
Banned from using own car for shopping: Woman's plight highlights Japan welfare flaws
What exactly are the "minimum standards of wholesome and cultured living" guaranteed by Japan's Constitution? Such questions repeatedly came to my mind as I reported on a case where a city cut off public assistance payments to an elderly woman and her son over the use of their car.
The woman, aged in her 80s, lives in the city of Suzuka in western Japan's Mie Prefecture, where I worked until the end of March. She has an artificial bladder due to cancer and so is unable to work. Her son, with whom she lived before he passed away, suffered from an intractable disease and required canes to walk. Both had disability certificates. The woman had been receiving welfare since August 2019, but in September 2022, the payments abruptly stopped.
City's 'unique rule' halts payments
The suspension was due to a "unique rule" established by the city. Under Japan's public assistance system, recipients are generally not permitted to own cars, but exceptions are made for those who find it difficult to use public transportation for commuting or hospital visits. Suzuka was the only municipality in the prefecture that required recipients who were allowed to own cars to submit detailed driving records, including dates, distances, routes, passengers and purposes.
From the woman's apartment, it took over an hour by foot, bus and train to reach her son's hospital. Thus, the city conditionally allowed car ownership and use "solely for the son's medical visits."
In reality, however, the car was used for more than just medical visits. For the elderly, disabled woman, the 2-kilometer journey to the nearest supermarket was long. She also needed to make regular hospital visits herself, making life without a car untenable.
Submitting driving records became a significant burden for the woman, making her feel constantly monitored and that her privacy was being invaded. Eventually, she stopped submitting the records. The city deemed this malicious and halted welfare payments. In October 2022, mother and son filed a lawsuit with the Tsu District Court demanding that the decision be revoked.
Subsequent district and high court rulings accepted the mother and son's claims, and ordered the city to rescind its decision. The verdict by the Nagoya High Court in October 2024 recognized that the submission of driving records "was of considerably low necessity." It also acknowledged that using the car for purposes other than medical visits "contributed to a self-sufficient life," rejecting the need for strict usage limitations.
The ruling further criticized the city's decision to suspend payments without considering the severe impact on the family's life and survival, stating it "grossly lacked in reasonableness and constituted an illegal overreach of administrative discretion."
Both the car and welfare payments were essential for the family's survival, a fact obvious to anyone. In spite of this, the city appealed the high court ruling.
Nat'l gov't accepts use of cars for daily life
In justifying its stance, the city underscored a notification from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. In June 2022, the ministry informed municipalities nationwide that "if a car is used solely for convenience in daily life, it does not warrant approval for ownership." The city suspended the family's welfare payments about three months after this notification. The city maintains, "We acted in accordance with the national view and don't believe we were wrong."
Besides this case, there have been others across Japan where car ownership and use have been unreasonably restricted by municipalities, or where welfare payments have been unduly suspended.
Professor Atsushi Yoshinaga, an expert in public assistance at Hanazono University, acknowledges the weight of national directives, however irrational they may be. Nevertheless, he points out, "Municipalities need to respond flexibly, such as allowing shopping during medical trips as permitted by the administrative notification, based on the real-life conditions of disabled individuals. Halting welfare payments is a punishment that has an impact on recipients' very existence and should not be done."
About two months after the Nagoya High Court ruling, the ministry revised its stance, issuing a new notification allowing disabled individuals to use cars for shopping and other essential daily activities. Consequently, the city of Suzuka revealed in January this year that in principle, it had abolished the rule requiring welfare recipients to submit driving records. However, the city has not withdrawn its appeal against the mother and son's lawsuit, saying the case emerged prior to the ministry's follow-up notification.
What happened to the family afterward? In mid-March, I visited the woman's home.
The woman disclosed that she had disposed of the car at the end of last year. "Just seeing it brings back painful memories," she explained. She now relies on supporters to drive her around. Her son, who had fought alongside her, passed away from illness about a month after the high court ruling. "I just want to forget it ..." Seeing her repeat those words choked me up inside.
Ways to maintain the "minimum standards of wholesome and cultured living" vary according to disabilities, illnesses, living conditions and other circumstances, and cannot be uniformly defined. I believe they can only be guaranteed by first looking at each individual's circumstances and exploring the lifestyle that suits them. A system serving as a lifeline should not be one that harms citizens.

