A Japanese politician recently faced backlash and issued an apology after making a controversial comment suggesting that women might need to "remove their uteruses" after 30 to solve social issues related to fertility. This proposal was part of a broader discussion on Japan's declining birth rate and the challenges the country faces due to its ageing population, as per the South China Morning Post. The shocking suggestion was made by Japan's Conservative Party leader, Naoki Hyakuta in a YouTube video on November 8 where he discussed measures to increase the nation's birthrate.
The minister suggested banning women from marrying after 25 and undergoing forced hysterectomies (removal of the uterus) at 30. He opined that doing so would prod them to have children and reverse the declining birthrate. The politician also proposed restricting women's access to university education from the age of 18, allegedly to focus on producing more children.
This dystopian idea was met with swift backlash, prompting Mr Hyakuta to apologize, claiming his comments were merely hypothetical and not his personal views. Many slammed the minister for his regressive and discriminatory comments, sparking concerns about women's rights and reproductive freedom.
Mr Hyakuta later clarified that these ideas were framed as a "science-fiction storyline" to spark discussion and not meant to be taken literally. He acknowledged that his comments were "extremely harsh" and emphasised that he does not advocate for such drastic measures against women.
''I meant to say that we cannot transform the social structure unless we do something that goes that far. I want to retract my remarks and apologize,'' he said.
Expressing outrage on the matter, Chizuru Higashi, an actress, 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.
Author Issui Ogawa took particular issue with Mr Hyakuta's attempt to downplay his remarks as "science fiction," arguing that such language only serves to trivialise the harm caused by his words.
''I'm a science fiction writer and I'm not amused that the grotesque idea of removing a girl's uterus was described as science fiction, while I'm also unhappy at the idea of forcing her to marry and give birth - with penalties attached,'' he said.
Japan's fertility crisis is a pressing concern, with the country struggling to address the challenges of an ageing population and shrinking workforce. This proposal follows other controversial measures aimed at encouraging marriage and procreation, such as incentives for women to marry men from rural areas, which were also met with backlash for being tone-deaf and overly simplistic.
Japan recorded 350,074 births between January and June, 5.7 per cent fewer compared to the same period last year, the health ministry's preliminary report said.
