April 8, 2012
About 1,000 people on April 6 took part in a rally in Tokyo against the welfare ministry’s recent order to welfare offices to employ more former police officers.
Criticizing the ministerial decision to reduce caseworkers and cover the shortage with former police officers as degrading and diminishing the quality of welfare assistance, participants confirmed the need to increase efforts to have the order retracted.
Sugimura Hiroshi, professor emeritus of Hokkaido University and Hosei University, stated that although the ministry claims that the order was given in order to crack down on dishonest recipients of welfare benefits, it may cause fear among the public and discourage needy people from going to welfare offices to apply for public support.
What the welfare ministry should do is to drastically increase the number of caseworkers working at local welfare offices, stressed Sugimura.
Public assistance researcher Watanabe Jun reported that in FY2010, 116 former police officers were installed at welfare offices in 74 municipalities throughout Japan.
Inaba Tsuyoshi, representing the nonprofit organization Moyai (independent life support center), warned that the ministry’s order could create further distance between residents and public assistance programs and lead to a further increase in the number of deaths from hunger and deaths in solitude.
Criticizing the ministerial decision to reduce caseworkers and cover the shortage with former police officers as degrading and diminishing the quality of welfare assistance, participants confirmed the need to increase efforts to have the order retracted.
Sugimura Hiroshi, professor emeritus of Hokkaido University and Hosei University, stated that although the ministry claims that the order was given in order to crack down on dishonest recipients of welfare benefits, it may cause fear among the public and discourage needy people from going to welfare offices to apply for public support.
What the welfare ministry should do is to drastically increase the number of caseworkers working at local welfare offices, stressed Sugimura.
Public assistance researcher Watanabe Jun reported that in FY2010, 116 former police officers were installed at welfare offices in 74 municipalities throughout Japan.
Inaba Tsuyoshi, representing the nonprofit organization Moyai (independent life support center), warned that the ministry’s order could create further distance between residents and public assistance programs and lead to a further increase in the number of deaths from hunger and deaths in solitude.