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The Mainichi
08-05-2025
- The Mainichi
Banned from using own car for shopping: Woman's plight highlights Japan welfare flaws
What exactly are the "minimum standards of wholesome and cultured living" guaranteed by Japan's Constitution? Such questions repeatedly came to my mind as I reported on a case where a city cut off public assistance payments to an elderly woman and her son over the use of their car. The woman, aged in her 80s, lives in the city of Suzuka in western Japan's Mie Prefecture, where I worked until the end of March. She has an artificial bladder due to cancer and so is unable to work. Her son, with whom she lived before he passed away, suffered from an intractable disease and required canes to walk. Both had disability certificates. The woman had been receiving welfare since August 2019, but in September 2022, the payments abruptly stopped. City's 'unique rule' halts payments The suspension was due to a "unique rule" established by the city. Under Japan's public assistance system, recipients are generally not permitted to own cars, but exceptions are made for those who find it difficult to use public transportation for commuting or hospital visits. Suzuka was the only municipality in the prefecture that required recipients who were allowed to own cars to submit detailed driving records, including dates, distances, routes, passengers and purposes. From the woman's apartment, it took over an hour by foot, bus and train to reach her son's hospital. Thus, the city conditionally allowed car ownership and use "solely for the son's medical visits." In reality, however, the car was used for more than just medical visits. For the elderly, disabled woman, the 2-kilometer journey to the nearest supermarket was long. She also needed to make regular hospital visits herself, making life without a car untenable. Submitting driving records became a significant burden for the woman, making her feel constantly monitored and that her privacy was being invaded. Eventually, she stopped submitting the records. The city deemed this malicious and halted welfare payments. In October 2022, mother and son filed a lawsuit with the Tsu District Court demanding that the decision be revoked. Subsequent district and high court rulings accepted the mother and son's claims, and ordered the city to rescind its decision. The verdict by the Nagoya High Court in October 2024 recognized that the submission of driving records "was of considerably low necessity." It also acknowledged that using the car for purposes other than medical visits "contributed to a self-sufficient life," rejecting the need for strict usage limitations. The ruling further criticized the city's decision to suspend payments without considering the severe impact on the family's life and survival, stating it "grossly lacked in reasonableness and constituted an illegal overreach of administrative discretion." Both the car and welfare payments were essential for the family's survival, a fact obvious to anyone. In spite of this, the city appealed the high court ruling. Nat'l gov't accepts use of cars for daily life In justifying its stance, the city underscored a notification from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. In June 2022, the ministry informed municipalities nationwide that "if a car is used solely for convenience in daily life, it does not warrant approval for ownership." The city suspended the family's welfare payments about three months after this notification. The city maintains, "We acted in accordance with the national view and don't believe we were wrong." Besides this case, there have been others across Japan where car ownership and use have been unreasonably restricted by municipalities, or where welfare payments have been unduly suspended. Professor Atsushi Yoshinaga, an expert in public assistance at Hanazono University, acknowledges the weight of national directives, however irrational they may be. Nevertheless, he points out, "Municipalities need to respond flexibly, such as allowing shopping during medical trips as permitted by the administrative notification, based on the real-life conditions of disabled individuals. Halting welfare payments is a punishment that has an impact on recipients' very existence and should not be done." About two months after the Nagoya High Court ruling, the ministry revised its stance, issuing a new notification allowing disabled individuals to use cars for shopping and other essential daily activities. Consequently, the city of Suzuka revealed in January this year that in principle, it had abolished the rule requiring welfare recipients to submit driving records. However, the city has not withdrawn its appeal against the mother and son's lawsuit, saying the case emerged prior to the ministry's follow-up notification. What happened to the family afterward? In mid-March, I visited the woman's home. The woman disclosed that she had disposed of the car at the end of last year. "Just seeing it brings back painful memories," she explained. She now relies on supporters to drive her around. Her son, who had fought alongside her, passed away from illness about a month after the high court ruling. "I just want to forget it ..." Seeing her repeat those words choked me up inside. Ways to maintain the "minimum standards of wholesome and cultured living" vary according to disabilities, illnesses, living conditions and other circumstances, and cannot be uniformly defined. I believe they can only be guaranteed by first looking at each individual's circumstances and exploring the lifestyle that suits them. A system serving as a lifeline should not be one that harms citizens.


