Japan Press Weekly

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2022 December 7 - 13 [SOCIAL ISSUES]

Single-parent families need public help in securing child support from ex-spouses

A national council of 32 single-parent support groups held a rally entitled "Help children of single-parent families!" in the House of Representatives members' office building on December 7.

Japanese Communist Party member of the House of Councilors Kira Yoshiko attended the rally along with other party legislators and gave a speech in solidarity.

According to the council, only 24% of single-parent households receive child support from their divorced spouses. The council said that the existing system should be revised to ensure that all children can receive support.

The council also demanded that for children of a single parent, school lunches be provided for free, school expense subsidies be expanded, and enrollment assistance for higher education be improved.

Support group representatives reported on the reality of single-parent families suffering from poverty due to high prices and the COVID pandemic.

A person from Fukuoka Prefecture said, "Everything has become more expensive. I can't afford to buy food, so I'm picking wild herbs to feed my child. I can't take it anymore."

A representative of a support group from the northern prefecture of Hokkaido said, "More than 80% of single-parent households surveyed in Hokkaido say they don't turn on a heater even on cold days."

A Shizuoka group representative said, "There is naturally a limit in our food support. State support is a must for single-parent families and their children to survive."

Past related articles:
> Public support is needed so that 'young caregivers' won't be left isolated [May 8, 2022]
> Create a world where children in every country can live in peace [May 5, 2022]
> One in seven children in Japan lives in poverty [July 21, 2020]