WIFE OF THE BRIDE (Oct. 1998)
by Michael O'Connell, with Tomoyuki Inoue

Yukako Kawanaka was a June bride. As at thousands of other weddings that month in Japan, there were exchanges of rings and pledges of love. But the ceremony differed in one way: there were two brides. Kawanaka was marrying Ellen Belmore in a same-sex union.
While the couple are open about discussing same-sex marriage, they are among the few willing to speak publicly in Japan, one of the last industrialized nations to address the issue.
Kawanaka and Belmore have been romantically involved since they met three years ago through mutual friends. Kawanaka, a 27-year-old private tutor living in Sapporo, says relationships like theirs are particularly misunderstood here.
"So many people think that gay relationships are based on the sexual act," she says. "They don't know that we're making food, cleaning, doing the laundry. People ask only about sex; how can two women have sex?"
Students who ask Belmore about her personal life ignore her answers, says the 29-year-old English teacher from Sweden. "If they say, do you live with your husband," she explains, "I say I live with my wife. Usually they act as if I'd said something in Chinese, and they talk about soccer."
Not only has homosexual marriage been ignored for appearances' sake, some Japanese refuse to admit homosexuality exists here at all, despite its firm place in Japanese history and arts.


GENJI LIKED GUYS?

Homosexual sex was common among Buddhist monks by the Heian era (AD794-1188), Nicholos Bornoff writes in "Pink Samurai," a study of Japanese sexuality. It was condemned in contemporary Pure Land Buddhist texts, which described fiery punishments awaiting homosexuals in purgatory. The protagonist of the Heian classic "The Tale of Genji" must not have read them; the Japanese Casanova did not limit his conquests to women.
When St. Francis visited in 1549, homosexuality was so pervasive he branded it the "Japanese vice." And when the government banned women from kabuki (performances were fronts for prostitution), the male stand-ins played the woman's part offstage as well. Affairs between women are far less documented, although lesbian trysts in the shogun's o-oku (great harem) have featured in dramatic works.
Even explicit homosexual commitments have a basis in history. Bornoff writes, "According to a system not unlike the mentor/pupil relationship of ancient Greece, the [Buddhist] novice pledged himself officially to an older monk for a number of years. In exchange for tuition, he had the status of 'sworn friend' and became his mentor's property, body and soul."
Homosexuality remains alive and well in modern Japan, but homosexuals are less obvious here than overseas. In foreign countries, same-sex unions are condemned by some and accepted by others, but the issue is out in the open. Gay men and women in Europe and North America have even won legal rights for their partners (sidebar, p.6).


UNTYING THE "NOT"

The silence in Japan means that, for the foreseeable future, same-sex couples here will have to settle for ceremonial marriages not recognized by law.
In response, some have turned to the Internet to enjoy both privacy and the support of other homosexuals and bisexuals. Asia Lesbian Wave homepage features chat rooms divided by Asian country. The English/Japanese bilingual site also allows readers to register their same-sex marriage. Although this "virtual wedding" is a formal pledge with no legal force, it does offer encouragement and camaraderie to like-minded Net surfers.
Is a non-legal marriage a marriage? Belmore and Kawanaka think so. They describe themselves as married and call each other wife. Belmore notes that in her home country of Sweden, the government and citizens consider common-law marriages to be real; they are legally binding. Japanese civil law grants no recognition to cohabiting couples, regardless of their sexual orientation.
Other same-sex couples in Japan have forged a sort of legal union by exploiting a loophole in the adoption laws. The older of the couple adopts the younger, joining them on the same family register and allowing the same benefits as any adopted child.
Japanese authorities are unusually open to such applications because an heirless family will often adopt an adult to continue the family name. Officials of Sapporo's Chuo Ward say they are not interested in the nature of the adoptive relationship, as long as the parties are not already related and all the paperwork is done.
A Chinese woman who has visited Japan thinks that, while there is less debate in Japan on matters of sexual orientation, the situation is better than elsewhere in Asia. "As compared to Hong Kong, I feel Japan treats the issue in a more subtle way," says the public relations executive, who spoke anonymously. "People avoid discussing the issues openly...but it still seems that Japanese are quite open to gay issues."
In any case, Belmore believes lesbians and bisexual women have a harder time than gay men in Japan.
She complains that homosexual groups, which claim to champion gender equality, actually perpetuate discrimination. These groups have a hierarchy, with older men at the top, followed by younger men and then women at the bottom. Old habits die-hard.
"The key to making same-sex love more acceptable in society is to have women be more respected," she says. "Feminism and gay rights are connected. You can't have one without the other."


