A Japanese man, Ikko Kita, has been sentenced by a Singapore court to 17 and a half years in jail and 20 strokes of the cane for the “brutal and cruel” rape of a university student in 2019.
This makes Kita the first Japanese national to face caning in Singapore, according to the Japanese embassy.
The court heard that Kita, a 38-year-old hairdresser, met the 20-year-old victim at Clarke Quay in December 2019.
Despite her intoxication and lack of prior acquaintance, Kita took her to his flat where he raped her. He also recorded the assault on his phone and shared the video with a friend.
The victim, after leaving Kita’s apartment, reported the incident to the police on the same day, leading to Kita’s arrest.
During sentencing, Justice Aedit Abdullah characterized the assault as “brutal and cruel,” emphasizing that the victim was vulnerable and unable to care for herself due to intoxication.
The court rejected claims by Kita’s defense that the victim had initially consented to sexual activity.
The case has sparked significant attention in Japan, where some have expressed shock at Singapore’s use of caning as punishment.
Others, however, have supported the sentence, citing concerns over leniency in Japan’s handling of sexual assault cases.
Singapore defends caning as a deterrent against violent crimes, though critics argue that its effectiveness in this regard is not well-documented.
Caning in Singapore involves being struck with a wooden stick on the back of the thighs, potentially leaving permanent scars.
The cane used is about 1.5 meters long and up to 1.27 centimeters in diameter, according to rights groups.
Singapore gained international notoriety for its use of caning in 1994 when American citizen Michael Fay received six strokes for vandalism, despite appeals from then-US President Bill Clinton.
Source-BBC
