Japanese female lawmakers’ toilets have become a growing concern as the country’s prime minister joins more than 50 female legislators in calling for additional restrooms in parliament. The shortage has created long lines, with only two cubicles currently serving 73 female members in the House of Representatives.
The petition, filed on December 12, has drawn support from lawmakers across seven parties and independent groups. Japan’s first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, elected last year, is among the 58 backers of the request.
“Before the main assembly session, a truly large number of female lawmakers line up in front of the women’s restroom,” said opposition CDP member Yasuko Komiyama. The shortage affects not only lawmakers but also female staff and a rising number of women journalists covering parliamentary proceedings.
Japan remains a culturally conservative country where politics and workplaces have long been dominated by older men. The nation ranks 118th out of 148 countries on the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index.
The rise in female representation, including Takaichi’s election and a record 73 female lawmakers in the lower house, has highlighted infrastructure gaps. Women currently hold just under 16 percent of seats in the House of Representatives, according to IPU Parline.
The cross-party petition warns that the lack of adequate restrooms is “a critical issue that could potentially impact the conduct of proceedings and the performance of duties.” Opposition MP Tomoe Ishii described the shortage as “a long-standing issue” and criticized societal reluctance to raise similar concerns in workplaces and schools.
The National Diet building, completed in 1936, predates women’s suffrage in Japan. Women only gained the right to vote in 1945, with the first female MP elected a year later. The building’s aging infrastructure has yet to fully accommodate the growing presence of women in politics.
With increasing female participation in the Diet, lawmakers argue that modernizing facilities is necessary to ensure that women can perform their duties efficiently and without inconvenience. The prime minister’s support adds weight to the campaign for more equitable and practical workplace accommodations in Japan’s parliament.
