Discussions are going on how to help people who face difficulties in their livelihood due to Covid-19, focusing on the current Life Protection Service system. An inquiry procedure is being reviewed, or a process to confirm whether direct families have a will to help needy members. Debates are significant. Let’s share the idea.
LIFE PROTECTION SERVICE MUST BE REVISED IMMEDIATELY
More and more people encounter hardships in their living conditions due to the pandemic. Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide was questioned January 27 how to commit in this problem and he replied that people finally could apply for the Life Protection Service. He was stormed with criticisms as the system does not work properly to assist those who need helps. The biggest obstacle is an inquiry procedure.
Rejection is illegal
Article 877 of the Civil Code stipulates: direct blood family members and siblings have obligations to help each other. Meanwhile, Article 4-2 of the Life Protection Act, pursuant to the clause of the civil code, provides that support extended by family members and siblings who owe responsibility and other support specified in other laws should be given in compliance with the civil code with priority. Therefore as a rule an inquiry procedure is taken about an applicant for the protection allowance, or asking questions to his/her family members who have legal duties.
A person who has legal obligations means a family member who is within the second degree of an applicant to be a beneficiary of the Life Protection Service (parents, children, bothers and sisters, grandparents and grandchildren). Existence of those who owe responsibility of supporting is not a prerequisite for application. And so, that violates the law if the service office rejects an offer on the ground that the applicant has such family members. If a certain help is extended by such family members, just a reduction of that amount is made from the allowance.
People don’t like the inquiry procedure
Surveys were made in the end of last year and the beginning of 2021 by a social activity group, the Tsukuroi Tokyo Fund, among the participants who had come to consultation meetings held in Tokyo. Mr. Inaba Takeshi, Leader of the Fund, told in a press meeting January 16: ‘those who responded to the surveys face hardships in their livelihood and most of them are to be qualified as they meet the conditions to be a beneficiary of the Life Protection Service. When they are to apply for the service, the biggest barrier is the inquiry procedure. Of those current beneficiaries and those who were beneficiaries before 54.2% of the respondents, or over a half of the users, replied they don’t agree with the inquiry procedure.’
Abolish the inquiry procedure!
Social activity groups, including the Tsukuroi Tokyo Fund, which assist needy people, presented February 8 a list of signatures of 36 thousand of people collected during a month as well as ‘a letter of request on reviewing the inquiry procedure’ to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. Meanwhile the Ministry had instructed exceptions for absence of inquiry: those suffering from domestic violence, the elderly over 70 years old and those who have not been heard of over 20 years.
The ministry has revised the inquiry system lately, shrinking the 20-year absence of communications to 10 years. This does not mean a good improvement.
菅首相は、１月２７日の参院予算委でコロナ禍で生活困窮者が増加していることへの対策を問われ、「最終的には生活保護という仕組みもある」と答弁した。
その生活保護制度が生活に困っている人たちにとって利用しやすい仕組みにはなっていないことから、首相答弁に批判が殺到した。とりわけ、扶養照会がネックになっている。
民法８７７条は、「直系血族及び兄弟姉妹は、互に扶養する義務がある」と規定する。これを受けて、生活保護法第４条２項で「扶養義務者の扶養及び他の法律に定める扶助は、すべてこの法律による保護に優先して行われるものとする」と規定されている。そのため、扶養義務者への扶養照会が行われている。
扶養義務者とは、二親等以内の親族（親・子・兄弟姉妹・祖父母・孫）である。しかし、扶養親族が存在すること自体は保護要件ではないので、存在するからといって申請を受理しないこと（「水際作戦」）は違法だ。
親族から具体的に援助があった場合に、その収入額を保護費から差し引かれるだけである。
「つくろい東京ファンド」では年末年始、都内の生活困窮者向け相談会の参加者を対象に、生活保護利用に関するアンケート調査を実施した。代表理事の稲葉剛さんは１月１６日の記者会見で、「アンケートに答えた人は、生活に困窮している状態にあると考えられ、ほとんどが生活保護の利用要件を満たしていると推察される。生活保護の申請に当り、高いハードルになっているのは扶養照会。現在もしくは過去に生活保護の利用歴のある人の中で、抵抗感があったと回答した人は５４・２％で半数以上にのぼった」と報告している。
「つくろい東京ファンド」などの困窮者支援団体は２月８日、１カ月余りで集めた署名３万６０００人分と合わせ「扶養照会運用に関する要望書」を厚労省に提出した。厚労省は、扶養照会をしなくてもいい対象として、ＤＶ被害者、７０歳以上の高齢者、２０年間音信不通などを例示していた。
今回、見直すとしたが、音信不通を１０年に短縮するくらいだ。これでは何の改善にもならない。
英訳版↓
No. 1203 Inquiry on Support Obligations
Discussions are going on how to help people who face difficulties in their livelihood due to Covid-19, focusing on the current Life Protection Service system. An inquiry procedure is being reviewed, or a process to confirm whether direct families have a will to help needy members. Debates are significant. Let’s share the idea.
LIFE PROTECTION SERVICE MUST BE REVISED IMMEDIATELY
More and more people encounter hardships in their living conditions due to the pandemic. Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide was questioned January 27 how to commit in this problem and he replied that people finally could apply for the Life Protection Service. He was stormed with criticisms as the system does not work properly to assist those who need helps. The biggest obstacle is an inquiry procedure.
Rejection is illegal
Article 877 of the Civil Code stipulates: direct blood family members and siblings have obligations to help each other. Meanwhile, Article 4-2 of the Life Protection Act, pursuant to the clause of the civil code, provides that support extended by family members and siblings who owe responsibility and other support specified in other laws should be given in compliance with the civil code with priority. Therefore as a rule an inquiry procedure is taken about an applicant for the protection allowance, or asking questions to his/her family members who have legal duties.
A person who has legal obligations means a family member who is within the second degree of an applicant to be a beneficiary of the Life Protection Service (parents, children, bothers and sisters, grandparents and grandchildren). Existence of those who owe responsibility of supporting is not a prerequisite for application. And so, that violates the law if the service office rejects an offer on the ground that the applicant has such family members. If a certain help is extended by such family members, just a reduction of that amount is made from the allowance.
People don’t like the inquiry procedure
Surveys were made in the end of last year and the beginning of 2021 by a social activity group, the Tsukuroi Tokyo Fund, among the participants who had come to consultation meetings held in Tokyo. Mr. Inaba Takeshi, Leader of the Fund, told in a press meeting January 16: ‘those who responded to the surveys face hardships in their livelihood and most of them are to be qualified as they meet the conditions to be a beneficiary of the Life Protection Service. When they are to apply for the service, the biggest barrier is the inquiry procedure. Of those current beneficiaries and those who were beneficiaries before 54.2% of the respondents, or over a half of the users, replied they don’t agree with the inquiry procedure.’
Abolish the inquiry procedure!
Social activity groups, including the Tsukuroi Tokyo Fund, which assist needy people, presented February 8 a list of signatures of 36 thousand of people collected during a month as well as ‘a letter of request on reviewing the inquiry procedure’ to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. Meanwhile the Ministry had instructed exceptions for absence of inquiry: those suffering from domestic violence, the elderly over 70 years old and those who have not been heard of over 20 years.
The ministry has revised the inquiry system lately, shrinking the 20-year absence of communications to 10 years. This does not mean a good improvement.
March 23, 2021