CON'S FROM CONSERVATIVES

Conservative groups in many countries argue that sanctioning homosexuality and same-sex marriage leads to a breakdown of traditional values, which in turn causes social problems.
Many gays and lesbians counter that their position is a conservative one, that nothing could be more traditional than a loving, committed partnership. They believe it is hypocritical to be denied marriage and then blamed for lack of commitment.
Kawanaka even thinks same-sex marriages are healthier than traditional Japanese unions.
"Omiai (marriage by formal introduction), is not based on love," she says. "Kids aren't stupid. They know their parents aren't in love. Same-sex marriage is based on love. It can't be based on anything else. We've been together for three years, but we're still deeply in love."
With its strong father, submissive mother and generally repressive atmosphere, "the traditional Japanese family itself leads to problems," says a Ms. Kaneko, who asked that only her family name be used. Kaneko, who is romantically involved with a woman, believes some unexplained teen suicides can be attributed to conflicts between sexual identity and a stifling family situation.
"Originally I thought about same-sex marriage from the point of view of legal benefits," she adds. "Now I'm against marriage in general. It's a system of government control, for managing people. I think the idea of a ceremony to celebrate commitment is important. But why should married couples (gay or straight) get benefits not available to single people? The government is just geared to reproduction."
Like most deeply committed couples, Belmore and Kawanaka have talked about having children.
"Sometimes we think, yes," we want children, says Belmore. "But then we hear the kids downstairs screaming. One idea was having kids with a gay male couple. Sometimes a gay male couple has kids with a gay female couple. That way, the children have four parents."
Kaneko is worried that increased attention on homosexual issues will cut both ways.
"There's more media attention," she says, "but there's the chance for dangers. Magazines now report of 'suspecting' people of being gay or 'discovering' people to be gay. There is increased exposure, but it's not necessarily understanding. The exposure brings the danger of simply magnifying the misunderstanding."
Belmore says foreigners cannot be the impetus for change, even if it is easier for them to be out: "It has to come from Japanese people. They have to get it going first, and then ask (if they choose) the help of non-Japanese living in Japan. The first thing is visibility, but we've been on the same step for ages. For five years we've been telling people to be open!"


SAME-SEX MARRIAGE AROUND THE WORLD

Same-sex marriages gained world-wide attention in 1997 with a legal challenge in Hawaii (USA) and new laws in the Netherlands in 1998.
Two lesbian couples and one gay male couple in Hawaii sued for legal recognition of their marriage. The state supreme court ruled that such marriages would be required under the state's constitution unless a "compelling state interest" in discrimination was established in a lower court. To head off recognition of such marriages, lawmakers passed legislation granting partners' benefits but not legal marriage.
The Netherlands has pioneered in recognizing the legal rights of gays and lesbians. As of January, same-sex couples became able to register as partners, a status virtually identical to marriage. A homosexual or heterosexual individual may adopt, but for couples, only heterosexuals may adopt.
According to Partners Task Force for Gay & Lesbian Couples, "same-sex citizens in Denmark, Greenland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden can sign a 'Registered Partners' document to claim a status and benefits similar to marriage. By July 1995, about 3,000 gay and lesbian couples have registered....Many cities in France, Spain, the Netherlands and the U.S. offer registration for same-sex couples. In most cases, the registration carries little or no legal weight or benefits."
The group also reported the following:
The provincial government of British Columbia, Canada, "has proposed allowing gay and lesbian couples to apply for adoption. Saskatchewan and Quebec already allow same-sex couples to adopt."
"Two Cambodian women were married on March 12, 1995, according to a Reuters news service report from the Cambodian Daily newspaper. Originally reported as a legal marriage, it was, in fact, a ceremony not recognized by the state...The couple, Khav Sokha and Pum Eth, received the well-wishes of their families and hundreds friends."
"Two groups in Brazil...demanded legal marriage on May 7, 1995, threatening to name 18 gay people in Congress and 50 in the local Catholic Church if they are denied."
"Same-sex couples in Hungary are now covered by the legal protection of common-law marriage, which carries some of the same rights as legal marriage."


