Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has added her name to a list of 58 female Members of Parliament who signed a petition for more women’s toilets in the country’s parliament.
In 2024, a record number of women were elected, filling 73 of the 465 seats. The number of toilet seats provided, however, has proved insufficient for the growing quota.
One female lawmaker, Yasuko Komiyama complained of “long queues in front of the restroom… before plenary sessions start”, saying some female MPs had given up using the bathroom before sessions altogether.
The main parliamentary building had one female toilet with two cubicles easily accessible from the plenary chamber, while there were 22 cubicles spread throughout the entire building. In contrast, there were 67 stalls and urinals available to men within the building.
“I want to raise my voice and prepare myself for the day when women hold more than 30% of [parliamentary seats] in the future”, Komiyama wrote in a post on Facebook.
The bathroom issue was representative of a larger issue: “If the administration is serious about promoting women’s empowerment, I believe we can count on their understanding and cooperation,” Komiyama said, according to Japanese media.
Japanese women were first able to vote in 1945, and were first appointed to parliament in 1946. Goals to increase representation in parliament have been made and pushed back when failed, with a target of 30% female leadership roles across all sectors by 2020 delayed to become a 2030 vision.
Takaichi is Japan’s first female Prime Minister, and had committed herself to a cabinet with female representation equalling that seen in Nordic countries, but at present has only two other women on her 19-member cabinet.
In the parliamentary building, Chair of the Lower House committee Yasukazu Hamada has “expressed a willingness” to consider the toilet proposal, said an Asahi Shimbun report.
The issue extends beyond parliament, though, according to Japanese media, lines in front of women’s public toilets are a recurring sight nationwide.
This appears to be an issue agreed upon on both sides of the aisle, as while in office former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba had said his government would look into “enhancing women’s restroom facilities” to make Japan a society where “women can live their lives with peace of mind”.
AloJapan.com