A plan by the Japanese government to offer up to 600,000 yen (about 5.6 million won) to urban women who marry rural men was met with strong opposition and ultimately scrapped.
On the 12th (local time), Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on the Japanese government’s policies to address Japan’s low marriage rate and regional imbalance.
The Japanese government has announced plans to give cash payments to urban women and rural men when they marry, in an effort to tackle the problems of overcrowding and falling birth rates in the country.
Last year, fewer than 500,000 couples got married in Japan, the lowest number in 90 years, the media reported. In June, Japan’s health ministry judged the birth rate to be at a “dangerous” level after hitting a record low for the eighth consecutive year.
Japanese scholar Kenichi Ohmae described Japan as moving toward a “society lacking in desire.”
He pointed out that Japan’s younger generation is becoming increasingly reluctant to take risks or go into debt, which is reducing their desire to get married, have children and even have sex.
Japan’s regional development imbalance is also a threat to national development. According to the Japan 2023 Population Migration Report, there were 68,000 more people moving to Tokyo than moving to other regions, and more than half of them were women. In other words, it was analyzed that more and more women are moving to Tokyo for higher education and improved employment opportunities.
As cities became overcrowded, rural areas became relatively short of workers and vacant homes increased. Many schools and hospitals had to close due to the lack of population.
This is why, in order to balance population and economic development, the Japanese government has come up with a plan to provide incentives for women who leave Tokyo and marry men in rural areas. It targets unmarried women who live or work in 23 prefectures of Tokyo.
Japan previously provided cash grants to Tokyo residents who moved to rural areas in 2019. It also reportedly covered travel costs for women who attended matchmaking events in rural areas.
When this plan became known, criticism poured in from all over Japan. Netizens left comments on social media such as, “The girls just wanted to leave their underdeveloped areas and come to Tokyo for a better life, but the government wants them to come back,” “This is a policy that misuses taxpayers’ money,” and “The future of women cannot be measured in monetary terms.”
On the 30th of last month, the Japanese government announced that it would eventually put the plan on hold due to such opposition.
[서울=뉴시스]
-
- great
- 0dog
-
- I’m sad
- 0dog
-
- I’m angry
- 0dog
-
- I recommend it
- dog
Hot news right now
2024-09-15 23:30:50