Japan Press Weekly

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2009 March 4 - 10 [PEACE]

International Women’s Day rally held across the nation to defend the Japanese Constitution and people’s living

Japanese women took part in rallies on March 8 to celebrate International Women’s Day throughout the country under the slogan: “Stop the job market collapse and destruction of people’s living conditions! Stand up for a bright future! Let the Japanese Constitution guide!”

In Tokyo, about 900 people participated in the International Women’s Day Central Rally.

In the opening speech on behalf of the organizing committee, New Japan Women’s Association President Takada Kimiko called on the participants to work together to improve gender equality in a regulated society by learning from the history of the world’s women in the movements to win their demands and mark the International Women’s Day as the day for anti-war and peace and for solidarity.

In the rally, Hasebe Takatoshi of the Japan International Volunteer Center (JVC) spoke about the current situation in Afghanistan.

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s message was read.

At the similar rally with 500 participants held in Sapporo City, Hokkaido, Arthur Binard, a poet and supporter of the Global Article 9 Conference, said, “It is important to judge deceptive words that men of power use. Human beings create history. We can find much in the Japanese Constitution to protect our basic rights.”

In many prefectures, including Kochi, Osaka, and Gunma, women held rallies and marched in demonstrations.