Japan Press Weekly

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2022 December 7 - 13 [SOCIAL ISSUES]

Sit-in protest by people with disabilities takes place against support bill package

On the sidelines of Diet discussions on a package of bills to revise the Act for the Comprehensive Support of Persons with Disabilities and four related laws, a sit-in protest against the package took place on December 6 in front of the House of Councilors members' office building.

Japanese Communist Party Vice Chair Kurabayashi Akiko (Upper House) visited the protest to encourage sit-in protesters. She said, "Many patients died in mental hospitals during the COVID pandemic without receiving the necessary medical attention. Their dignity was denied. The situation does not deserve to be called 'medical care'. We must replace the government which does not dare to face up to this fact."

A visually-challenged man in his early 60s said, "I think it's unreasonable for the five important laws to only be briefly discussed in one bundle." A physically-challenged woman in her 30s said, "I want Dietmembers to listen to our opinions and take enough time to discuss thoroughly."

At a hearing of experts' opinions held on the previous day in the Diet, Fujii Katsunori, representative of an NPO for the disabled, said, "The government regards persons with disabilities as a subject to aid services, not as a subject who holds rights, therefore taking an approach from a sympathetic and paternalistic viewpoint. I think the idea of eugenics or favoritism to able-bodied people is still active in Japan."

Kyorin University Professor Hasegawa Toshio said that the number of physical restraints at mental hospitals doubled over the past decade, expressing concern over the possibility that easing restrictions may legalize body restraints.

Past related article:
> Law revisions under debate may increase forced psychiatric hospitalizations in disregard of UN recommendation [November 12, 202]