Hideko Hakamata: One woman's fight to free her brother from Japan's death row

Hideko Hakamata spent decades fighting to save her brother: the world's longest-serving death row inmate.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatch LiveHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsArts in MotionTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersOne woman's 56-year fight to free her innocent brother from death sentenceGetty ImagesHideko Hakamata, 91, fought half her life to free her brother - the world's longest serving death row inmateWhen a court declared Iwao Hakamata innocent in September, the world's longest-serving death row inmate seemed unable to comprehend, much less savour the moment.

"I told him he was acquitted, and he was silent," Hideko Hakamata, his 91-year-old sister, tells the BBC at her home in Hamamatsu, Japan.

"I couldn't tell whether he understood or not."

Hideko had been fighting for her brother's retrial ever since he was convicted of quadruple murder in 1968.

In September 2024, at the age of 88, he was finally acquitted - ending Japan's longest running legal saga.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c24nrr0mv4go

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