RIGHTS-JAPAN: Finally, Gov’t Lifts Legal Barrier to the Pill

By Suvendrini Kakuchi Reprint | | Print |

Suvendrini Kakuchi

TOKYO, Jun 5 1999 (IPS) - The Japanese government’s decision on Wednesday to end by June a ban on the low-dose contraceptive pill surprised many women, but is just one step in the still- difficult road to asserting their reproductive rights.

After nearly four decades of dilly-dallying, the Japanese government is keeping its promise to end the ban on the low-dose pill, the most common form of non-surgical contraception in many other industrialised countries.

“The government was pushed to the wall,” laughs Yuriko Ashino of the Japan Family Planning Federation in reacting to the decision. “The reason officials relented was that every excuse they put to women to support the ban have fallen through.”

The pill, a low-dose hormonal product that prevents ovulation and believed to the most reliable and safe method of female contraception, is to be released into the market by early fall.

Users will pay around 25 U.S. dollars monthly for the product, which is not covered by national health insurance, and must be bought at medical clinics.

Following government instructions, women will also have to undergo medical tests for various maladies including sexually transmitted diseases, a procedure that experts say would cost each user somr 5,000 dollars annually.

The Health and Welfare Ministry has long dragged its feet on discussions on the low-dose pill, and came under fire for approving the sale of the anti-impotent drug Viagra in just six months.

The ministry did not cite clear reasons for its hesitance on the pill. But experts believe that one reason was its fear that the pill’s use and availability would loosen the morals of Japanese women and lead to a rise in sexually transmitted diseases, and a decrease in the use of condoms.

But advocates of making the pill available point out that the official argument has not worked, as the number of people with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, has climbed steadily anyway.

Cases of sexually transmitted diseases have also risen dramatically, with mostly young people affected, according to doctors. More than 360,000 abortions are performed on women each year with the highest number in their twenties.

“The statistics prove that the pill has nothing to do with morals,” explains Ashino. “What is needed for women is more information and education — which is not covered by yesterday’s announcement.”

What is available now in Japan is the older, higher-dose birth control pill, which is more dangerous to health and was withdrawn from the U.S. market in 1998. In Japan, however, this pill is used to regulate menstruation and not for birth control.

Some add the authorities are worried about is Japan’s falling birth rates. It already has among the lowest birthrates in the world, with women on average having 1.39 babies in a lifetime.

Despite the breakthrough on the low-dose pill, women’s rights advocates say Japanese women are still a long way off from their counterparts in industrialised countries when it comes to the protection of reproduction rights.

They argue that while the Health and Welfare Ministry says it will educate the public about the low-dosage pill on the Internet, Japan’s medical system is ill-equipped to provide personalised advice concerning pill use.

Activists cite the lack of family planning clinics, where women can have easy access to information or services on contraception or gynaecology, and the poor standards of sex education in schools.

Another barrier is that the Japanese government also refuses to abolish the Criminal Abortion Law, almost a century old, which still legally makes abortion a crime.

They point out that Japan’s abortion regulations, which makes abortion legal up to 22 weeks of pregnancy, is under the older law, a situation that does not work toward encouraging new methods of protection of women’s health.

“The government is not doing anything to improve Japan’s closed attitude toward women’s reproductive rights in society . Women have very few choices when it comes to advice on how to protect their bodies,” explains Dr Keiko Suwa, who supports the provision of the pill.

Ashino says teenagers rely on condoms or the rhythm method for contraception, a system that often offers weak protection. She adds that mothers rarely talk to their daughters about contraception, and sex is a topic that still causes embarrassment in Japan.

“The situation is unbelievably pathetic for women. The official acceptance of the pill is really only the first step on a long road,” she points out.

Activists also believe that lack of education will also slow sales of the pill, at least at the beginning, as Japanese women are worried about negative side effects.

Nine Japanese companies have applied for permission to import the drug. “We have absolutely no idea how large the market is,” says Satoshi Kamisonoda, a spokesman for Yamanouchi Pharmaceutical Co.

Costs are another negative, factor especially for teenagers who do not consult with their families and so cannot afford to pay by themselves.

Akiko Domoto, an Upper House member who has been fighting for women’s rights and health issues, says “whether or not Japanese women actually use the pill, the important thing is that it they have gained the right to choose the low-dosage birth control pills as a contraceptive”.