GENDER ODYSSEY ENDS IN LOVE STORY by Michael O'Connell, with Tomoyuki Inoue

One women's search for her sexual identity ended at Hokkaido Sexual Minority Association: Sapporo Meeting, a group founded in 1989 for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and other sexual minorities. The volunteer group offers information and telephone counseling, and organizes workshops, lectures, dance parties, and an annual march. Ms. Kaneko, who asked that only her family name be used, says she has found happiness living with her same-sex partner.
"At university, I was troubled about my sexual orientation. I heard about a telephone consultation line for Sapporo Meeting, so I called up. I knew I was attracted to women, but I didn't know if I was a lesbian. A straight friend suggested that I call the group, which she knew about from a magazine.
"The magazine had information about a gay night. I wanted to take part, but only as an outsider, so when I called Sapporo Meeting I said I was a normal person. The person on the line got angry and asked if I thought the people throwing the party were abnormal. But they gave me the information. The telephone consultation was so good that I decided to go.
"It took a lot of courage. I was afraid to expose myself as a lesbian. You see, at this point I hadn't identified myself as one. Lesbians are defined in magazines and adult videos as being a certain type. I didn't recognize myself as this type, so I didn't consider myself a lesbian.
"There are two stereotypes of lesbian. One is a woman who has had every kind of kinky sex so that the only thing left is to try sex with women. This idea focuses on the physical. The second type is the feminist lesbian, who is essentially a man-hater who has made a conscious decision to be a lesbian. This wasn't me, since I hadn't chosen my attraction. Well, in a sense I did choose: I chose to recognize myself as a lesbian.
"When I told my parents about my orientation, they didn't want to hear it. I'm still in the process of coming out. At work, there were some people who knew and some who didn't. It was good for me. I made good relationships. I went with my partner to a restaurant and was gratified when my co-worker friends treated us as a couple. Actually, my partner is the women who I talked to on the phone when I called Sapporo Meeting."


Contacts:

-Hokkaido Sexual Minority Assn., Sapporo Meeting
phone/fax: 011-242-3321
ko-ji@b3.so.net.ne.jp
-Ms. Miyabi Kumagai
phone: 011-513-7665 or 080-904-8319
Arranges regular parties for straight and gay women.
-Partners Task Force for Gay & Lesbian Couples
Box 9685, Seattle, WA 98109-0685, USA
phone: 206-935-1206
demian@buddybuddy.com
www.buddybuddy.com
-Asia Lesbian Wave
http://home.interlink.or.jp/~pink-h/alw.html. Chats arranged by Asian country; "virtual marriage" registration.





"Banzai!" to the Karaoke Guy (Oct. 1998)
by William Kennedy

The place is Eki-mae Street in Susukino, downtown Sapporo. The time is 11PM, give or take. Ah, Susukino. "Japan's largest entertainment district north of Tokyo," crow the guidebooks. Never mind that it is a pretty asinine boast. After all, what is there between Tokyo and Sapporo (no offense to our Sendai readers)? What puzzles me is that if the place is such an "entertainment" area, why doesn't anyone seem to be having a good time?
There is one notable exception, however, among the girlie bar touts, the junk jewelry peddlers, the roaring crimson-faced suits and the hostesses with their frozen smiles waving goodbye to said suits. Amidst all the store-bought frivolity and white-knuckle hilarity, there is one person who actually seems to be enjoying himself. In fact, he looks like he's having a ball.
His name, I am led to believe, is Saigo-san, but you probably know him as the Susukino karaoke guy.
Most nights he can be seen in front of Robinson's Department Store in white pants and a day-glo blazer, serenading passers-by as his sound system pumps out syrupy enka music. He is the undisputed king of the Susukino buskers. Nobody has been able to tell me how long he has been at it. He's simply an institution.
The man is also a showman. As he sings, he smiles and nods, working the crowd. The open case at his feet that holds his earnings also has cassettes for sale.
That he makes at least some money doing what he does is certain. Put a \1,000 note in his case and see what kind of reaction you get. But it is above all a labor of love. Early in the evening, he can be seen frowning over his equipment, wanting everything to be just so. Later in the night, he gets rolling, rocking back and forth in time to an enka rhythm undetectable to my untrained ear. His hundred-watt smile is infectious and he seems never to forget a face. Upon receiving a largish offering or spotting a familiar face, he throws up his arms mid-song in a joyous "banzai " ("may you live ten-thousand years").
Buskers as a rule are delicate creatures. When the weather turns they either bolt town, following the money to sunnier climes, or go into some kind of hibernation. Saigo-san, however, mans his post right through the winter, his only concession to the elements being a comfy-looking parka, albeit in his trademark electric hues. Even in the chilling experience that is February in Sapporo, chances are that if you're out on the street, he is, too. James Brown may call himself the Hardest-working Man in Show Business, but in my book he ain't got dirt on Saigo-san.
I saw him this past summer at one of the beer gardens in Odori Park. It was during one of the interminable karaoke marathons that the beer garden management calls entertainment, in which boozed-up matrons and seemingly prepubescent salaryman take turns demonstrating the perils of alcohol abuse.
During a gap in the conversation at our table, someone remarked that the ever-present karaoke was somehow suddenly not so objectionable. Sure enough, there he was, resplendent in a brilliant purple blazer, with the crowd in the palm of his hand.
"It's him! It's the guy!", a friend of mine so eloquently put it. We referred to that night as the Saigo-san Tour. There was some talk about t-shirts.
There is no shortage of speculation about who he is and what would compel a man of a certain age to do what he does and in such a spectacular manner. Some have said he's homeless, others that he's actually in the chips. I don't know a lot about him, next to nothing, really. Nor do I know if I need to or want to. The important thing is that he is there and seems to take such pleasure in what he does.
There are better street performers, more polished ones and others with newer material. There is only one Saigo-san, however, and what he does is more than simple entertaining; he is providing a public service. He is a true character, the kind that any self-respecting city needs. Amid the artifice of Susukino, he is the real deal.





