Anti-discrimination Japanese politician refuses to ‘shut up'

Al Arabiya

06-08-2025

A Japanese politician who campaigns against discrimination is refusing to 'shut up' after her local assembly passed a motion requesting that she stop posting on social media with her official title.
Megumi Fukushima, an independent lawmaker in the city assembly of Tsurugashima, northwest of Tokyo, has denounced prejudice against immigrants and women on X and other platforms.
This has included criticizing the right-wing 'Japanese first' Sanseito party, which did well in last month's upper house elections.
But her comments have prompted dozens of complaints from the public to the assembly, as well as a message on the city's website threatening to kill Fukushima and bomb city hall.
The city assembly passed the motion on Monday after she rejected a request from the chairperson to stop posting on social media with her official title.
'The resolution does not limit her to share her opinions, but asks her not to use her assembly title,' an assembly official told AFP on Wednesday.
But Fukushima has kept her title in her posts on X.
On Monday, she posted that she would 'not shut up', saying the resolution 'infringes on her freedom of speech.'
The anti-immigration Sanseito party's agenda echoes other populist movements such as US President Donald Trump's 'Make America Great Again.'
Immigration levels in Japan remain very low compared to other rich economies and surveys put it far down the list of voters' concerns.
On Tuesday, Sanseito's leader Sohei Kamiya posted on X a photo of him meeting in Japan with Tino Chrupalla, the co-leader of the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany party.
'When I explained the policies and stance of Sanseito, he told me 'Please stick to that course',' Kamiya said.