Female lawmakers in Japan lobby for more toilets in parliament

"This is reflected by there being only one lavatory containing two cubicles for the lower house's 73 women to use near the Diet's main plenary session hall in central Tokyo. Before plenary sessions start, truly so many women lawmakers have to form long queues in front of the restroom, said Yasuko Komiyama, from the opposition Constitutional Democratic party. She was speaking after submitting the cross-party petition signed by 58 women to Yasukazu Hamada, the chair of the lower house committee on rules and administration,"

"The Diet building was finished in 1936, nearly a decade before women got the vote in December 1945 after Japan's defeat in the second world war. The entire lower house building has 12 men's toilets with 67 stalls and nine women's facilities with a total of 22 cubicles, according to the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper. Japan ranked 118 out of 148 this year in the World Economic Forum's global gender gap report. Women are also grossly under-represented in business and the media."

"Seventy-two of 465 lower house lawmakers are women, up from 45 in the previous parliament, as are 74 of the 248 upper house members. The government's stated target is to have women occupy at least 30% of the legislative seats. Takaichi, an admirer of Margaret Thatcher, said before becoming prime minister that she wanted Nordic levels of gender balance in her cabinet. But, in the end, she appointed just two other women to"

Nearly 60 women lawmakers, including Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, submitted a petition demanding more women's toilets in the Diet building to match improved female representation. The lower house has only one lavatory with two cubicles near the main plenary hall, forcing long queues before sessions. The entire lower house contains 12 men's toilets with 67 stalls and nine women's facilities totaling 22 cubicles. Women hold 72 of 465 lower house seats and 74 of 248 upper house seats, still far from the government's 30% target. Japan ranks poorly on gender parity and women face under-representation and sexist treatment in politics, business and media.

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