The Mainichi
28-04-2025
- The Mainichi
Editorial: Baby switch ruling in Japan a step to protect children's right to know origins
The Tokyo District Court has ordered the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to investigate the identity of the biological parents of a man who was switched at birth with another newborn at a maternity clinic run by the metropolitan government, after he filed a lawsuit seeking a probe. The decision addressed his earnest call to know his biological parents, and we hope it will mark a step toward a society where the "right to know one's origins" is protected. The court emphasized the importance of children confirming their blood relations with their parents and recognized that the right to know one's origins is protected under Article 13 of the Constitution, which stipulates respect for all individuals. The court pointed out that the United Nations' Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Japan has ratified, also guarantees a child's "right to know his or her parents." Japan, however, has no specific legislation on this right, and such claims by plaintiffs have typically been rejected. Nevertheless, the latest ruling acknowledged that based on the contract with the hospital at the time of his birth, the man has the right to request to be handed over to his parents. The court determined that, given the purposes of the Constitution and the treaty, the metropolitan government has a responsibility to investigate his parents, opening a path to provide relief to him. The plaintiff, now aged 67, has spent many years suffering from not knowing his roots. A DNA test conducted 21 years ago revealed that he was not biologically related to the parents who raised him. He searched through the basic resident register in Sumida Ward, where the maternity hospital was located, and visited people born around the same time but found no leads. The mix-up was acknowledged in a 2005 court decision regarding a lawsuit he filed against the metropolitan government seeking damages. The Tokyo government, however, did not cooperate in investigating his biological parents, so he went ahead and filed another lawsuit. The metropolitan government did not appeal, and accepted the latest ruling. It should swiftly launch an investigation. Cases where the right to know one's origins needs to be guaranteed are not just limited to those involving people who were switched at birth. There are also cases involving confidential births by women with unwanted pregnancies and special adoptions. With the spread of fertility treatments, it is estimated that over 10,000 people have been born using sperm or eggs donated by third parties. Knowing one's roots is a core part of one's identity. It is only natural that humans have a desire to learn about them. Family structures are diversifying and while individual circumstances may vary, the rights of the child should be given top priority. We must urgently create a system accommodating people's desires.


NHK
21-04-2025
- NHK
Tokyo court orders metropolitan government to investigate 1958 baby mix-up
The Tokyo District Court has ordered the metropolitan government to track down the biological parents of a man who was accidentally switched at birth. The court on Monday handed down the ruling in a lawsuit filed by Tokyo resident Egura Satoshi in 2021. Egura was born in 1958 at a maternity clinic run by the metropolitan government but was switched with another baby. He was raised by the parents of this baby. After learning his parents' blood types, he took a DNA test while in his 40s and found they were not biologically related. He sued the metropolitan government, saying he has the right to know his origin and Tokyo officials have an obligation to investigate. But the officials argued that a probe could infringe on other people's privacy. The court rejected the officials' claim, saying, "People who become subject to the investigation can refuse to cooperate, but there is a possibility that they want to know the truth." The court also said that although "Japan does not have a law that gives people the right to know their origin, it can be considered as a legal interest guaranteed under the Constitution that says all individuals must be respected." The court added, "Considering the grave nature of the case where the hospital mixed-up babies, there is an obligation to take all possible measures." The court ordered the officials to identify Egura's possible biological parents, including looking into family registers to identify possible victims and ask them to take DNA tests. The father who raised Egura died 10 years ago and the mother is in a care home with dementia. Egura says he feels nothing but gratitude for her, and regularly visits her. Egura says his mother was also a victim of the baby mix-up, and she desperately hopes to see her biological son. He says: "If I had met my true parents and my mother had met her real son, our lives would have been very different. Those 20 years after learning of the mix-up have been too long and frustrating. I want the metropolitan government to pay heed to the feelings of the victims."