Children’s deaths in childcare centers rapidly increase since deregulation of standards

Japan Press Weekly

Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

Children’s deaths in childcare centers rapidly increase since deregulation of standards

Japanese Communist Party representative Koike Akira at the November 19 House of Councilors welfare committee meeting urged the government to halt a further deregulation of the national minimum standards for public childcare centers, showing that children’s deaths have rapidly increased since the last deregulation in 2001.

The Democratic Party of Japan-led ruling coalition is attempting to lower the minimum standards for the size of childcare centers in order to make it easier for private firms to launch childcare businesses.

In 2001, the government allowed public childcare facilities to accept more children and hire childcare staff as non-regular employees. According to an examination of 240 cases of children’s deaths from 1961 to 2008, which Koike introduced at the Diet meeting, although the number of children who died due to accidents at public childcare centers from 1961 to 2000 was 15, the number of deaths from just 2001 to 2008 was 22.

In answer to the JCP representative asking how the government will ensure children’s safety, Welfare Minister Nagatsuma Akira said, “Municipal assemblies will be responsible for that.” Koike criticized his stance as irresponsible.

- Akahata, November 21, 2009