Women suffer in Japan

Japan is not a developed country at all.
Women are treated far below than men
in many ways.

It's a famous country for carrying out
" Comfort Women " during WW2 the most
disgusting crime in the history of mankind.
Shame on Japanese men.

　　 - Mainichi Japan - November 14, 2009 -

　　Relative poverty of single-parent homes in
　　Japan worst among OECD members in '06

The relative poverty rate of single-parent
households in Japan stood at 54.3 percent in
2006 and 58.7 percent three years earlier
-- the worst figure among the OECD's 30
member nations, a government survey has found.

While the situation slightly improved over the
period, the survey by the Ministry of Health,
Labor and Welfare shows that over half of
such households in Japan are facing poverty.
It also highlights Japan's poor standing among
the countries belonging to the Organisation
for Economic Co-operation and Development.

The relative poverty rate is defined as the
percentage of people who earn less than half of
the median wage. In 2006, the median yearly
income in Japan was 2.28 million yen per year,
which placed the poverty line at 1.14 million yen.

On Oct. 20, the government for the first time
made its own announcement on the relative
poverty rate of all people in Japan, stating that
the rate stood at 15.7 percent in 2006. In an
additional survey, the government focused on
households with children whose householders
were aged between 18 and 64 and working.
The survey found that the relative poverty rate
of households with children was 12.2 percent.
When there were two or more adults, the rate was
10.2 percent, but when there was only one adult
the relative poverty rate surged to 54.3 percent.

Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry Parliamentary
Secretary Kazunori Yamai said it has been difficult
for such households to emerge from poverty.

"In many cases, the adult in a single-parent
household is a woman. When there are children
and the adult can't become a regular company
employee, it becomes difficult for them to escape
from a situation of poverty," Yamai said.

Chieko Akaishi, a director of Single Mothers Forum,
a group supporting single-mother households,
called for government support.

"These are figures calculated by the government,
so I would like the government to be aware of
this grave situation and formulate an action plan,"
she said.