Womenomics and Acrobatics: Why Japanese Feminists Remain Skeptical about Feminist State Policy

Abstract

Neoliberalism and conservative ideology have come together in Japan as ‘womenomics’, a state policy to boost women’s labour productivity as well as the nation’s birth rate. Feminists have responded with scepticism to this policy, proposed by the strongly conservative and nationalist Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe. The content of ‘womenomics’ includes a new law to promote the advancement of women to leadership positions, and reflects the government’s concern for Japan’s international standing. The demographic crisis of a rapidly aging society with a declining birth rate is another background to the policy. Policies to boost the birth rate have been hard to reconcile with policies to promote women in leadership positions in corporate life. The gendered division of labour and the structure of the labour market exacerbate problems as neoliberal reforms are introduced belatedly to Japan. The resistance to neoliberalism has come from conservatives, and thus feminists in Japan have had to perform complicated acrobatics. The long-term prospects depend on finding ways to promote equality in a potentially shrinking nation while continuing to resist the seductions of neoliberal state policies that purport to advance the interests of women.