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Japan’s noted writer and Conservative Party leader Naoki Hyakuta has apologised after his comments on women and the falling birthrate in the country sparked criticism. He said that to boost the nation’s birth rate, women should be banned from marriage after the age of 25 and from removing their uterus post the age of 30
The leader of Japan’s Conservative Party has sparked an uproar by advocating for a ban on women marrying after the age of 25 and having their uteruses removed at the age of 30.
This proposal was part of an overall discussion on the country’s ageing population and the problems it faces as a result of the falling birth rate.
The politician also suggested barring women from attending college after the age of 18, allegedly in order to concentrate on having more children.
This proposal comes after previous divisive policies to promote marriage and reproduction, such as incentives for women to marry men from rural regions, which were also criticised for being too straightforward and tone-deaf.
The regressive remarks raised concerns over women’s rights and reproductive freedom, drawing harsh criticism from politicians and others.
Expressing outrage on the matter, actor Chizuru Higashi, according to South China Morning Post, said, “The idea of taking away reproductive ability if you have not had a child by the age of 30 is terrifying, even as a joke. Besides, do you think that the declining birth rate is the fault of women? Women cannot get pregnant on their own and they have no confidence about giving birth and raising children because their employment and income are not stable.”
During a speech in Nagoya on Sunday, Hyakuta later apologised, saying his remarks were purely hypothetical and did not represent his own opinions.
“I will retract them and apologise as there were people who found them unpleasant,” he said.
He explained that these concepts were not intended to be taken literally, but rather were presented as a “science-fiction storyline” to start conversation.
Why do they never try to control male actions? Most of the men I knew or dated wanted to have kids "later" and they usually "weren't ready yet".