• Source:JND
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Japan’s Conservative Party leader has ignited outrage with a controversial proposal suggesting a ban on women marrying after age 25 and advocating for the removal of their uteruses by age 30. The proposal, presented as part of a broader conversation on Japan’s ageing population and declining birth rate, has drawn sharp criticism.

In a November 8 YouTube video, prominent writer and leader of Japan's Conservative Party, Naoki Hyakuta suggested banning women from marrying after the age of 25 and implementing forced hysterectomies, or uterus removal procedures, at age 30. 

The lawmaker further suggested that women should be prohibited from attending university starting at age 18, claiming it would allow them to focus on having more children.

Naoki Hyakuta’s proposal to force women to have children early to reverse Japan’s declining birthrate has been widely criticised as regressive and discriminatory. Japanese actress Chizuru Higashi expressed horror, calling the idea of removing reproductive ability by age 30 ‘terrifying’, even as a joke. Sumie Kawakami, a lecturer at Yamanashi Gakuin University, condemned Hyakuta’s remarks as ‘a call to violence against women’.

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Naoki Hyakuta Apologises For Controversial Comments

Naoki Hyakuta apologised during a speech in Nagoya, clarifying that his controversial comments were intended as a ‘hypothetical idea’ and not his personal stance. He explained that he framed the ideas as a ‘science-fiction storyline’ aimed at addressing Japan's declining birth rate, acknowledging that his remarks were ‘extremely harsh’ and that he did not support such measures against women.

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Preliminary data from Japan's health ministry shows a 5.7 per cent decrease in births, with 350,074 recorded between January and June 2024. This decline comes amidst controversial proposals aimed at increasing marriage and procreation rates in the country. Naoki Hyakuta, the author of The Eternal Zero, a bestselling book glorifying kamikaze pilots, is behind some of these criticised measures.