Sendai, Miyagi Pref. ¨C A Ground Self-Defense Force member in his 30s revealed Tuesday that his post-traumatic stress disorder, caused by harassment, has been recognized as an on-duty illness.
Since joining the Self-Defense Forces in 2006, the male member said he had been forced by several senior colleagues to wear women¡¯s clothing and to expose his lower body?at a GSDF camp in Miyagi Prefecture.
At a news conference in Sendai, the capital of the northeastern prefecture, the man said that the decision to recognize the PTSD?as an on-duty illness?was made by the commanding general of the GSDF¡¯s Northeastern Army on Thursday.
The man was diagnosed with adjustment disorder and PTSD at an SDF hospital in 2023 and 2024, and has repeatedly taken leaves of absence and been hospitalized.
The decision ¡°is extremely meaningful, especially to those suffering under similar circumstances,¡± he said.
Regarding the case, the GSDF member has filed a lawsuit with Sendai District Court, demanding the central government and others pay him some ?10 million in damages.
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