HORIUCHIaWomen Today
What is Beijing+25?
President of KFAW

Mitsuko HORIUCHI
The year 2020 will be a pivotal year in genderequality and empowerment of women and girls. First ofall, it will be the 25th anniversary of the United Nations
Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing in
1995, namely Beijing+25. The First World Conferenceon Women took place in Mexico in 1975, the International
Women’s Year. We have come a long way in realizing
gender equality, but we still have a long way to go. As
the 2018 Global Gender Gap Report prepared by theWorld Economic Forum (WEF) says, “It will now take
202 years to close the economic gender gap. The gender
gap in political empowerment will also be difficult toclose, and now requires another 107 years to be bridged.”
It is true that more and further effective action must be
taken. The United Nations is expected to continue toplay a crucial role in gender equality. I still have a vivid
memory of the Beijing Conference and its preparation.
Maybe because I was a representative of the Japanesedelegation to the Conference and a negotiator in its
preparatory process. It was quite an interesting
experience, since in 1985 at the Third World Conferenceon Women held in Nairobi, I was on the other side of thefence, that is, I was a staff member of the Secretariat of
the Conference. Secondly, the year 2020 will alsocelebrate the 20th anniversary of the adoption of UN
Security Council Resolution No. 1325 on women, peaceand security. Thirdly, it will mark the 5th anniversary of
the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, in other words, the SDGs, at the UN
General Assembly. This agenda is “a global blueprint
for dignity, peace and prosperity for people and theplanet.”Young people, including university students, may
not know how passionately women around the world
welcomed the Beijing conference, which was a milestone
in the history of world gender equality. Civil society
organizations, in particular women’s groups, are also
the driving force in the move to a more egalitariansociety. A remarkable achievement of the Beijing
conference was the use of the term “gender” for the firsttime in UN official documents. Until Beijing, there was
women’s policy targeted at women with the goal of theadvancement of women, but not gender equality,
although roles of men and boys were graduallyconsidered. This position is understandable historically,
because women have been largely excluded from powerand decision-making processes. We women also havebeen suffering from discrimination. Regrettably, gender
gaps remain wide in Japan. According to the WEF,
Japan was ranked 110th in the world out of 149 survey
countries in 2018. We must act based on the important
position that the WEF indicated: “[In] the age of theNo.86 August 2019

Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) … By developing ourunique traits and talents, humanity can cope withincreasingly fast technological change and ensure
broad-based progress for all. … The equal contributionof women and men in this process of deep economic andsocietal transformation is critical. More than ever,societies cannot afford to lose out on the skills, ideas
and perspectives of half of humanity to realize thepromise of a more prosperous and human-centric futurethat well-governed innovation and technology canbring.”The United Nations has been highly influential in
shaping gender equality policy at the country level,
including Japan. For example, the Japanese government
enacted the Equal Employment Opportunity Law
Between Men and Women and other actions were taken
in order to ratify the UN Convention on the Eliminationof All Forms of Discrimination against Women. At
present, the decrease in population has been a big factor
to advance women in the economy.
Going back to the Beijing conference, the Beijing
Platform for Action, which is known as a document for
women’s empowerment, identified 12 critical areas ofconcern. These are women and poverty, education andtraining of women, women and health, violence against
women, women and armed conflict, women and theeconomy, women in power and decision-making,institutional mechanisms for the advancement of
women, human rights of women, women and the media,
women and the environment, and the girl-child.
At present, the world environment surrounding
gender equality is not so positive. So I would like toconclude by citing remarks made by the UN SecretaryGeneral, Mr. António Guterres, who identifies himself
as a “proud feminist,” at the opening of the 63rd sessionof the UN Commission on the Status of Women: “Aroundthe world, there is a pushback on women's rights. … We
have a fight on our hands. And it is a fight we must win– together. … We will push back against the pushback.
And we will keep pushing.”
Pro ﬁ leCurrently holds the posts of President of the Kitakyushu
Forum on Asian Women (KFAW), and Chairperson of theStop Child Labour Network. Formerly, Director of theInternational Labour Organization (ILO) Ofﬁce in Japan aswell as the ILO Special Regional Advisor on Gender
Issues (2001-2005), ILO Assistant Director-General for
Asia and the Paciﬁc (1996-2000), Minister of thePermanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations (19931996) and Cabinet Counselor and Director, Ofﬁce for
Women’s Affairs, Prime Minister’s Ofﬁce (1990-1993).

1

Current Issues Series
The Core Aspirations of SDGs and Goal 5 as its Leverage Point (Part -1)
Pro ﬁ leBorn in 1967. Joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs ofJapan in 1992. UN Policy Division, UN Administrative
Division, Personal Assistant for Mrs. Sadako Ogata as the
Chair of UN Commission on Human Security. Served as
Chief, Human Security Unit, OCHA between 2005 and2014. Director at Deloitte Tohmatsu Consulting between
2014 and 2017, then founded SDG Partners, Inc. Currently

President and CEO, SDG Partners, Inc.

the President and CEO of SDG Partners, Inc.

