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【What Elections Tell Us】
In the US presidential election last November, a rapist and convicted felon Donald Trump, who was found liable in a sexual assault lawsuit, was elected. Trump and his enablers loudly propagate, “Sexual crimes must not be tolerated. Therefore, we must shut out and deport immigrants/refugees.” However, if they’re serious about “Sexual crimes must not be tolerated,” then the easiest first step is to "Not vote for a rapist." What’s more, Trump and his enablers repeatedly make discriminatory remarks and incite violence against people living outside of the majority identity, including women and LGBTQ individuals. We can see through these actions that “Sexual crimes must not be tolerated” is nothing more than an empty slogan for Trump and his enablers, lacking sincerity, and only using those words for personal gain. Sadly, this election revealed the fact that many conservative people in America still refuse to elect a female president, spew toxic masculinity reflecting mental immaturity, and disturbingly insist on "Your (female) body, my (male) choice!" It’s a genuine disappointment that the liberal efforts to advance gender equality and human rights fell short. That said, it's not all without hope. In fact, the national popular vote tells us a more nuanced story.
Considering these facts, we can observe that the pendulum of gender equality in America is swinging back and forth between the liberals (Democratic) and conservatives (Republican), in order to bring it to parity as if to approach an equilibrium. On the other hand, in Japan last October. The UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women recommended that Japan amend its Civil Law which requires the married couples use the same surname, and introduce an optional separate surname system. This was the fourth such recommendation, with the committee pointing out that “regarding existing discriminatory provisions . . . no steps had been taken.” The committee also recommended revising the Imperial Household Law which limits succession to male heirs down the male line, and the repeal of regulations requiring spousal consent for women seeking abortion. Furthermore, the committee called for sincere efforts to guarantee the rights of the wartime “Comfort Women” victims [See #21]. Against these recommendations, the Japanese government, led by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), responded last month by deciding to exclude this committee from Japan’s contributions to the UN. Rather than acknowledging the mistakes of discrimination and advancing toward gender equality, the LDP administration instead retaliated in a way that seemingly mimics Trump’s petty tactics. Founded in 1955, the LDP has ruled most of post-war Japan with an exception of 5 years in aggregate. While many agree that the general election last October dealt a huge loss for the LDP, it still remains the largest and continues to hold power. And the vote shares further tell us a disappointing fact.
The fact of the matter is, the conservatives won by a whopping margin of 25%pts! Given this, unlike in the US, there are no signs of a pendulum swinging toward gender equality in Japan, rigidly stuck on the conservative side. This creates a certain sense of hopelessness in Japan. In any national election, who we vote for reveals the state of the nation. It reflects people's thoughts, attitudes, and values. Of course, it’s true that “Gender equality is not the only issue of consideration for my vote.” Yet, the fact that this issue has been left behind for nearly 70 years allows us to see through people's true feelings. Read Next: Truth on Gender Equality (6)【Action Creates Progress】 Read Previous: Truth on Gender Equality (4)【Respect Individuality】 Complete Series: Truth on Gender Equality (1)～(6) [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] Read Theme: Perspective Comments are closed.
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