Harassment Prevention CommitteeWaseda University

The Waseda University Guidelines for Harassment Prevention define harassment as all remarks and/or behavior relating to a person’s sex, social status, race, nationality, principles, age, occupation, physical features or personality that may result in disadvantage and/or discomfort to that person, or damage his/her dignity. Therefore, the university policy covers general harassment cases which degrade the academic, educational or working environment by making use of professional or academic relationships against a person’s will. At the university, harassment can be categorized as below:

1. Sexual harassment: any offensive sexual behavior or remark
2. Academic harassment: any offensive behavior or remark relating to education and research activities
3. Power harassment: any offensive behavior or remark by a person who is in a position of academic or professional authority

Harassment is defined as a behavior “against the will or agreement of other individuals” in the guidelines, and so subjective feelings are an important element. Of course, human feelings vary from individual to individual and it is natural that someone may consider certain behaviors or remarks as harassment, while other people do not care about them at all.
Therefore, when you feel uncomfortable or harassed, please do not worry. Instead, consult the consultation desk, which is a third party to the case. However, the Waseda University Harassment Prevention Committee cannot make judgments based only on subjective feelings as to whether behavior needs to be dealt with as harassment or not.

When your friend consults you, please listen carefully to him/her. Please be careful not to be too eager to give advice or ask questions one-sidedly. It is important to confirm what he/she would like you to do.

Please encourage him/her to consult the consultation desk because it may be dangerous for you to deal with the situation on your own. In the event that he/she hesitates to consult the consultation desk, you can consult the desk instead. But please note that it is necessary to listen to the person in question when he/she would like to take procedures to lodge a complaint.

When you would like to seek a consultation, you are requested to come to the consultation desk and talk about the issue yourself. In the event that you wish to request a specific action, you need to apply to receive an official resolution to your complaint.
The Waseda University Harassment Prevention Committee will then examine the case to determine whether or not to file a complaint. There may be some cases in which it is not considered appropriate for the committee to take up the complaint. In the event that your complaint is accepted, the next step is mediation procedures. During the procedure, mediators in charge will go through the actual mediation process while meeting with you.

⇒ Consultation and remedy process

It will take two months or more until the committee provide you the conclusion of the investigation as the committee needs several steps for investigation.

Confidentiality is strictly imposed on all the staff concerned with the Waseda University Harassment Prevention Committee, the mediators in charge of complaint processing procedures, counselors, and in-takers in charge of consulting. Your visit to the consultation desk and the contents of the consultation are never discussed with others without your consent or approval.

At the consultation stage, you do not have a duty of confidentiality. You are also free to seek consultation elsewhere beyond the University’s Office of Compliance Consultation Desk, or the Waseda University External Compliance Consultation Desk . However, depending on the nature of the consultation, the spreading of information can sometimes hinder the process towards a resolution. In situations such as this, the consultation desks listed above will let you know if it is advisable to refrain from sharing information to others. Please be aware that requesting any form of action, such as an apology, or, punishment from the University towards the individual in question, requires a filed complaint. Once the complaint has been filed, and the processing subcommittee has started their procedures, you are then held to a duty of confidentiality as stated by the Waseda University Guidelines for Harassment Prevention.

The in-taker is a trained counselor stationed full-time with the internal consultation desk (The Office of Compliance) .

Of course. In principle, consultation will proceed in accordance with your wishes. Consultation at this stage may put you at ease and you may come to terms with the situation. In such cases, the consultation process will end there. However, in the consultation step, concrete responses cannot be made, so in the event that you wish to request a specific response, you need to take procedures to apply to receive an official resolution to your complaint. (Please note that there may be some cases in which it is not considered appropriate to take up a complaint as described in the answer to Q4.)

As a general principle, consultations are in Japanese. In the event that you have communication problems in Japanese, please bring an interpreter. If you cannot find an interpreter, the internal consultation desk (The Office of Compliance)  will look for a person who can serve as your interpreter.

Furthermore, the external consultation desk will accept English and Chinese.

You can file a complaint even if you have graduated or retired from the University, if the individual of your complaint is still affiliated with the University. We also accept all consultations, regardless of the circumstances. However, when multiple years have passed, it becomes difficult to find evidence related to the harassment claim, or, find contact details for an individual who has already left the University (e.g., retirement). If circumstances allow, we recommend all consultations to be made as early as possible.

It is fine to ask a family member or close friend to accompany you to the consultation if you feel anxious about going alone. However, depending on the nature of the consultation, only you will be asked to talk about the details (not the person accompanying you). In cases such as this, you will be asked for your consent before proceeding.

Anyone can make a consultation at the University’s Office of Compliance Consultation Desk, as well as the Waseda University External Compliance Consultation Desk. For example, you can make a consultation on behalf of a friend who has received harassment. However, requesting any form of action, such as an apology, or, punishment from the university towards the individual in question, requires a filed complaint. A complaint can only be filed by the individual who has received harassment, or a person who has been delegated by that individual; no one else. The reason for this is because it is essential to fully respect the wishes of the individual who has received harassment, as coordination with the other individual in question is included in the procedures after a complaint is filed. If you have witnessed a form of harassment that cannot be left unsaid, please recommend the individual who received harassment to contact either the University’s Office of Compliance Consultation Desk, or the Waseda University External Compliance Consultation Desk. (See question 13 for more details.)

As a general rule, the concerned individual is asked to bring their formal complaint request to the internal consultation desk (The Office of Compliance). This is so that the consultation desk can thoroughly explain the process onwards, as well as confirm with the individual their intention to file a complaint, with no room for misunderstandings. However, in cases such as poor health, or where visiting the university is psychologically or emotionally painful, a more burden-free way of filing a formal complaint will be considered. Please let the consultation desk know about your circumstances without any hesitation.

Basically, consultation with a visit to the internal consultation desk (The Office of Compliance) is limited to office hours. If there are unavoidable circumstances, please contact the internal consultation desk.
Meanwhile, the external consultation desk is available Monday through Friday, 8:30-19:00 / Saturday, 8:30-17:00 on phone.

⇒　Please click here for details about Consultation Desk.