Kazuo TASE

Almost 4 years have passed since “The 2030 Agenda
for Sustainable Development”, also known as“Sustainable Development Goals”: SDGs, was adopted
by the United Nations General Assembly on 25
September 2015. Its impact has been getting stronger
and stronger both in Japan and the global society, forthe governments, private enterprises and the civilsociety. In particular, in the context of private
enterprises where I am involved in, the outstandingbalance of investment for Environmental, Social,
Governance: ESG investment, has shown rapid
increase, reflecting the growing interests of investors in
the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). This
trend offers business leaders opportunities to placesustainability in the core of their business management.

effects). But what we witnessed was that the gap
between haves and have-nots even seriously widened.
From this experience, SDGs attach key importance toinclusiveness, where both the bottom of the social
pyramid and social minorities should be able toparticipate in economy. Therefore, indeed this is one of
the main characteristics in SDGs, meaning “Everybody”
should be in.
At the same time, what matters most is written in
the first sentence of the document, while many tend tooverlook it. it states that we seek to strengthen universal
peace “in larger freedom”. This term is quoted directlyfrom the preamble of the UN Charter, and it was also
used as the title of the Secretary-General’s Report in2005, when former Secretary General Kofi Annan
proposed comprehensive integration of UN initiatives. I
believe that the concept of “freedom” in fact sustains thewhole UN system as well as today’s international
community.

However, how many people fully understand thecore aspirations of SDGs and translate them into
practice? Unfortunately, while many companies havestarted “mapping” SDG goals to their value chains andsetting key performance indicators (KPIs), theirinitiatives have not reached substantive understandingson the core aspiration of this international agenda.

How? “Freedom” means that one can do more, one
can choose one’s life from a wide variety of options.
Additionally, having options in our lives is nothing lessthan living one’s own life and realize one’s full potential.
In short, SDGs clearly declares in the beginning of the
document that we pursue a world where “everybody canlive one’s own life to the fullest”.

What is the core aspiration of SDGs? Many say: (1)Universality; (2) Inclusiveness; (3) Participation; (4)Integration; and (5) Transparency and Accountability
are main sustaining principles of SDGs, but I suspectthat these expressions are still too difficult for ordinary
people to digest. In this draft, I propose my version of
SDGs core aspiration as follows, focusing not on 17
goals and 169 targets but on the resolution’s preamble
and declaration stated before the goals:

Furthermore, paragraph 7 (Vision) says that weshould aim for a world where physical, mental andsocial “well-being” for everybody is assured. In many
Japanese documents, “well-being” tends to be translated
as “happiness” or “welfare” (we do not have an exact
equivalent for “well-being”), but direct translation as“living well” might be more appropriate in this context.

“Pursuing a world where everybody can live one’s
own life to the fullest and live well”
First, there is a well-known quote: “no one will beleft behind,” from the second paragraph in the SDGs
preamble. This idea has come from the experience in
the MDGs years (2000 to 2015), where the world
assumed that economic growth will eventually bring
benefits to the bottom of the pyramid (trickle-down

Now we can see what SDGs aims for: “Pursuing aworld where everybody can live one’s own life to thefullest and live well.” Now I believe that the biggest
leverage point to achieve this world is Gender Equality
and Women’s Empowerment (Goal 5).
I am looking forward to explaining this in my next
draft.

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No.86 August 2019

The 29th Kitakyushu Conference on Asian Women

The Olympic and Paralympic
Games & Gender:
Connecting to the Future through the Tokyo Games

Date : Saturday, November 17, 2018, 13:00-16:00
Venue : Large Seminar Room, 5th Floor, Kitakyushu Municipal Gender Equality Center, MOVEKFAW organized the Kitakyushu Conference on Asian Women under the theme of “The Olympic and Paralympic Games& Gender”. Ms. Kaori Yamaguchi, the keynote speaker, spoke about the history of gender equality in the Olympic andParalympic Games. Panelists Mr. Ryusuke Tanaka (ILO Office for Japan) and Mr. Takahiro Shimojo (Executive Officer of Japan
Airlines Co., Ltd.) gave presentations on the Olympic and Paralympic Games’ Sustainable Sourcing Code and actions withregard to CSR and the Olympic charter in companies, as well as the contributions of companies to sports and women’s active
participation in the workplace and society. Following the presentations, the audience exchanged ideas and opinions througha Q&A session.

Keynote Speech
Ms. Kaori YAMAGUCHI
Professor, Physical Education, University of Tsukuba,
Executive Board Member, Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC)
The problems athletes face in sports can also be viewed
as a microcosm of society’s problems. We have been taking
action throughout the world of sports in order to create asociety where women can also do what they want or to takeon challenges.
Sport is one type of self-expression. This self-expression
does not necessarily have to be in sports though. However,what sports demonstrate is the feeling that “you want tocompete as a woman, you want to take up a challenge, youwant to try something”, which is something that is specificto each individual.
This does not mean, however, that people should “giveup” just because they are a woman, they are abled indifferent ways, or they are elderly. You may see amazing
results or you may even fail. But the role of society is toprovide an environment where people can both challengethemselves and be challenged.
In that sense, the message should read, “Let’s create asociety where women can also try what they want to do by
doing their best in sports.”
The goal is to create a society where men and women,
people of all abilities, and the elderly can take up thechallenge to do what they want to do. I would like us toshow that at the 2020 Tokyo Games, but such messages

No.86 August 2019are still difficult to see when viewed through a global lens.
As Mayor Kitahashi said earlier, Japan is considered to bebehind the times. And if we’re perfectly honest, it is.
However, Japan will be able to change if it is motivatedto do so. “Hey, hey, hey, I went to the Tokyo 2020 Gamesand something’s changed in Japan. Something’s different.”
I think it would be great if people could catch a glimpse of
these changes.
The Games has been officially nicknamed “Tokyo
2020”. Japan has become the host country again 50 years
after it hosted the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Gamesin 1964. I think that the Tokyo 2020 Games is a major
event that is looking ahead to the next 50 or 100 years.
If the day comes when you have an idea to change
yourself or take part in society in some way in your own
style and not that of another person, it will be an amazing
event that will make it possible to leave a wonderful legacy
for the future.

