Wail of a victim of forced sterilization who “ate one rice ball and went to the surgery
There were people whose lives were ruined under the Eugenic Protection Law. To escape from the discrimination that still remains today
When I was a child, I was told that I had a mental disability and was sent to an institution. From there, I was sent to a job as a shokunin. There, I was severely discriminated against. They beat me on horseback and told me that I would become stupid if I ate more than I wanted, so I was only given a little food, and I was always hungry.
When I was 16, my parents took me out to work and I ate one rice ball on a bench by the river. After that, they took me to a clinic and performed eugenic surgery on me. But at the time, I didn’t know what had happened.”
Junko Iizuka, a resident of Sendai City, told us in a hushed voice, “I didn’t know what was going on. Eugenic surgery” refers to sterilization procedures performed under the Eugenic Protection Law, which existed from 1948 to 1996, for reasons such as disability. On May 10, a meeting was held at the House of Councillors to discuss this issue. Mr. Iizuka, who is now in his 70s, continued, “After that, I had a chance to marry.
After that, I had a chance to get married, but I was never able to have children. But I was never able to have children. My husband found out and left me. When my husband found out, he left me. I wanted to get married and raise children. My life was ruined.
High Court Decision Clearly Finds the State Responsible
Sterilizations and abortions under the former Eugenic Protection Law, which is said to be the “greatest postwar human rights violation” in Japanese society, were performed throughout the country. According to the government’s tally, there were approximately 25,000 victims nationwide. Of these, 12,000 are estimated to be “alive” as of 2019, when the “Lump-sum Payment Law” for victims comes into effect. Furthermore, only 947 of them were actually approved for lump-sum payments. This is less than 4% of the total number of victims.
In February of this year, the Osaka High Court and in March of this year, the Tokyo High Court ruled that the Eugenic Protection Law was illegal and that the government was responsible, ordering the payment of damages to victims of forced surgery. It has been 65 years since the surgery performed on Kitasaburo, the plaintiff in Tokyo. Many of the victims are elderly. There is not a moment to spare for their recovery.
The government, however, disagreed with the Osaka/Tokyo High Court ruling and decided to appeal the decision. Ms. Kita says, “On March 11, I was told that I would be released from the hospital.
On March 11, it was my judgment. The judge gave me a ray of hope. I was filled with tears. In April, I went to visit my parents’ graves. It was not my parents, it was not the institution, it was the government that made me unable to have children. I apologized for the misunderstanding I had had for 65 years and laid my hands on their graves.
A couple who had talked about wanting to have children had followed the path of a lifetime.
One of the plaintiffs, Kikuo Kojima of Sapporo, angrily stated, “When I was 19 years old, I was arrested by a police officer.
When I was 19 years old, a police officer handcuffed me, took me to the hospital, and told me I was schizophrenic! and forced me to undergo an operation that made it impossible for me to have children. Later, I got married, but I could not even tell my wife about the surgery, and I felt sorry for her. I want the government to apologize to me. It is so irresponsible to say that they are no longer responsible because so much time has passed since the surgery. I want the government to apologize so that this will never happen again.”
Takaji and Kimiko Kobayashi, who live in Akashi City, Hyogo Prefecture, made their appeal using sign language.
It was a long time ago. We got married in 1960 and talked about how we wanted to have many children. When my wife became pregnant, I was very happy.
The next day, my mother-in-law called my mother and told her something. I am deaf, so I didn’t understand what she was saying. They took me to the hospital and told me that the baby was rotten and had to be thrown away, and they performed an abortion on me. After that, I never became pregnant. I was also sterilized without knowing it,” said Kimiko.
We were discriminated against because we were deaf and sterilized. We could not have children, so we lived as a couple. I am now 90 years old. What we have lost is great.
What kind of society” do we want to live in?
Taeko Masui, one of the lawyers supporting the victims, told us, “In the trial, the plaintiffs’ real names will be used.
There are plaintiffs who use their real names in court, but due to the nature of the case, there are not many people who are willing to reveal their names and show their faces. There is deep-rooted discrimination. However, I hope that this issue will be widely known, and that those who have been victims will have an opportunity to speak out.”
In 2018, one woman raised her voice to demand the government’s responsibility regarding the former Eugenic Protection Law. This is a voice for the elimination of discrimination and the protection of the very natural right to decide for oneself what to do with one’s life, regardless of whether or not one has a disability. Mr. Iizuka, who was found to have no disability, was later found to have no disability.
The discrimination based on the concept of “eugenic protection” continues to undermine our society today. People with and without disabilities are being asked, “In what kind of society do you want to live?
