Cosmopolitan City Vienna
A City with High Receptivity, Inviting Also a Japanese Professor Locally
Criticized for Sexual Harassment as a Guest Professor at University of
Vienna
Dr. Toru Yano (1936-1999) served once as Director of the Center for Southeast
Asian Studies, University of Kyoto, Japan. He was a leading researcher
in Southeast Asian studies, publishing many papers and reports characterized
by detailed field search to test the validity of the theoretical hypotheses
set up by him in advance, rather than simply presenting ungrounded theories
or unintegrated local data, by making use of his profound knowledge in
local languages (Thai and Burmese).
In 1993, however, he began to be accused of sexual harassments against
his secretary at the university. United with the high social concerns over
this kind of incidents within the academic world of Japan in those days,
Prof. Yano faced intensifying accusations against him from the citizens'
group supporting the secretary concerned and also from a group of female
teaching staff members of the same university (including a female professor
of law). He was thus forced to resign from his position within the same
year and retreated to the Tofukuji Temple in Kyoto as a lay trainee (Koji),
probably for the sake of seeking mental peace. However, the citizens' group
accusing him did not allow the ex-professor to lead such a contemplative
life and thronged to the temple, demanding expulsion of the ex-professor.
Probably there was a lot of argument thereafter, but the ex-professor eventually
left the temple. The subsequent course he followed is little known to us.
In 1999, six years after the onset of the sexual harrassent scandal, a
Japanese newspaper suddenly reported the death of Prof. Yano, University
of Vienna, at a hospital in Wien. This news surprised many Japanese in
two points. One point was the fact that the professor criticized extensively
in Japan for his misconduct had been serving as a professor since 1996
at a university of long history at the center of Europe. The second point
was that he died at a relatively young age of 63. Reading this news, a
professor at a Japanese university expressed his doubt over the decision
of the University of Vienna to accept ex-professor Yano as a guest professor.
At the same time, not a few Japanese felt in those days that there probably
prevailed criteria for judgment about personnel affairs at the University
of Vienna (and perhaps at other universities in Europe) differing much
from those in Japan. Although the exact reason for accepting ex-professor
Yano by University of Vienna is unknown, it seems difficult to deny the
professor's performance as a researcher in the field of Southeast Asian
studies. Since the total number of students and teaching/managing staff
of University of Vienna accounts for about 5% (ca. 100,000) of the Vienna's
total population (ca. 2 millions), it will not be an exaggeration to say
that assuming the office of Professor at this university can be interpeted
as indicating acceptance by the City of Vienna.
How then did Prof. Yano lead the three years from 1996 to 1999 in Wien?
Information available is too scant to allow reliable illustrations of his
life in this cosmopolitan city. It is highly likely that the position of
Prof. Yano at University of Vienna was related to the Department of East
Asian Ecomonoy and Society: (ECoS). To which extent Prof. Yano was active
as a researcher or teacher during this period in Wien is unknown. Did he
give lectures in German, English or other languages? Did he make any field
work? Did he make presentations at professional society meetings? Did he
write and publish new papers? Or, was he given a honorary position without
any particular duty or prescheduled activity? If you happened to contact
Prof. Yano or listen to his lectures/presentations at this university or
other places in those days, we will welcome your information. Information
is lacking also about his early death at age 63, on which your information
will be welcomed.
In any event, considering the professor's preference during living in Japan,
the daily life in Wien was probably comfortable on the whole for him, here
being free of annoying criticizers and able to visit spa resorts with open-minded
atmospheres (Baden bei Wien, Bad Ischl and so on) in an hour or two by
train. I imagine, with hope, that Prof. Yano spent his last years in this
foreigner-friendly city relatively peacefully.
If Stefan Zweig were alive, he might write a biography of this researcher
with big up-and-down swings.
©2024 Ichiro Fukumi all rights reserved.