Shifting Demographics Mean Role Call for Education in Japan
(Aug. 1998)
by Alfredo Varela

Two instructors move to the front of a crowded university class they are team teaching. In two languages they announce that report topics are due. Students are instructed to move around until they find a like-minded group and come up with a topic. By the end of the class period, the students are presenting ideas (again in two languages) on rising student delinquency, the problems of raising bi-cultural children in a homogeneous society, and comparison of the teacher's role in two countries.
This may sound par for the course if you attended a Western university, but for Japan it is innovative. The course, Japanese Education, is just one the many experiments colleges are trying in order to address the declining student pool.
As Japan's position in the world economy rapidly expanded in the 1960's, there was much speculation about the educational system at the root of this miraculous post-war recovery. Research highlighted a system that was said to produce the world's best students and that purported to reveal everything wrong with Western education. However, over-testing, ineffectual teacher training and top-heavy bureaucracy has brought mounting criticism of the once vaunted system.
Rising school violence, falling test scores relative to other countries' and increasing awareness that a significant proportion of the student body are silently suffering psychological stress or just not learning has finally forced the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports to heed calls for reform.


But what shape can and will this reform take?

Recent changes, due to a shift in demographics, suggest a reversal of the half-century process that took Japan from its post-war attempts at student-centered learning to today's mania for testing, and may serve to create opportunities for positive change in the hierarchical structure that is Japan's national system of education.


Looking Back

The educational guidelines of 1947 reflected the opinions of the U.S. educational mission, part of the post-war occupation forces. Many of the ideas and programs were experimental, based on a student-centered philosophy but not practiced in U.S. schools.
Japan had no national curriculum and the guidelines were supposed to suggest an idea, as part of a plan to establish long-term guidelines from the bottom up after some experimentation. Many policies were changed once U.S. forces left. According to a Japanese Ministry of Education report, "aspects of the democratic educational system introduced during the Occupation period were not suited for the Japanese."
The Central Educational Committee revised the guidelines in 1958, after severe criticism of the 1947 guidelines for lacking emphasis on basic skills. In addition, the Ministry of Education took away from schools the freedom to design their own curriculum, marking the beginnings of centralization.
A 1968 revision of the educational guidelines attempted to feed the growing economy with a pool of skilled labor. Improvement of "educational results" was stressed, resulting in ability-oriented testing. It was at this point, according to a 1989 National Institute for Research Advancement report, that many students began to experience trouble keeping up with class, giving a major boost to the now infamous cram-school industry.
The educational guidelines of 1977 were based on "latitude." Again the focus of education shifted to the students, who were given greater choice in the selection of subjects and more free time. Revisions in 1989 and 1991 reflected a shift back to a more student-centered approach. According to a 1995 Ministry of Education report, these changes were made to help students "cope with social changes appropriately."
But even though the Ministry of Education attempted, from 1977, to foster more open, student-centered education, the guidelines' affects have been questionable. This is because universities and colleges have not changed their entrance examination system to any great degree. Attempts to loosen up junior and senior high school curriculums have clashed with the needs of students wanting to enter the nation's more prestigious colleges and universities.