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Panel Discussion<Panelists><Coordinator>

Mr. Ryusuke TANAKA(Programme Officer, UN International Labor Organization(ILO) Office for Japan)

Ms. Mitsuko HORIUCHI (President of KFAW)

Mr. Takahiro SHIMOJO(Executive Officer, Communication Division, Chairman of
the Council for Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic
Promotion, Japan Airlines Co., Ltd.)
Ms. Kaori YAMAGUCHI(Professor, Physical Education, University of Tsukuba,
Executive Board Member, Japanese Olympic Committee(JOC)）
Panelist
Presentation

Panelist
Presentation

Mr. Ryusuke TANAKA

Mr. Takahiro SHIMOJO

Programme Officer,
UN International Labor Organization (ILO)
Office for Japan

Executive Officer, Communication Division,
Chairman of the Council for Tokyo 2020
Olympic and Paralympic Promotion,
Japan Airlines Co., Ltd.

ILO is a specialized agency within the United Nations.
We are involved in various issues related to employment
and labor. ILO was established after the First World War
in 1919 and marks its 100 th anniversary this year.
The ILO has a “tripartite structure” that makes it alittle unique. Usually, in an international organization,
governmental representatives have voting powers todecide on matters. However, the ILO is an organization
related to labor, and so groups of both employers andworkers have the same voting rights. In the same way as
the representatives of governments, both employers andworkers have voting rights at the General Assembly.
The rights of workers can be protected throughinitiatives by companies or with the creation of systems
by governments. However, it is easy to forget that it is“necessary to create more jobs to achieve the goals ofsustainable development”.
I think that there are still a number of cases where
Japanese companies can help create jobs overseas throughsupply chains, or a series of processes ranging from theproduction of raw materials to when a product is delivered
to customers.
It is a shame that companies give priority to theeconomy alone and take on a form of exploitation. I think
the Tokyo 2020 Games would be an excellent opportunity
to secure decent work, more and better work environments,and for this, I would like the ILO to offer its assistance. If
this comes out through the “2020 Legacy”, I think that
the Games will become a major driving force in achieving
the 2030 target.
The ILO would like to continue to take action toprotect and promote the basic rights of all people involvedin the 2020 Games, that is everyone, including all women,men, children and the elderly, and ensure that they havedecent living and working conditions.

I am in charge of promoting the Olympic andParalympic Games in JAL and have been appointed as
the person in charge within the company to achieve thevision of the Games and comply with the basic principlesof the Sustainable Sourcing Code.
Today, I would like to again look at the vision of theGames and the basic principles of the Sustainable
Sourcing Code. I am convinced that what is described in
the basic principles of the Sustainable Sourcing Code will
actually support the sound management of the Gamesand play a significant role in its success.
The “JAL Vision” has three goals: “Challenge totransform JAL into a truly global airline”, “Challenge tocreate new values one step ahead of competitors”, and“Challenge for sustainable growth”.
The more I look at these goals, the more I think thatthe vision of the Games is moving in the same direction as
the JAL Group, even if the way of expressing it is different.
I have realized once again that the basic principles of
the Sustainable Sourcing Code (sourcing companies thatare in compliance with the ILO’s core labor standards)
are also important goals that we at JAL are required towork towards in our aim to realize the JAL Vision.
In other words, I have become aware again that being
able to meet the requirements of the Sustainable Sourcing
Code as a company is a prerequisite for us to achieve thevision of the JAL Group, or the “JAL Vision”, and is also
simply a way for us to contribute to the success of theTokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games as well.
The theme of the Games of “Connecting to Tomorrow”
is accompanied by a sentence that states, “The 2020
Games will enable Japan, now a mature economy, topromote future changes throughout the world, and leave apositive legacy for future generations.”
In that sense, JAL considers the “Sustainable Sourcing
Code” to be an important theme for us as well.

1

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No.86 August 2019

KFAW Thailand Study Tour 2018
A group from Kitakyushu visited Thailand, acountry with strong ties to Kitakyushu, from
December 11 (Tue) to 16 (Sun), 2018 to enhancetheir understanding of Thai society and to learn
about challenges in achieving gender equality in
the Asia-Pacific region. Rapid economic
development in Thailand has resulted in widening
income gaps and a number of slums exist in
various parts of Bangkok. This report will focus
mainly on the Duang Prateep Foundation, which
provides support to residents in Bangkok’s
largest slum, Khlong Toei.

