March 4, 2023

A civil group working to realize the full implementation of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), “OPCEDAW Action”, on March 3 submitted to Prime Minister Kishida Fumio a written request demanding that PM Kishida, as this year’s G7 chair, ratify the Optional Protocol to the CEDAW (OP-CWDAW) before the G7 Summit.

Japanese Communist Party member of the House of Councilors Iwabuchi Tomo and Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan Lower House member Nishimura Chinami joined in this action.

The ”OPCEDAW Action” in its document called on the Kishida government to ratify the optional protocol before the G7 Summit slated to be held in May in Hiroshima, and publish a detailed timetable for the ratification. The civil group also made three other demands.

In response, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Takagi Kei only said that the government needs to discuss various issues before making a decision on ratification.

Japan ratified the CEDAW in 1985, but has yet to endorse the optional protocol which contains a system allowing investigations based on individual complaints submitted to the CEDAW Committee. The number of local assemblies which adopted opinion statements calling for Japan’s ratification of the optional protocol has so far reached 189.