Turning Point

But now, the limitations of the system have become clear at every level. This, and current demographic trends in Japan, are promising to change the face of education in coming years. High schools and colleges will see continual declines in student populations until after the year 2010, with the number of potential students at all ages other than kindergarten continuing to decrease until the year 2002. It won't be until then that the current crop of baby-booming zero- to one-year-olds begins to filter into grade school.
And these figures reflect only potential students. Students who decide not to go on to higher education or who choose alternative forms of education will lead to further decreases in the student pool.
While the Ministry of Education has steadfastly approved class size limits almost twice those in the West, changing demographics have caused students per class to decrease. The Asahi Shimbun in June reported that class size in some prefectures has been cut by as much as half, leaving many classes with as few as 20 students.
"Teachers today have more time and space for each student . . . some schools in this area [Hokkaido] have 30 or fewer students in the classroom," states Mari Toda, an associate professor at Hokkaido University of Education, Sapporo (HUES).
Toda, one of the Japanese Education instructors mentioned at the beginning of this story, sees a reduction from the current junior/senior high classes of 35 to 40 students as a great improvement. She also believes that increased pressure on universities to remain competitive will make instructors at the college level more conscious of their teaching. The decline in population is compounded by the huge number of private institutions established in the 1970's, especially at the junior college and university level. This means that institutions of higher learning will have to become more competitive as education becomes a buyer's market.
"Teaching methods in the university system are very, very, poor," she says. Many teachers try very hard, but the competitive attitude will make more professors attentive to their teaching."
The numbers of conferences and symposiums dedicated to university-level teaching methods suggest such attention. These conferences were unheard of as little as a decade ago.
In addition to professors taking greater care to make classes more relevant, many universities have started or are considering new courses designed to provide students with a broader range of skills. Examples include international education courses, designed to broaden student awareness and interest in the world around them; kaigo taiken (care-giving experiences), a form of experiential training intended to develop a student's sense of empathy through personal experiences of working with the elderly or disabled; and teacher training methods being given more importance. The new teacher licensing system will include an increase in the number of units required in this area.
In addition to specific courses, new programs of study have been introduced. The goal of these courses is to produce more rounded graduates who can fill various positions in the work force. In the Global Education program at HUES, the first two years of the program are designed to give students a strong footing in skills necessary to operate in the international work force. Students later choose a more specific area of focus as they prepare to take on positions in government, business or education. This program, only in its third year, has attracted top students from high schools as far south as Fukuoka and represents the type of innovative programs that universities must develop in order to attract students.


The Bad News

But there is a downside to the changes in student demographics. As student numbers decline and universities work to maintain current levels of enrollment, academic levels are expected to drop. "Teachers will be more competitive but students will not," Toda cautions.
Kazuko Otsu, a professor in the Global Education program, points out that more universities are already liberalizing entrance criteria, such as by increasing the number of test dates and evaluating entrance based on recommendations and interviews. "The entrance exams are changing, so the students are not as uniform as before," Otsu says.
Looking to the future, as universities broaden entrance requirements to lessen reliance on factual knowledge, the changes instituted by the Ministry of Education have a chance of succeeding. Universities that are ill-prepared to deal with "lower level" students will find themselves with a choice: either stop the escalator system of education, which virtually guarantees students will graduate once they have been accepted by a university, or graduate students who have done little or no real college-level work. Universities wishing to maintain their academic standing will have to develop programs such as the Global Education program.
Otsu agrees that universities may be more willing to try innovative programs and new courses of study. However she also cautions, "If teachers teach the same thing and only the name changes, then nothing will change."
Filling the Cracks by Alfredo Varela
Japan has been ill-equipped to deal with students experiencing emotional problems or who are learning disabled. Teachers agree that classrooms of 40-plus students, coupled with the demanding schedule of the national curriculum, translates into an unofficial policy of ignoring less-motivated students as long as they are not disruptive.
As a result, many students simply stop attending class in what has been labeled "school refusal," a phenomenon distinct from simple truancy as its cause is often deep-rooted emotional problems on the part of the student.
Sources at the Ministry of Education who wish to remain anonymous say the numbers far exceed any officially released figures. Many of the students are kept on the rolls as long as they keep in some form of communication with their school or faculty. This includes occasional phone calls or home visits by the homeroom teacher. Thus only the worst cases are recorded.
However, there appears to be some hope because as students per teacher decreases the system can now begin to address those students with special needs.
Hideko Ino, a student counselor for Chitose City, is in charge of a class for students expereincing emotional problems. In her class the students, who range from the third year of elementary to the third year of junior high school, are helped with their disabilities in hopes of rejoining their local schools. While this program is new to Chitose, similar programs already exist in Sapporo, Tokyo and many other school districts.
Ino states, "The biggest problem I see right now is the lack of alternatives for students when it comes to education. Hopefully new alternatives will become available" as the Ministry of Education becomes more willing to experiment with new programs.
Though this and similar programs offer hope to students who would otherwise spend their days at home, Ino cites two inadequacies in the current program. She fears first that "some of the students in my class are actually suffering from some learning disability that becomes an emotional problem" because it has not been properly diagnosed; and second, that "the current program ends at the third year of junior high school. There is no-one to watch over these students after that. I hope that as the student population decreases, programs like this will expand to include high school students as well."