Place of visit [Theme]
December 12 (Wed)
Embassy of Japan in Thailand [Overview of Thai society]
Duang Prateep Foundation, Khlong Toei slum
[Thailand’s widening social divide and protection of human rights]
December 13 (Thu)
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) [Gender equality
and women’s empowerment]International Organization for Migration (IOM) [Human trafficking measures]
December 14 (Fri)
Women’s Studies Center, Chiang Mai University [Empowerment of
women in Thailand]
resulted in the rise of a large number of slums in Bangkok
because housing measures were not taken to address theissue of affordable housing. Home to about 150,000 people,
Khlong Toei is the largest slum in Bangkok.

Ms. Prateep Ungsongtham Hata and Duang Prateep
Foundation
Born in the Khlong Toei slum in 1952, Ms. Prateep
Hata started to peddle goods on the street at the age ofsix. At age 11, she worked at a job scraping rust off of thebottom of cargo ships using a chisel. After a friend ended
up in an accident, she decided that she would work to
educate children living into poverty and improve the livesof residents. In 1968, at the age of 16, Ms. Prateep Hata
started teaching children after opening the “One Baht a
Day School” in her home. The school evolved into a public
elementary school eight years after it opened and waslater extended to secondary school. This year, thefoundation, which was established to improve the lives ofpeople living in slums with the award money received inrecognition of these activities, ushered in the fortiethyear since it first opened its doors.

Duang Prateep Foundation
celebrating its 40th anniversary
Modern building equipped with
air conditioning

Khlong Toei slum, 40 years
ago

Visiting Khlong Toei today
Garbage could be found in
puddles, but passages were paved
and there were connections forelectricity.

Role of Foundation and challenges
For 40 years, the Foundation has worked on a variety of
projects for people living in poverty to allow them to livewith dignity, building a strong community with people
living in slums. However, residents in Khlong Toei,
originally built on land owned by the Port Authority, arebeing evicted as a result of urban planning and the continued
survival of the community is being called into question.

Ms. Prateep Hata teachingreading and writing at the One
Baht a Day School, later coming
to be known as the “Slum Angel”

Emergence of slums
Thailand hired laborers from rural areas as it
required a large amount of cheap labor to cope with thecountry’s rapid modernization and industrialization. This

Surrounding Ms. Prateep Hata
(front row, second from left)Commemorative
journal publishedby the Foundation

Wrap-up of the Thailand Study Tour
What we experienced on this tour is an understanding of
the importance of feeling compassion for others and having
the capacity to understand their suffering. Ms. Prateep
Hata, herself a child of a slum, rose up to help residents andreceived support for the activities of the Foundation frommany people who agreed with her intentions. At both theUnited Nations Development Programme and theInternational Organization for Migration, multi-national
staff members are boldly taking up the issues of human

No.86 August 2019trafficking and natural disasters in both Thailand and theAsia-Pacific region and are taking great strides forward increating a better society from a global perspective. During
this study tour, we felt that the happiest and most rewarding
thing for the human race would be to be able to work forothers and for the sake of society. In the future, KFAW willcontinue to disseminate information on various issues
developing in Japan and around the world to createawareness. (KFAW Secretariat)

5sia n2 018 K FAW A
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What Lies Behind the Global Increase in Women
Political Leaders? ~What changes will result fromthe presence of more women political leaders?

Date : Saturday, February 16, 2019, 14:00-16:00
Venue : Small Seminar Room, 5th Floor, Kitakyushu Municipal Gender Equality Center, MOVE
Lecturer : SHIN Ki-young (Associate Professor, Ochanomizu University)
What changes will westart to see as the numberof women political leaders
increases? With increased
participation by women inpolitical arenas, there will
be changes in both the Diet and legislation. For example,
we will see changes in the political culture, such as (1)more diverse backgrounds (political interests, ages) for
politicians, (2) contributions to the promotion of gender
legislation (laws governing family rights and domestic
violence), (3) increased budgets for childcare and daycare,(4) reduced military budgets and military acts, (5) arevitalized Diet with motions for bills and the submissionof proposals by members of the Diet, and (6) a decrease insexual harassment and closed door-style politics.
The percentage of women political leaders in Taiwan is
38%, followed by Korea at 17% and Japan at 10%. For
example, Taiwan has adopted a quota system in which 50%
of all proportional seats are allocated to women and sixseats are assigned to representatives from indigenous
cultures. In Korea, efforts must be made to ensure thatwomen make up 50% of proportional candidates and thatthey make up at least 30% of candidates nominated for
local constituencies. Korea is also working to subsidize
public funding for political parties to female candidates.
In other parts of the world that are making thetransition to parity (equal number of men and women),
provincial assemblies in France, for example, do not votefor individual candidates, but choose one pair from a list of
candidates that are running in pairs of men and women. In
Latin America, eight countries, including Mexico, haveadopted a system where the number of male and female
candidates are equal.
In May 2018, Japan also enacted the Act on Promotionof Gender Equality in the Political Field. Both women andmen support the world. Let us press forward together withefforts in the field of political decision-making to quickly
create a society where men and women can equallyparticipate.

