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Government Laws

The Basic Law for A Gender Equal Society (1999)

(Taken from the Japanese Headquarters for the Promotion of Gender Equality website; for full text, please see www.gender.go.jp)¹

Chapter 1 General Provisions

Article 1

In consideration of the urgency of realizing an affluent and dynamic society in which the human rights of both women and men are respected and which can respond to changes in socioeconomic circumstances, the purpose of this law is to comprehensively and systematically promote formation of a Gender-equal Society by laying out the basic principles in regard to formation of such a society, clarifying the responsibilities of the State and local governments and citizens, and also stipulating provisions to form the basis of policies related to promotion of formation of a Gender-equal Society.
(Definitions)

Article 2

Under this law, the following definitions shall apply:

(1) Formation of a Gender-equal Society: Formation of a society where both women and men shall be given equal opportunities to participate voluntarily in activities in all fields as equal partners in the society, and shall be able to enjoy political, economic, social and cultural benefits equally as well as to share responsibilities.

(2) Positive action: Positive provision of the opportunities stipulated in the preceding item to either women or men within the necessary limits in order to redress gender disparities in terms of such opportunities.
(Respect for the Human Rights of Women and Men)

The English language version of this law is a translation of an original document produced in Japanese. Any questions that may arise about the interpretation of the law shall be resolved with regard to the original Japanese document.

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