選択的夫婦別姓 ：自民党はスポンサーと票田のどちらを選択するか
前に、この記事を書いた。
「この教科書は，これからの日本を担う皆さんへの期待をこめ，国民の税金によって無償で支給されています。大切に使いましょう」という文面が教科書に載って大いに喜んだ参議院議員は、他の議員とともに選択的夫婦別姓に反対している。
だが、彼らはいつまでも反対できるだろうか。
選択的夫婦別姓制度の導入に賛成である。海外訪問時にパスポート上の戸籍名と旧姓の不一致によるトラブルが生じる、改姓後に旧姓時代の研究論文の実績が認識されないといった弊害も耳にする。政府には、女性活躍や多様な働き方を推進する方策の一丁目一番地として制度の導入を検討してほしい。
経団連の会長が、選択的夫婦別姓に賛成する時代だ。
法務省によると、夫婦同姓を法律で義務づけている国は日本だけだ。どちらの姓を選んでもよいが、約95％は女性が改姓している。近年は、結婚後も旧姓を通称として使うことが認められるケースが増えてきた。
だが、それでは根本的な解決にならない。
経団連には、企業から「通称として使うビジネスネームがパスポートの名前と異なるため、海外の公的施設でゲートを通れない。ホテルでは宿泊を断られた」「契約書のサインも受け付けてもらえないことがある」と具体的な弊害を訴える声が寄せられている。
研究者の場合、旧姓で発表した論文などの業績が、結婚による改姓後は認識されず、キャリア形成が阻害される恐れがある。
旧姓による預金口座の開設を認めていない金融機関もある。
二つの姓を使い分ける事務的、心理的な負担が、女性に重くのしかかっている。
問題は仕事や生活面にとどまらない。姓名は個人のアイデンティティーそのものだ。改姓により、自分が築いてきた業績や人生が、否定されたり消されたりするような、自己喪失感を抱く人は少なくない。
法相の諮問機関の法制審議会は、1996年に選択的夫婦別姓の導入を答申したが、政治は四半世紀以上、動こうとしなかった。野党だけでなく公明党も賛成している。にもかかわらず、自民党が保守派を中心に「家族の一体感を損なう」などと反対しているためだ。岸田文雄首相は「家族のあり方の根幹に関わる」「国会で具体的な制度のあり方を含め、建設的な議論をすることは重要だ」と人ごとのように答弁するだけだ。
国立社会保障・人口問題研究所が2022年に実施した全国家庭動向調査で、選択的夫婦別姓への賛成は61％に上っている。
実際、通訳者の鳥飼玖美子さんも苦労している。
英国出張中に大学から緊急連絡があった際、宿泊ホテルが「トリカイという人は宿泊していない」と答え、私に連絡が届くまで時間がかかった。ヒースロー空港でも苗字が問題になり、係官に「日本では夫婦別姓が認められていない」と説明したら、「それは不便でしょう」と同情された。英国の大学での博士学位記には戸籍名をミドルネームとして入れたが、英語圏では旧姓と夫の姓をハイフンでつなぐことが多い。韓国は夫婦別姓だし、スペインでは両親どころか先祖の苗字をいくつも並べたりする。
自民党は、大口スポンサーと票田のどちらを選択するのだろうか。
タイトル写真は、「選択的夫婦別姓「容認派」が64%」東京新聞,2022/8/25より引用。この調査は、２０２２年７月、２０～５９歳の働く男女５００人ずつ、計１０００人に対して、インターネットで尋ねた。
「自ら別姓を希望し選択的夫婦別姓制度を容認する人は３２．３％、自分は同姓を希望しつつ制度を容認する人は３１．７％で、計６４．０％が容認した。」
Optional separate surnames for married couples: Should the LDP choose sponsors or voters?
I wrote this article before.
The member of the House of Councillors was delighted to see the following textbook in the textbook: "This textbook is provided free of charge with taxpayers' money, with the hope that you will be the ones who will lead Japan in the future. Please use it carefully."
Along with other Diet members, she is opposed to optional separate surnames for married couples.
But can they continue to oppose it forever?
I support the introduction of a selective system of separate surnames for married couples. I have heard of problems such as issues arising when traveling abroad due to a mismatch between the legal name on a passport and the maiden name, and research papers published under a maiden name not being recognized after a surname change. I would like the government to consider introducing this system as the first step in measures to promote women's participation in the workforce and diverse working styles.
We live in an age where the chairman of the Japan Business Federation supports optional separate surnames for married couples.
According to the Ministry of Justice, Japan is the only country where married couples are required by law to have the same surname. Couples can choose either surname, but in about 95% of cases, the woman changes her surname. In recent years, there have been an increasing number of cases where people are allowed to use their maiden name as their common name even after marriage. However, this does not fundamentally solve the problem.
Companies have complained to the Japan Business Federation about specific problems, such as "Because the business name I use as our common name is different from the name on our passport, I cannot pass through the gates of public facilities overseas, I have been refused accommodation at hotels," and "I am sometimes not even allowed to sign contracts."
In the case of researchers, achievements such as papers published under their maiden name will not be recognized after they change their name upon marriage, which could hinder their career development.
Some financial institutions do not allow people to open deposit accounts under their maiden name.
The administrative and psychological burden of having to use two surnames weighs heavily on women.
The problem is not limited to work and life. A name is an individual's identity. Many people feel a sense of self-loss, as if changing their surname would negate or erase the achievements and lives they have built.
The Legislative Council, an advisory body to the Minister of Justice, recommended the introduction of optional separate surnames for married couples in 1996, but politics has not moved for more than a quarter of a century. Not only the opposition parties but also the Komeito Party are in favor of it. Despite this, the Liberal Democratic Party, mainly conservatives, are opposed to it, saying that it would "undermine family unity." Prime Minister Fumio Kishida simply replies as if it is someone else's problem, saying, "It relates to the very foundation of what a family should be," and "It is important to have constructive discussions in the Diet, including the specific form of the system."
A nationwide household trend survey conducted by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research in 2022 showed that 61% of people supported optional separate surnames for married couples.
In fact, interpreter Torikai Kumiko is also struggling.
When I received an emergency call from my university during a business trip to the UK, the hotel I was staying at replied that there was no one named Torikai staying there, and it took a while for the call to reach me. My surname also caused problems at Heathrow Airport, and when I explained to the official that "in Japan, married couples are not allowed to have different surnames," he sympathized and said, "That must be inconvenient." In my doctoral diploma from a UK university, my legal name was written as my middle name, but in English-speaking countries, my maiden name and my husband's surname are often hyphenated. In Korea, married couples have different surnames, and in Spain, people often use multiple surnames, not just those of their parents, but of their ancestors.
Should the LDP choose big sponsors or voting bases?
The title photo is taken from "64% in favor of optional separate surnames for married couples," Tokyo Shimbun, August 25, 2022. This survey was conducted online in July 2022, targeting a total of 1,000 people, 500 working men and women aged 20-59. "32.3% of people want to have different surnames and accept the optional separate surnames for married couples system, while 31.7% want to have the same surname but accept the system, for a total of 64.0% who accept it."
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