JICA Gender Mainstreaming Policies for
Government Officers 2018 (the Second)and comments from trainees who participate in each ofthese trainings. The ability to understand the status ofgender mainstreaming and issues in various countries
leads to the development of optimal proposals as one of
outputs from the training. On the first day of the course,
the participants present and share the status andchallenges in gender mainstreaming in each country withall attendees. The participants who visited Japan from theseven countries delivered their presentations, albeit
slightly nervously, and discussed issues with otherparticipants and expert commentators. At this presentation
session, the participants were able to have a candid talkwith one another and deepen their understanding evenafter the training period had ended.
This fiscal year, participants also participated inseminars for the public organized by KFAW, such as the“Gender in Africa” (June 29) and “International Exchange
Talks” (January 27), which allowed them to interact withthe public and share information through discussions.
In this way, KFAW not only implements the training
course itself, but also welcomes the participants as new friends
who can share information onvarious gender issues and takeup the challenge to findsolutions to problems, resulting
in a meaningful and productive
month in Japan.

The second FY 2018 “Gender Mainstreaming Policies
for Government Officers” training was held from January
10 (Thu) to February 7 (Thu) with the participation ofseven representatives from seven countries—Cambodia,
Dominican Republic, Egypt, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal
and Pakistan.
The purpose of this training course is for government
officers to develop and implement effective plans to promote
gender mainstreaming within their organizations. The
training course is made up of a mix of lectures, workshops,
discussions and field visits over a one-month period.
JICA accepts government officers who will be leaders
in building their own countries under its training programin Japan to provide support for acquiring skills andknowledge and developing systems. This thematic-based
training course is implemented with the participation of
attendees from those countries requested by the Japaneseorganizers.
KFAW updates subsequent courses based on requests

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No.86 August 2019

The 30th KFAW Research Report
Date : Sunday, March 24, 2019, 13:00-16:00
Venue: Small Seminar Room, 5th Floor, Kitakyushu Municipal Gender Equality Center, MOVE
Participants: 30
At KFAW, visiting researchers conduct studies and research on various issues related to gender equality. These studies
and research are intended to clarify issues in Japan by looking at global trends and perspectives to eventually contribute to
the realization of gender equality in Kitakyushu City. KFAW held a briefing session on research by visiting researchers over thetwo year period from 2017 to 2018.

1

Study on “Women’s Active Participation in the Workplace” throughTeleworking

2

How Does the Rise of the Early Education System in Modern China Change
Families and Gender? –Focus on the Emergence of a New Paternal Image–3

Research on Mainstreaming Gender Perspectives in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):
A Comparison between Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) by Japan and Other Countries

ReportYuto IHARA(Visiting Researcher, Advanced Collaborative Research Organization for Smart Society, Waseda University, and others)

even as networks are being developed and improved anddocuments are being digitalized, that vague sense of uneaseabout these concerns continues to take priority.
To this end, it is important to establish, manage andimprove suitable systems and processes to introduce thispractice. The introduction of teleworking not only contributes
to gender quality and improves work satisfaction, it is also
expected to have an impact on expanding effects on humanhealth and welfare, as well as on the creation of livable cities.

The introduction of teleworking is aneffective option for people who are limited
in terms of location and time because ofchild and nursing care obligations. It isboth useful for promoting women’s active
participation in the workplace and formen who mostly have had fi xed locations and set work hours.
There are significant concerns about information security
with the introduction of this system, but the reality is that

ReportKaori ISOBE(Assistant Professor, Office of the Center for Gender and Women’s Culture in Asia, Nara Women’s University)

necessity” based on scientific knowledge and sent their kids
to be educated. It is assumed that a father’s educational
background is one of the major reasons for this. These newfathers have somehow survived the fierce “exam battles”
that have appeared in modern-day Chinese society, andlived in the competitive environment since they were small.
“Perfect fathers” have emerged among these fathers, actively
committed to work (earning money), as well as housework,
raising children, and education.

The Chinese government announced
the decision to abolish the one-childpolicy on October 29, 2015, allowing allparents to have two children fromJanuary 2016. The rich, single childgeneration born in the 1980s and 1990s
is now raising children. Early education started to spread in
China, as parents found that from the start they had “onlyone shot at parenting” and therefore could not fail.
Fathers accepted that early education was a “positive

ReportYukiko ODA(Vice Convener, JAWW (Japan Women’s Watch)

VNR is a treasure trove of case studies. The Japanese
government must show a willingness to address not only
women’s active participation in the workplace and society,but also issues that throw up barriers to gender equality,
such as violence and harassment against women and genderand the redistribution of unpaid work. It is also necessary tointegrate gender perspectives into policies and to create
indicators based on gender statistics to ensure that “no one
is left behind”.

When looking at the Voluntary
National Reviews (VNRs) of different
countries, it is clear that themainstreaming of gender perspectives
is lagging behind. The issue ismainstreaming gender in the SDGs
other than Goal 5 on “gender equality”. Countries that focus
on gender issues are keen to promote women’s participationin decision making and leadership positions. Each country’s

No.86 August 2019

7

KFAW International Understanding Seminar2019 International Exchange Talks on Creating the Ideal FutureThis “International Understanding Seminar” invited government officials from different countries who were in Japanattending a JICA training course on gender to take part in a workshop featuring an open discussion on how different
countries are working on the SDGs.
Date : Sunday, January 27, 2019 13:00-16:00
Venue : Small Seminar Room, 5th Floor, Kitakyushu Municipal Gender Equality Center, MOVE
Contents : 【Part 1】 ・ What are the SDGs? (Presentation by The University of Kitakyushu)
・ Individual and country introductions (Relay talks by governmental officers)【Part 2】 ・ World Café on the theme: “What do you need to achieve your ideal future? Let’s think about
the future in relation to the SDGs”【Part 3】 ・ Calligraphy performance/ema (votive wooden tablets)
Panelists : Participants in the JICA Gender Mainstreaming Policies for Government Officers 2018(the Second) course (7 panelists from 7 countries)
JICA Philippines Program Officer Ms. Tracy Decena
Participants : 55
Part 1

