Japan Press Weekly

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2021 February 24 - March 2 [POLITICS]

JCP policy commission chair: Marukawa inappropriate to be Gender-equality Minister

Japanese Communist Party Policy Commission Chair Tamura Tomoko on February 26 at a press conference said that Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide appointed an unsuitable person to be the minister in charge of women's empowerment and gender equality.

Tamura made this remark in her comment on the issue in which a document signed by 50 Liberal Democratic Party parliamentarians, including Gender-equality Minister Marukawa Tamayo, was sent to local assemblypersons of the LDP and other political parties. In the document, they requested local legislatures not to adopt a written opinion in favor of the introduction of a selective dual surname system.

Tamura pointed out that amid the growing public support for a selective dual surname system, Marukawa, instead of endorsing this move, joined an act of putting unjust pressure on municipalities’ legislative autonomy to oppose it. The JCP policy commission chair said, “Marukawa is not qualified to be the minister in charge of gender equality. PM Suga picked the wrong person.”

On the same day, a civil group, which lobbies local assemblies for the creation of a system allowing married couples to use separate surnames, announced that it sent to the 50 LDP Dietmembers an open letter asking them 11 questions such as why they signed the controversial document.

Secretary general of the group Ida Nao pointed out that the adoption of a names-related written opinion by local assemblies is one of the steps taken by the general public to have their voices heard in the Diet. She criticized the 50 lawmakers for committing an act of preventing people’s opinions from being reflected in Diet discussions. She said that Marukawa is unsuitable to remain as the minister responsible for enhancing the current positive momentum toward gender equality.

Past related article:
> 70% in opinion poll support demand for 'dual surnames' [November 19, 2020]