The Japan Innovation Party candidate for the House of Councillors election has a history of assaults.

He had beaten a student and seriously injured him in the past.

My son, who was severely injured that day when he was hit with bamboo swords and baseball bats, still has keloid scars on his body and suffers from the aftereffects of skin tightness. I am speechless that someone who did such a gruesome thing is running for a national election.

Ms. A, a woman living in Wakayama Prefecture, says that every time she sees the name of the man in the news related to the Upper House election, she breaks out in a fresh, disgusting sweat. He is Yoshihiro Urahira, 53, a member of The Japan Innovation Party–currently a member of the Wakayama Prefectural Assembly.

After graduating from Kokushikan University, Urahira worked as a physical education teacher at his alma mater, Wakayama Prefectural Wakayama Kita High School, and as a member of the Wakayama City Assembly before being elected to the Wakayama Prefectural Assembly for the first time in 2011. The man who seriously injured Mr. A’s son was Urahira, who was a high school teacher at the time.

The incident occurred in March 2003. My son was a member of the kendo club, for which Mr. Urahira was the advisor. On the day of the incident, my son apparently skipped a practice session, which upset him. My son was later taken to a room called the “instructor’s room,” where he was repeatedly beaten on the buttocks with a bamboo sword. When the shinai was broken due to excessive beatings, he began to beat him with a wooden bat.

According to reports at the time, the number of times he hit her was between 30 and 50 times. The skin on her buttocks was necrotic, fat was exposed, and it was reddish-black as if it had been burned over a 50 cm area. It must have been more than 50 bullets. Mr. Urahira saw the wound but did not call an ambulance, and his son called a cab and went home by himself,” said Mr. A.

When Mr. A returned home and took his son to a general hospital, the doctor told him, “You are in serious trouble.

The doctor told her that her son was in serious trouble. We can’t handle it at our hospital, so we’re going to send him to a medical school for emergency treatment.

Ms. A recalls the incident.

My son was taken by ambulance to the university hospital and placed in the ICU. There, I was told, ‘The muscles in his buttocks have been torn apart, and they are mixed with fluid and blood and are circulating throughout his body. If this continues, pieces of muscle will get stuck in his kidneys and he will go into kidney failure.

Mr. A’s son was severely injured, with a total recovery of three months, and Mr. Urahira was suspended for four months by the prefectural board of education, but the Wakayama Prefectural Police, who took the situation seriously, launched an investigation that turned into a criminal case.’ In October 2004, Mr. Urahira was convicted of inflicting injury and sentenced to one year and six months in prison, with a three-year suspended sentence (a civil case was mediated with a 100,000 yen payment).

During the trial, Mr. Urahira’s lawyer contacted us saying, ”We have prepared 1 million yen as a settlement payment. It was clear that he intended to have his sentence reduced at the trial” (Mr. A).

What does Mr. A’s son think of Mr. Urahira’s candidacy? He agreed to be interviewed on condition of a phone call.

He said, “I will never forget Urahira, and I still haven’t forgiven him. But I was beaten up so much that the only thing I remember about the incident is that it ‘hurt. I have no memory of it. The wound did not heal cleanly and I still have a keloid scar. Formally, I received an apology, but I don’t believe he is truly sorry. (As for running for the House of Councillors,) I don’t think there is anything more I can say to him. I want to live without him for the rest of my life, but I still suddenly remember that day ……”

It has been settled through the courts.”

Is it true that he beat Mr. A’s son with bamboo swords and baseball bats? When FRIDAY asked Urahira for a face-to-face interview, he responded in writing as follows.

It is true that I hit him on the buttocks with a bamboo sword. On that day, the training menu consisted of only 10 laps of the 300-meter track, but I learned that he had only run one lap. When I asked him why he did not run, B-kun (the name of Mr. A’s son) said, ‘It was an order from the boys’ captain. Later, I learned that B-kun was the one who initiated this fact. I had always cared about Mr. B more than anyone else, so I felt betrayed when I learned that he had lied to me, and I was furious and punched him. As a teacher who is responsible for the lives of his students, this was a very shortsighted and thoughtless action, and I deeply regret it.
All repayments and other matters should have been settled through civil and criminal court proceedings. However, I believe that the wounds suffered by the victim, Mr. B, and his family will never heal for the rest of his life. As for me, I will have an apology for the rest of my life, and in my heart, I can only continue to say, ‘I am sorry.'”

In late June, a few days after this response, FRIDAY interviewed Mr. Urahira on his way to the prefectural assembly.

–Has he made amends with Mr. B?

Mr. Urahira replied, “The answer is exactly as I gave it in writing. Nothing more, nothing less.

–Mr. B. and his family are still hurting.

The only thing left for me to do is to keep apologizing.

–Mr. Urahira’s decision to run for national office is also a source of discomfort for Mr. A and his family.

Mr. A and his family feel uncomfortable about Mr. Urahira running for national office.

Without saying anything about the fact that Mr. A and others have doubts about his qualifications as a politician, Mr. Urahira disappeared into the assembly hall, repeating his apologies.

Is he aware of the incident that Mr. Urahira has caused? Why do they approve him? We sent a letter of inquiry to The Japan Innovation Party, to which Mr. Urahira belongs, and received the following response.

We are aware of the fact that there was a criminal and civil trial for injury. We hope that Branch Manager Urahira will once again reflect on his past deeds, take them to heart, and continue to atone for his sins by serving the public.”

How will the voters react to the heartrending plea of Mr. A and his son?

From the July 18-25, 2025 issue of “FRIDAY