Presentations by students from ESD Promotion
Practical Work at The University of Kitakyushu
and government officials

Part 2

World Café

Part 3Calligraphy performance/ema (votive wooden
tablets)

The panelists were divided
into groups and a workshop
was held featuring an open
discussion
betweentheparticipants and government
officers on what actions arebeing taken for the SDGs ineach country. Discussions
heated up with suggestions for a wide range of personal andsocial issues, such as substance abuse, violence in the home,global warming, child poverty, nuclear power and energy
issues, child marriage, educational levels between men andwive, rape, domestic violence, unmarried status, divorce,and other issues.

The local student-createdgroup,
ESD
Promotion
Practical Work, at The
University of Kitakyushu
explained about the current
situation and challenges
facing the world on topics including endangered species,
child poverty and child marriage in an easy-to-understandmanner using quizzes. Following their talk, KFAW spoke
about gender mainstreaming, the theme of the JICA
training in which the government officials are participating,in relation to Goal 5 of the SDGs.
Next, the government officials introduced their countries,
as follows.
〇Maldives: Men are mainly working in tourism, thecountry’s key industry, as parents do not want theirdaughters to work at resorts on remote islands.
〇Myanmar: The country’s 135 diverse ethnic groups live
according to their own cultures and traditions.
〇Dominican Republic: The country, which has been
influenced by Spain, France, Africa and a variety of othercultures, has a very diverse culture of its own.
〇Nepal: There are a number of Hindu festivals in Nepal, somein which only women fast and pray for longevity for men.
〇Pakistan: A beautiful country with mountains over 8,000
meters, lakes and glaciers, Pakistan has five ethnic
groups, many of them Muslim.
〇Cambodia: People put their hands together to say hello,
but the height of the hand from the forehead to the chest
is determined depending on if the person is someone who
commands respect, a superior, boss or friend.
〇Philippines: Gender equality and women’s empowerment
in the Philippines is quite advanced. Family bonds arealso very strong.
〇Egypt: Egyptians consider
their identity as both an
Arabic/Middle
Easterncountry and a part of theMediterranean and African
contents to be important.

The participants were also treated to a calligraphy
performance, a traditional part of Japanese culture. Ms.
Nao Kuroi, a second year student at The University of
Kitakyushu’s ESD Promote who also has experience inwinning the group championship at the International HighSchool Shodo Exhibition, wrote the word “dream” in bold,
powerful strokes.
After the performance, the participants wrote theirthoughts about what steps they themselves could take tocreate an ideal future on ema (votive wooden tablets) andattached these to the calligraphy paper. Finally, everyone
took a commemorative photo with the calligraphy andtablets in the background.

KFAW hopes that through this workshop, the particpiants
could gain some level of understanding about the SDGs and thecurrent state of the world and its challenges. KFAW will continue
to work on various activities in the future to achieve Goal 5(Gender Equality).

8

No.86 August 2019

Pro ﬁ le

The 28th Foreign Correspondent Report

A Daughter’s Choice: To Marry or
Stay Single?

I am studying social economy and gender research at a
graduate school. My study focuses on facilitating the
mapping of gender and social economy in Asia. I also
study gender disagreements that occur throughout
Asia, and meet and interview women who makecommunities. The themes of the workshops are travel
and community. As a female scholar traveling around
Asia, I support the society and values that women make.

Ms. Jeong HYOMIN (KOREA)
Is staying single a social evil?

market. In other words, becoming a married woman is a lifeof “only wife” after giving up some of the socio-economic
status and relationships acquired during her single life.
These perceptions are not fiction. There is an extensivesocial background. The employment rate of women in Korea
increased from 40.9% in 1985 to 50.2% in 2016. Their levelof education and participation in economic activities also
improved significantly. However, the gender gap forhousehold labor is still vast. According to the National
Statistical Office's data on daily home compatibility
indicator i in 2016, women are still responsible for majority ofhousehold chores in double-income households, spending an
average of 3 hours and 14 minutes per day on housework,
while men only spending 40 minutes. Considering thatwomen spent an average of 3 hours and 28 minutes and men
spent 32 minutes on housework per day in their doubleincome households in 2004, the situation has been at astandstill for 10 years.

In 2019, there is no need for people to discuss theirmarital status when talking with neighbors. However, evenin this modern age, it is not acceptable for people to staysingle and the fact that someone is not married is considered
to be a social problem. Our society only talks about single
people who want to get married but are still waiting to finda partner, not those who choose to stay single.
Society’s belief that a person's marital status is the only
way for a man or woman to achieve stability in his or her life
creates a negative perception of people who choose not tomarry. This begins with believing that the “normal” family
is a key structure in society. In the "normal” family, men are
responsible for the livelihood of families in the public domainof wage markets, and women are exclusively responsible forhouseholds and their children in the private sector of thefamily, and contribute to the maintenance of society throughreproduction. In other words, if women and men do not meetand form a family, it will undermine the overall maintenanceof society. From a society-wide perspective, this is only anegative view of single life.
Women choose not to marry, witnessing a break in the
career of married women around them. This leads to a fallin birthrates, and women who elect not to marry become aless visible, less “valuable” part of society. In other words,
women who do not marry threaten the hierarchy of sexuality
and are blamed for hindering social maintenance throughreproduction, which has been viewed as stable in the“normal” family.

