Tokyo, 9 June, /AJMEDIA/
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba was criticized on Sunday by the main opposition party leader after saying he thought women in the eastern Japanese prefecture of Gunma were “strong” during a visit there the previous day.
Ishiba made the remarks during a meeting with local business managers in Maebashi, apparently taking his cue from a well-known Japanese phrase describing Gunma Prefecture as a place where “the wife is the boss of the family.”
In the meeting, Ishiba, who hails from Tottori Prefecture, said that people from the west of Japan like him feel that Gunma Prefecture is a place where “there seems to be many scary people.”
“I sort of cringe at women because of their strong image,” he said. He later told reporters he had no intention of discriminating against women there.
Women in Gunma Prefecture have a reputation as being the ruler of their family, given their past role in supporting households when the silk industry was flourishing.
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda warned Ishiba to be more careful in his remarks.
“They might hurt the feelings of women in Gunma,” he said.
When questioned Saturday by reporters about his remarks, Ishiba tried to defend himself, saying he no longer believed women in Gunma Prefecture were the ruler of the house.
He further said that “I meant those women are strong-willed and supportive about local communities.”
