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One thing that always irritates me about the quoting of all these figures is that everyone always seems to apply them to their own society`s thinking.
What is to say that women WANT to be in these positions of power? What makes you assume that women WANT to work the same levels as men? I`m on the PTA at my son`s kindergarten, and I can assure you that there isn`t a working mother there that I`ve spoken to who wouldn`t JUMP at the chance to stop working and be a SAHM. I went to a 4 year university here - I can also assure you that 9 out of 10 (probably more, really) of my female classmates listed their life plans as "Work in the job of choice for a few years until a husband is found, then quit and be a stay at home wife!" Obviously, not every woman thinks like that. There are plenty of women who do want to continue working, and rise up in the company ranks... And more often than not, companies are *happy* to accommodate them because the company actually gets tax breaks etc from the government for it. But there aren`t that many women who agree to it.
Seriously, one of our family friends is a great skilled worker, enjoys work, but doesn`t want any responsibility - just cash. So when her employer offers to promote her, she refuses, and if they still promote her she changes jobs. She`s on her 6th or 7th.
As for paternal leave - traditionally a wife goes home (to her parents`) to have a baby and stays there for the first couple of months. This also coincides with the time frame most husbands have to take their leave during. So most don`t, and either work overtime during that time (as the house it empty anyway) or do a "time save" and use that unused leave later on as part of another vacation - this time when the family is together (what we did.)
Applying western feminist ideals to Japan just doesn`t work.
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Yes. Very perceptive post.
I remember teaching a class of obasans (this was 18 years ago) and explaining how women in my country had fought for the right to be salarymen. They all looked at each other and said, "why on earth would they want that?"