Staying single: Closeup immediate view
Choosing to remain single is an act that raises questions
about traditional marriage and family systems that control
the hierarchy of sexuality; an increase in the number ofpeople who are not married is an important move thatreveals ’pressure’ hidden under the name of normality.
However, it should not be interpreted as a social problem
itself.
The reality of remaining single is not an urgent social
issue. Rather, it should be recognized as a stable presence inthe social system. When this perspective is possible, it caneffectively resolve issues revolving around discontinuing
careers or the division of household labor for married women.
Denying other types of lifestyles, making the lives of married
women an ideal choice for marriage and childbirth for single
women means that Korean society is still under the shadowof the dictates of a "normal” family.
Freedom to choose is compulsion unless freedom tochoose is guaranteed. Freedom exists when freedom not tomarry is guaranteed. But there is a need for it to beguaranteed, and marriage is no longer a force andrequirement for all women. Only when this 'obsession' isresolved will the pattern of women's lives be diversified.

Causes of non-marriage
Indeed, are women who choose not to marry irresponsible
beings who are avoiding taking up their role in the
traditional family order? In a survey conducted by a researchfirm Macromill Embrain, both men and women in their 20s
said that “monetary reasons or losing their sense of self”
were the biggest reasons for not marrying. However, there
was a gap in the responses between the sexes. Men’s
responses were based on actual or perceived financial
burdens, such as increasing housing prices and supporting
their livelihoods, while women cited as burden of household
labor, relationship with their in-laws, patriarchal genderclashes within the family, career disruption in the labor

No.86 August 2019i http://www.index.go.kr/potal/main/EachDtlPageDetail.do?idx_
cd=3025

9

Pro ﬁ le

The 28th Foreign Correspondent Report

Daring to Be the Change

I am an award-winning independent journalist basedin Delhi. I write on development issues and the role ofwomen as agents of social change. In my writings, I
focus on reproductive and sexual health and rights,
public health, education, the environment, sanitation,
poverty and livelihoods through a gender lens. Severalof my articles have been included as chapters ingovernment publications as well as those of national
and international non-governmental organizations.

Ms. Swapna MAJUMDAR (India)
When residents of Patahi block in East Champaran
district of the Indian state of Bihar see Anita Lakra, they
feel reassured. They know that come rain or shine, Anita,
an auxiliary nurse midwife (ANM), will come to help them.
What has endeared Anita to the community is her courage
to brave not just the vagaries of weather and the rugged,
difficult terrain that she traverses every day for work but
also the Naxals. The area is affected by internal confl ict
and school teachers, government functionaries and evenstudents prefer to stay at home rather than risk
confrontation with the Naxals. But Anita has never missed
a day of duty. Every day she is out at 8 am on her cycle tovisit the eight anganwadi centers (rural child care centres
in India) under her area of work to give pregnant womentetanus shots and iron tablets. She also gives information
and advice about remaining healthy and helps immunize
their children.

contraception or advising women to plan their families isdifficult in a state where women have little power ofnegotiation over their bodies. But Anita has adopted a goodstrategy. She advises pregnant women to eat nutritious
food, rich in iron, so that their babies are healthy and they
have safe deliveries. She tells them that this way there willbe less neonatal and infant mortality and families will notneed to have more children. Anita explains the advantageof having smaller but healthier families and distributes
oral contraception pills. Though family sizes are still large,
there is greater awareness about family planning today,
she says.
This is also because she reiterates the message on thematernal and child health day at the anganwadis. When
pregnant women and children come to the anganwadis on
this day, she discusses their health as she administers
vaccines, weighs the babies and treats them for minor
ailments. This way, women do not feel shy in speaking
openly about their sexual and reproductive health issues.

Just as everyone knows the 42-year-old tribal healthworker, Anita too knows almost every family. So, she does
not hesitate even when she receives desperate calls late atnight. Such is her reputation for saving lives that she has
never been stopped or threatened by the Naxals so far. Her
popularity among the community is so high that when she
was promoted and posted to a primary health centre inanother block, over 100 residents wrote a letter to theauthorities to revoke her transfer. This was the fi rst timesuch a demand was made. Fortunately for the community,
Anita’s transfer was cancelled.

After attending various training sessions to upgrade
her skills, Anita is now earning well and has bought her
own cycle and a scooter. She has become an agent of change
in the rural health scenario and has become an inspiration
for girls and women in the community.

