Johnny's Admits Sexual Abuse by Founder; President Quits

Tokyo, Sept. 7 (Jiji Press)--Johnny & Associates Inc. at a news conference Thursday admitted the allegations of sexual abuse by Johnny Kitagawa, the late founder of the influential Japanese talent agency. In its first press conference on the sexual abuse issue, Johnny & Associates revealed that Julie Keiko Fujishima stepped down as president of the company on Tuesday and was replaced by Noriyuki Higashiyama, 56, a member "talent" of the agency. In a video released in May, Fujishima said she was not aware of any sexual abuse by Kitagawa. But at Thursday's press conference, Fujishima acknowledged "both as an agency and an individual" that the late founder sexually exploited members of the agency. "I apologize from the bottom of my heart," she said. Fujishima said that she will remain as representative director of the agency for the time being in order to "fulfill my responsibility to compensate victims." The company is set to announce its new management team, including deputy company head, on Oct. 1. The company suggested that it may change the firm's name. At the same press conference, Higashiyama condemned the sexual abuse as "the most foolish incident in the history of mankind." While noting that he has yet to hammer out concrete restitutive measures, he underlined the need for "compensation and remedy beyond the law." "I'm prepared to face a long road," Higashiyama said, indicating that the agency will set up a panel to help victims. "I'll devote my life to tackling this problem," said Higashiyama, who will quit his talent activities at the end of this year to focus on his job as Johnny & Associates president. On Aug. 29, a special team of outside experts set up by Johnny & Associates to investigate the scandal released a report confirming that Kitagawa "widely and repeatedly committed sexual abuse" of members of the agency from the first half of the 1970s to the mid-2010s. In the report, the team recommended Fujishima, a niece of Kitagawa, step down to allow the company to be rebuilt from scratch and to eliminate adverse effects from family management. At the press conference, Fujishima admitted the drawbacks of family management, saying that "changes must be made." She stopped short of specifying what she would do with her 100 pct stake in the agency. Allegations about Kitagawa's sexual abuse against young talents in his agency resurfaced after British broadcaster BBC reported the issue in March, triggering former member talents to come forward with their experiences of being sexually abused by the Johnny & Associates founder. END