Committee on Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, The Third Consideration of Japanese Governmental Report: Proposal of List of Issues for Pre-sessional Working Group

2003.1.27

Article 12[Discrimination in Health Care]
<Introduction of Male Midwives>

1. Actually, in Japan, only women are licensed by law to practice as midwives. Is there any plan to amend the law to open the possibility of gaining a midwife's license to men?
2. How do expectant mothers and midwives declare themselves in favor of or against question 1?
3. What kind of measures were taken by the Government to protect privacy, the right to choose, and other rights of expectant mothers regarding question 1?
4. The "midwife" title was changed to "mid-person" by amending legislation in 2001. Is this to lay the ground for the introduction of male midwives?
5. What attitude did the midwives' professional organizations take on question 3?

Description of The Government Report

"xv) Law Concerning Partial Amendment to the Law of Public Health Nurses, Midwives and Nurses (promulgated on 12 December 2001) The Law intends to unify the titles for public health nurses, nurses, and assistant nurses, which used to be named differently according to their gender. In order to express their profession appropriately, gender neutral and professional titles were given. The law came into force on 1 March 2002."
(The 5th Periodic Report, Part 1 Section 2 (5))

Reason for the Questions

The government report seems to have taken the change of the midwife title to mid-person affirmative from the viewpoint of gender equality.

The Japanese government formerly introduced a bill, to open the possibility of gaining a midwife's license to men, to the Diet. However, women and midwives raised a strong movement against this bill and it was withdrawn. The results of the surveys conducted by the midwives' professional association and other organizations showed that 70 to 80 percent of women are against male midwives.

A midwives' professional organization, the Japan Midwives' Association, has adhered to a policy against the introduction of male midwives over many years. However, in March 2000, the Association suddenly released is comment that many of the Association's members have voted for the introduction of male midwives at "an extraordinary general meeting in writing" and have passed a resolution in support of the introduction. Then the Association pressured the ruling party to introduce male midwives so that the change of the midwife title to mid-person was realized.

Now, six midwives filed a suit in the Tokyo District Court against the Association, and requested a confirmation of the invalidity of the Association's decision on grounds that the general meeting in writing went against its articles of association and that the procedure for electing the Directors was unlawful. The defendant carried out surveys of all the members of the Japan Midwives' Association. More than seventy percent of those members questioned were against the introduction of male midwives.

In recent Japan, the concept of "care by the same gender" in caring for the handicapped and the aged came to be respected at last. It is acknowledged that the care of men by men, and the care of women by women, is indispensable for the protection of privacy and dignity of those receiving care.

Midwives closely attend expectant mothers over long hours before and after delivery, caring for the genitals, etc. Their work is of a different nature from that of obstetricians. The need for care by the same gender for expectant mothers is as important as the handicapped and the aged. Since expectant mothers are only female, it is not necessary to accept the introduction of male midwives. Furthermore, it is unusual that the Japan Midwives' Association would be in a hurry to introduce male midwives ignoring the voices of an overwhelming majority of midwives and women.

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