The first general election after the enactment of ‘Law on Promotion of Joint Participation Plan of Men and Women in the Political Field’ was held last October. Unfortunately, however, a ratio of female parliamentarians was resulted as 9.7%, which was lower than that of the previous election, 10.1%.
LET’S FIGHT ENTHUSIASTICALY FOR GENDER EQUALITY
Just before the general election the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) had held its presidential election. Two female candidates ran, which mass media reported every day. Whether its content reflects correctly gender equality or not, media emphasized an equal status of men and women. During the general election campaign, too, the opposition parties presented their policies on the gender equality issue.
The terms, ‘gender-free’, ’gender equality’, and ‘equality between men and women’ are always seen in the announcement of basic policies by the central and local governments. Laws have been enacted, too. Let’s see the realities.
Irregular workers are mostly women
Employment gets instable amid the corona virus pandemic; the first impacted were irregular workers, who are regarded as a ‘valve for balancing’. Female employees are the majority among them. As of October, 2021, the ratios of irregular workers per gender were 21.9% for male and 53.5% for female personnel, according to the labor force survey conducted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
In the month of April, 2020, the number of male workers fell by 390 thousand in comparison with that of the previous month, while as for women, the reduction was by 700 thousand. The disaster hit women more severely. (the 2021 version of White Paper on Joint Participation Plan of Men and Women).
Concerning of violence against women, which the Cabinet Office made a study on the current situations and future tasks; the office reported an increase in the number of consultations on domestic violence. It comes probably from stresses caused by the long-time staying at home, as online working rises and job-shift frequency declines.
The corona virus disaster has shown facts that female workers are obliged to work under the unstable conditions with low wages and that women, in particular, face violence as the society gets fatigued. It has encouraged us to identify the gender issues.
Remove barriers to live happily!
If we eradicate difficulties to survive from a viewpoint of gender, that will make the society more comfortable to everyone. Low wages and unstable employment conditions should be absent, healthy and cultural lives should be guaranteed in any circumstances, a living standard should be heightened and welfare services should be altered to provide on the basis of individuals.
Article 4 of the law on Joint Participation Plan of Men and Women in the Political Field specifies: to set a target of the number of male and female candidates for the official posts of the political parties and organizations and to work voluntarily on preventing conflicts and solving them appropriately which derive from offensive verbal expressions and practices toward candidates for official positions and those on pregnancy and childbirths.
The New Socialist party should, too, work sincerely on the gender issue: to listen to voices of sufferers who have lived through hardship of sexual abuses and to build up a society in which gender is appreciated and everyone is happy to live. Let’s get united with people, recognizing gender diversity and numerous ways of living.
総選挙直前の自民党総裁選で女性２名が候補者になって連日メディアに取り上げられ、中身は別として「男女平等」が強調された。総選挙でも、野党のジェンダー平等施策がアピールされていた。
「ジェンダーフリー」「ジェンダー平等」「男女平等」等、国や自治体の基本方針には必ず書かれ、法制定も進んでいるが、実態はどうか。
非正規、特に女性
新型コロナ感染拡大の下、雇用において「調整弁」とされてきた非正規雇用労働者が真っ先に打撃を受けた。非正規雇用は、男性に比べ女性の割合が高い。総務省労働力調査では21年10月現在、男性21・９％に対して女性53・５％だ。
20年４月の就業者数は、前月比で男性は39万人の減少であるのに対し、女性は70万人と減少幅が大きく、女性への影響がひどかった（「男女共同参画白書」21 年度版）。
また、内閣府の「女性に対する暴力の現状と課題」でも、ＤＶ相談件数の増加が報告されている。コロナ禍でリモートワークやシフト減少等で、在宅時間が増えたことやストレスが要因と推測される。
コロナ禍は、女性が置かれてきた不安定で低賃金の労働実態や、社会が疲弊したときに暴力被害にあいやすい立場であることを可視化し、「ジェンダー」を強く意識させた。
生きづらさ無くす
ジェンダーの視点から見える生きづらさの問題を無くすことは、誰にとっても生きやすい社会に通じる。低賃金・不安定な雇用を無くすこと、どのような状況でも健康で文化的な最低限度の生活を保障し、水準を引き上げていくこと、個人を対象にして行う福祉制度への転換が求められている。
「政治分野における男女共同参画推進法」第４条には、政党や政治団体に男女の公職の候補者数の目標設定、公職者及び公職の候補者についての性的な言動、妊娠または出産に関する言動等に起因する問題の発生の防止及び適切な解決を自主的に取り組むよう書かれている。
性差を感じ、生きづらさを経験した当事者の声を聞き、ジェンダー平等社会、誰もが生きやすい社会を目指すため、新社会党も自身を問い直す必要があろう。多様な性、生き方を認め合い、共に生きる仲間と繋がろう。
英訳版↓
No. 1240 Gender-free
The first general election after the enactment of ‘Law on Promotion of Joint Participation Plan of Men and Women in the Political Field’ was held last October. Unfortunately, however, a ratio of female parliamentarians was resulted as 9.7%, which was lower than that of the previous election, 10.1%.
LET’S FIGHT ENTHUSIASTICALY FOR GENDER EQUALITY
Just before the general election the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) had held its presidential election. Two female candidates ran, which mass media reported every day. Whether its content reflects correctly gender equality or not, media emphasized an equal status of men and women. During the general election campaign, too, the opposition parties presented their policies on the gender equality issue.
The terms, ‘gender-free’, ’gender equality’, and ‘equality between men and women’ are always seen in the announcement of basic policies by the central and local governments. Laws have been enacted, too. Let’s see the realities.
Irregular workers are mostly women
Employment gets instable amid the corona virus pandemic; the first impacted were irregular workers, who are regarded as a ‘valve for balancing’. Female employees are the majority among them. As of October, 2021, the ratios of irregular workers per gender were 21.9% for male and 53.5% for female personnel, according to the labor force survey conducted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
In the month of April, 2020, the number of male workers fell by 390 thousand in comparison with that of the previous month, while as for women, the reduction was by 700 thousand. The disaster hit women more severely. (the 2021 version of White Paper on Joint Participation Plan of Men and Women).
Concerning of violence against women, which the Cabinet Office made a study on the current situations and future tasks; the office reported an increase in the number of consultations on domestic violence. It comes probably from stresses caused by the long-time staying at home, as online working rises and job-shift frequency declines.
The corona virus disaster has shown facts that female workers are obliged to work under the unstable conditions with low wages and that women, in particular, face violence as the society gets fatigued. It has encouraged us to identify the gender issues.
Remove barriers to live happily!
If we eradicate difficulties to survive from a viewpoint of gender, that will make the society more comfortable to everyone. Low wages and unstable employment conditions should be absent, healthy and cultural lives should be guaranteed in any circumstances, a living standard should be heightened and welfare services should be altered to provide on the basis of individuals.
Article 4 of the law on Joint Participation Plan of Men and Women in the Political Field specifies: to set a target of the number of male and female candidates for the official posts of the political parties and organizations and to work voluntarily on preventing conflicts and solving them appropriately which derive from offensive verbal expressions and practices toward candidates for official positions and those on pregnancy and childbirths.
The New Socialist party should, too, work sincerely on the gender issue: to listen to voices of sufferers who have lived through hardship of sexual abuses and to build up a society in which gender is appreciated and everyone is happy to live. Let’s get united with people, recognizing gender diversity and numerous ways of living.
January 1, 2022