"Low Birthrate Due to Lack of 'Dating Skills' Rather Than Money, Japanese Politician's Controversial Remark Backlash"

Japanese Politician: "Declining Dating Experience Leads to Falling Birth Rates"
Japanese Youth Criticize "Desperate Level of Awareness"

A Japanese politician has sparked controversy in his country by citing the low "dating ability" of young people as the reason behind the declining birth rate. Critics argue that this shifts the responsibility from structural social issues to the citizens themselves.

According to the Japanese edition of HuffPost and others on the 27th, LDP politician Ishida Naruo claimed at the Mie Prefecture regional assembly on the 24th that "the reason fewer people want to marry is because their dating ability is declining."

He added, "The declining birth rate is not progressing because having children costs money," and "Could it be a problem that dating before marriage has been taboo?"

He also called for surveys on young people's dating ability. However, he did not provide a clear explanation of how dating ability could be measured or how low dating ability affects the birth rate.

Japanese netizens criticize: "Don't blame the younger generation"

[Image source=Getty Images]

Japanese netizens have continued to criticize Ishida's remarks. They argue that measuring dating as an ability is inappropriate and that blaming individuals for the low birth rate is unfair.

Japanese single life researcher Arakawa Kazuhi wrote in a column titled "Even if dating ability increases, birth rates decline," stating, "Since low birth rates are linked to a decrease in marriage, I agree with the idea of supporting young people’s marriage from this perspective," but added, "Marriage and birth rates have nothing to do with young people’s dating ability."

One Japanese netizen pointed out, "Currently, there are many non-regular workers in Japan, and even regular employees often suffer from anxiety about possible future layoffs. In an era where savings do not grow, would anyone want to raise children, which definitely costs money? Those with a strong sense of responsibility are more likely to refrain from having children."

Other netizens responded with comments such as, "The reason young people are not marrying now is financial insecurity, but politicians talk about dating ability?it's despairing," "They are blaming the younger generation. Stop blaming the people," and "this is an era where people cannot find meaning or reasons to marry."

In Japan, 37% of single men in their 20s and 30s have "no dating experience"

[Image source=Pixabay]

Japan, like South Korea, is a representative country facing a population cliff crisis. In particular, statistics showing that a significant number of Japanese youth neither marry nor date have attracted attention.

According to the 2022 "White Paper on Gender Equality" released by the Japanese government in June last year, 37.6% of single men and 24.1% of single women in their 20s and 30s answered that they have had zero romantic partners so far. Among them, 39.8% of men and 25.1% of women in their 20s reported having no dating experience at all.

Meanwhile, Japan's total fertility rate was 1.30 in 2021. This is a higher figure compared to South Korea's total fertility rate of 0.78 recorded last year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.