Skip to main content

JAPAN PM SAY SORRY TO WOMAN PARLIAMENTARIAN

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe broke a nearly week-long silence today and apologised for sexist taunts shouted by a party member at a young Tokyo assemblywoman, reports said. The apology, issued to the male head of the woman's opposition party, according to Jiji Press and the Asahi newspaper, came hours after he issued a blog on the importance of improving the low rate of female workplace participation in Japan. In the post, Abe called for women to "shine" but made no mention of the episode. Tokyo assemblyman Akihiro Suzuki, 51, yesterday admitted he had yelled "Why don't you get married?" at Ayaka Shiomura, 35, last week when she was speaking in the chamber during a debate on motherhood. After days of denials, Suzuki said he was responsible and apologised to Shiomura as he resigned his membership of Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Hours after the apology his office pelted with raw eggs and his Facebook page was flooded with comments critical of his behaviour. He was also vilified on Twitter. Shiomura was questioning senior figures in the Tokyo city administration on plans to help current and future mothers when abuse erupted from seats occupied by LDP members. Suzuki's shout was captured on tape, while some of those in the chamber said they had also heard laughter and taunts such as "Are you not able to have a baby?" Shiomura, who has said she wants to identify others who joined in the jeering, is set to meet foreign press in Tokyo later today, further fuelling a debate that has dominated the domestic news agenda since Friday. Japan has one of the lowest rates of female workforce participation in the developed world, and most economists agree it badly needs to boost the number of working women. But a lack of childcare facilities, poor career support and deeply entrenched sexism are blamed for keeping women at home. Abe has made great play of his desire to level the gender playing field, making numerous speeches on the subject over recent months. In his blog piece, published today, he wrote: "The government will actively support women, regardless of whether they are currently at work or home, to play more active roles".

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

GARBLED TEXT MESSAGE A SIGN OF STROKE

Difficulty or inability to write a coherent text message, even in people who have no problem speaking, may become a "vital" tool in diagnosing a type of crippling stroke, according to a new research. Scientists at Henry Ford Hospital focused on a 40-year-old man visiting the metro Detroit area on business who showed signs of "dystextia," a recently coined term for incoherent text messaging that can sometimes be confused with autocorrect garble. But in his case, the man saw nothing wrong with the garble. The patient had no problem with a routine bedside test of his language abilities - including fluency of speech, reading, writing, comprehension and other factors. However, when asked to type a simple text message, he not only produced garble, but he was unable to see it as such. Despite showing only slight facial asymmetry and no other symptoms, doctors determined the man had suffered an acute ischemic stroke, in which a clot or other blockage cuts off blood supply t...
Post a Comment
Read more

WILL NIFTY FALL BELOW 2000?

Correlating the ups and down in the Indian rupee with the stock market, Vijay Bhambwani, CEO, bsplindia.com, suggests that if the rupee continues with its downward fall, the Indian stock market may fall breach October lows and fall further. “If the rupee falls below the 53.0-53.50 mark vis-a-vis the USD, expect a mini meltdown atleast in the equity markets. In that case, the 2250 level (on Nifty) will be breached easily to form a new low. The possibility of that low being below the 2000 levels on the Nifty spot is fairly high,” he says. Bhambwani supports his outlook by comparing the value of rupee at the time of October lows. “The October 2008 lows were made with the INR at 51.20 - 51.40 band. The rupee has breached the 52 level since then. Clearly the nation’s ‘share price’ (currency) indicates weakness. The curency market is a far more accurate barometer of the nation’s health compared to the equity indices. Whether you like it or not, we are under siege. Had it not been March (NAV ...
Post a Comment
Read more
BULLION ASSOCIATION SUPPORTS MODI The Bombay Bullion Association Ltd (BBA), the apex body of bullion and jewellery bodies in the country, has announced its support for Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as BJP's prime ministerial candidate. BBA president Mohit Kamboj along with some others joined BJP in the presence of senior party leader Gopinath Munde here yesterday. BBA had extended its support to Modi as the UPA government had brought about a "policy paralysis" in the economy, Kamboj said. "There are over 50 lakh workers associated with the bullion and gold industry, which has been facing the brunt of the current policies of the UPA government. "We at BBA strongly believe that a Modi-led NDA government would normalise the industry by introducing friendly policies," he added. Members of Bharat Diamond Bourse have said they will host Modi at a function at Bandra-Kurla Complex here on Sept. 30. BJP president Rajnath Singh had last ...
Post a Comment
Read more