But it was not always like this. When Anita fi rst started
working as an ANM, she faced some opposition from thecommunity. It took her time to understand the work andgain the trust of the community. She also had to learn tocycle because the distance between the health centre where
she has to report every day is 12 kilometers from her homeand each of the eight anganwadi centers are two to threekilometers apart.
Anita has also learnt how to give injections, drips andstop the bleeding of a pregnant woman. She has even done
mouth-to-mouth resuscitation of babies. Her commitment
to saving lives has made her a hero in the village. Earlier,
she would do deliveries at home. But now she encourages
institutional deliveries. But if there is no doctor or there isan emergency, Anita assists in home births and this is also
why pregnant women depend on her. In fact, the block faces
irregular power supply and it was because of Anita’s
expertise that she was able to save both mother and child in
one such emergency with the help of torch light.
One of the issues that Anita has handled sensitively israising awareness about family planning. Talking about

A happy mother with her healthy children thanks to ANM Anita

10

No.86 August 2019

The 29 Foreign Correspondent ReportthTravelettes of Bangladesh
Ms. Sakia HAQUE

I have graduated from Dhaka Medical College. I run
an Organization named Travelettes of Bangladesh.
Our motto is to empower women through travelling.
ISSN 0918-8266
I am the first woman to travel all across the country
on a motorcycle. Our project is a nonprofit one andhas been praised by many. We received the Joy
Bangla Youth Award 2018, a very prestigious award(Bangladesh)around the country.

Generally, our society simply does not allow women to go
outside the house without their male counterparts. No
matter how much we tried, we were never allowed to travelalone. So, I formed an organization along with my bestfriend to empower women through traveling. Travelettes ofBangladesh, which started on 27 November 2016, currently
has 33,000 female members of different ages. The
organization aims to empower women by encouraging themto leave their homes and showing them what it feels like to
be independent. I would not say that I came up with a full
solution. But this initiative was a start to dealing with anissue like this. Now more and more women feel liberated.
More and more organizations are following in our footsteps.
And the best part? These women are all different ages. It
may seem like only the younger generation would beinterested in an initiative like this. But no, older women are
tired of being caged for so many years. They want to go
outside and chase their dreams. Travelettes of Bangladesh
received “Joy Bangla Youth Award 2018”, an award given to
the youth leaders of the country. Recently, I was invited to
Malaysia to attend a conference and talk about female
empowerment. Finding a solution is never an easy thing.
One issue that we are currently facing in Bangladesh isthat women neglect their menstrual health. The use ofsanitary pads is still not an option for many due to cost andavailability or a lack of knowledge. We have been working on
this issue for the past year and a half. We ride throughdistricts around the country and talk with school-aged girls
about their menstrual health, a taboo topic here.
We ride through the districts on bikes, so that they can
see what a woman is capable of. I must add, this is a veryrare sight in Bangladesh. We are still addressing theseissues.

Location of
Our last workshop in Dhaka with 3,000 girls in attendance
Kitakyushu
Beijing

Location of
Kitakyushu

KFAW

Beijing

DalianSeoul

DalianSeoul

Tokyo
Kitakyushu

Pro ﬁ leISSN 0918-8266

ISSN 0918-8266

Our work is at grassroots level. I made it my mission inlife to encourage school-aged girls to use sanitary pads
rather than unhygienic pieces of cloth, teaching them about
menstrual health and educating them about the female
reproductive system, which is a taboo topic in our country.
Our group has interacted with more than 40,000 girls so far.
As a doctor myself, it seems a bit easier for the girls to
confide in me about their problems with menstruation. They
are not allowed to talk about menstruation, even with theirparents. In some places in Bangladesh, people have not evenheard of sanitary pads (let alone tampons or other types of
menstrual products). Education on this topic is compulsory
all over the country, yet this taboo topic is ignored andneglected by the local population.
We follow up with the girls as well. We provide themwith our phone numbers and they contact us to consult
about any health-related issues.
We also talk with the girls about how they can defend
themselves. We hold workshops in all 64 districts of
Bangladesh. The number of rapes and cases of harassment
are gradually increasing in the country. We realized thatwomen should know how to defend themselves when needed,so we teach them basic life-saving skills.
We have currently finished travelling to all 64 districts
in Bangladesh, earning praise from hundreds and thousandsof Bangladeshis. Our work was featured in all the leading
newspapers of Bangladesh, one Italian newspaper and evenin the BBC World Service and BBC Breakfast.
We believe our work is not yet finished. We plan to formteams in every district that can continue our good work andmake Bangladesh a better place.

We traveled together with 100 girls. As women are not allowed outside
home, our initiative made girls feel confident and empowered.

KFAW

The Kitakyushu Forum on Asian Women (KFAW) was established in October of 1990 with a special
Achieving the SDGs from KFAW
government fund for revitalization projects. Subsequently, in 1993, the KFAW was recognized as a
KFAWaims atfoundation by
the Ministryof achieving
Labour (theGOAL
present5Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare). The purpose(Gender
Equality),
sharing thechallengesof the KFAW
is to promote
the improvementof women's
status through various projects as well as their
PRINTED WITH
and efforts
withthe world.
mutual understanding
andcooperationin Asia.

KFAW

SOY INKTokyo
The Kitakyushu Forum on Asian Women (KFAW) was established in October of 1990 with a special
Kitakyushu
The Kitakyushu Forum on Asian Women(KFAW) was established in Octoberof 1990withspecialgovernment
fund
fora revitalization
projects. Subsequently, in 1993, the KFAW was recognized as aThis copy is printed with environment-friendly soy ink.

government fund for revitalization projects. Subsequently, in 1993, the foundation
KFAW wasasofaLabour (the present Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare). The purposeby recognized
the Ministry
No.86 July
August2019
2019
foundation by the Ministry of Labour (the present Ministry of Health, Labour
andKFAW
Welfare).
purposeof theis toThe
promotethe improvement of women's status through various projects as well as their

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