather startled when Kazuhide Yamaguchi pleaded "Not Guilty because no crime has been committed." It was not strictly legitimate to append a comment to one's plea, but Judge Morimoto was so intrigued by that he let the technicality pass and asked Mr. Yamaguchi to explain his comment. "Honored Magistrate", began the young lawyer,"by definition, homosexual activity must take place between members of the same sex. However, Kato Ichigawa is a eunuch. Throughout Japanese history, eunuchs have been denied the status of males. They have not had the same privileges or the same responsibilities. Some early documents, from the beginning of the samurai era and until the Meiji restoration, refer to eunuchs in the neuter gender. A eunuch is "it' not "he". It is clear from the study of traditional Japanese law, that eunuchs are not considered male. Therefore, sexual activity with eunuchs is not homosexual." Judge Morimoto pondered these words for a few moments and then said, "This is a legal issue on which a decision cannot be rendered without further study. Court is recessed for four days. exclusive of today. You are both released on your own recognizance. You are ordered to return to this courtroom at 9:00 AM on July 22. Court is adjourned." The reporter, having awakened to find something possibly important afoot, interviewed the two defendants. His paper, finding the unusual legal issue of some interest and, influenced by the fact that a "gay rights" movement was beginning to stir in Japan, saw fit to publish a short article on the case. Other newspapers and even the local television news, sensing a possibly newsworthy trial, when court re-opened on the fourth day, sent reporters and a television cameraman to the courtroom. The local gay rights advocates packed the courtroom. Judge Morimoto adjusted his spectacles and looked out over the unexpected crowd and spoke. "I have studied previous court decisions, civil lawsuits, local, prefectural, national ordinances, and even imperial decrees pertaining to the legal status of eunuchs and, specifically to their gender. The preponderance of the evidence indicates that eunuchs have not been regarded as men and have not been considered members of the male sex. Therefore, I find myself constrained to agree with attorney Yamaguchi that no crime has been committed. Case dismissed." The prosecuting attorney declined to appeal the judge's decision, allowing it to stand unchallenged and to establish a precedent. Mainly through the efforts of gay rights organizations, knowledge of this decision was rapidly disseminated throughout the islands of Japan and served as a precedent in many other court cases. Thus began the Gay Revolution in Japan. About a year afterward, "The Atlanic Monthly" sent a reporter, one Seymour Forester, to Japan to cover the Gay Revolution. He started in Yokosuku, where it had all begun. Visiting the ginza, he found that all adult book stores offered burdizzos and powerful elastrators for rent for a few yen. In almost every block, he found a store-front castration clinic. It was, of course, the "bottoms" who availed themselves of these opportunities to be castrated. A bottom doesn't need testicles, nor to be able to use his penis for sex. If he should change his mind, there was a thriving black market in testosterone. Mr. Forester visited an adult book store to inquire just how much use was made of the opportunity to rent a burdizzo. "Well, " said the proprietor (in English)"there's a couple in one of the booths right now who just rented one. I get 5 or 6 a day." Just then, there was a cry of pain followed by protracted sobbing which lasted for nearly five minues. Then two men came out of one of the video booths. The younger of them, about 20 years old was walking very carefully and somewhat bent over, his face wet with tears. The other, in his late 20's, had his arm around the young eunuch's shoulders and was carrying the burdizzo. As he handed it to the proprietor, he grinned and gave him a "thumbs up" sign. The store-front establishments proved to vary greatly in quality. Some of them were genital butcher shops. Others were modern sanitary clinics. They existed only because the medical establishment was still unwilling to perform elective castrations, though they often ended up cleaning up after the butchers. Whoever did it, it was becoming uncommon and even in poor taste for a bottom to have testicles. |