Worldwide WAN

The Worldwide WAN (W-WAN) introduces activities of Women's Action Network (WAN) and feminist movements, etc. inside and outside of Japan. We translate selected articles in the main WAN website from Japanese into English as well as other international languages including Chinese and Korean. We also publish W-WAN's original articles on this page.

Global Conference for a Nuclear Power Free World 2012 Yokohama --- A Great Success!

2012.02.22 Wed

Chizuko’s Blog No.17January 17th, 2012The Global Conference for a Nuclear Power Free World was held on 14-15 January at Pacifico Yokohama in Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture. 5,000 people attended the conference on the first day and 5,500 on the second, with 5,000 participating in the demonstration march on the first afternoon, and an overall total of 15,500 participants from 30 different countries. WAN also attended as an advocate.http://npfre

Labels: Other

Poetry -- The Art of Looking　　Film Review by Kei Shimizu

2012.02.21 Tue

“The most difficult thing for me is being ready to write poetry.” I couldn’t get these words from the main character out of my mind and, for a time, it prevented me from writing this review.This is because I doubted whether I was mature enough to face the film Poetry. “What does it mean to make a film now, when films are dying?” asks Lee Chang-dong, the director, who made this film while he was asking himself the meaning of making films and writi

Labels: Cinema (C-WAN)

From the Scene of Protesting the Construction of Kaminoseki Nuclear Power Plant

2012.02.01 Wed

Just past 3pm on March 11, 2011, a call was made to Tanoura Beach from Iwaishima. “We just had an earthquake. Please evacuate the beach immediately for fear of possible tsunami.” Upon hearing this announcement, young people on the beach hurriedly took their kayaks and other important leisure items to the nearby hilltops, and approximately half of them returned to Iwaishima for safety. Generations of people on Iwaishima lived with the blessing f

Labels: Other

Feature Dialogue with Chizuko Ueno --Part III—

2012.01.30 Mon

In commemoration of the publication of Lady Murasaki Shikibu and Her DesiresChizuko Ueno with Junko SakaiVarious arousal pointsSakaiIn that context, I have become more and more fond of Genji’s brother.UenoGenji’s brother?SakaiSuzakuin, I associate him as someone like the Polaris type, you know.UenoAlright, your inclination to Suzakuin can also be analyzed by referring to the Korean drama, Dae Jang Guem. (laughs) I picked up everything about Korea

Labels: Other

Feature Dialogue with Chizuko Ueno --Part II—

2012.01.27 Fri

In commemoration of the publication of Lady Murasaki Shikibu and Her DesiresChizuko Ueno with Junko SakaiLady Murasaki Shikibu and Her DesiresJunko SakaiDo women secretly wish to be raped?UenoYou explicitly wrote, “I wish a mishap of the Casanova-types.” It is a women’s dream that a man of power yet good looking get so badly tempted to make love to you, so did he to his true content. But after the love affair with you, he should die lonely and d

Labels: Other

Movie Review: 'Houri no Shima' - Things Destroyed by Nuclear Power Plants

2012.01.09 Mon

Houri no Shima (Holy Island)　(directed by Aya Hanabusa /2010) Things Destroyed by Nuclear Power Plants by Karin Koretsune Iwaishima, in Yamaguchi Prefecture is a heart-shaped island located in the Seto Inland Sea. 30 years ago, a plan was drawn up to build a nuclear power plant on the shore of mainland merely 4 kilometers across the sea facing the island. Since then, the islanders continued to protest the construction of nuclear p

Labels: Cinema (C-WAN)

Feature Dialogue with Chizuko Ueno --Part I--

2012.01.01 Sun

Feature Dialogue with Chizuko Ueno –Part I–In commemoration of the publication of Lady Murasaki Shikibu and Her DesiresChizuko Ueno with Junko SakaiLady Murasaki Shikibu and Her DesiresJunko SakaiAbout the WorkThe desire to give away secrets, to poke fun at ugly women, to bring misfortune to the Casanova-types—A thousand years ago or now, the way women think has not changed.Many books have been written on the Tale of Genji, but watch what happens

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NPO SANKAKU PLANET lecture “Women’s Poverty from a point of view of Domestic Violence”

2011.12.30 Fri

There was a period of movement preventing violence against women between November 12 and 25, 2011. Nagoya city gender equality center enforces a project regarding prevention of violence against women(domestic violence) in November every year.This year our NPO SANKAKU PLANET called Ms. Mieko Takenobu, a journalist and presently a professor of Wako University from Tokyo and had her talk about “ actual condition of women’s poverty from a point of vi

Labels: Event Information

Has the concept of labor changed?

2011.12.12 Mon

I attended the symposium coordinated by Chizuko Ueno with participants including Emiko Takenaka, Mari Osawa, Mitsuko Miyaji and Kayoko Akabane. Each participant is a leading researcher and activist in the fields of feminism and labor studies. This symposium commemorated the 10th anniversary of the Creo Osaka and was entitled “The Future My Choices Bring About – Tomorrow of Living and Working.” It was certainly worth all my efforts to spare some

Labels: Other

Unwillingly Signed Divorce Paper: A Case of Non Japanese Couple with Different Nationalities

2011.11.30 Wed

Question: I am a graduate student from country A. I have a husband, who is from country B, and a child, who is two years old. My husband and I met each other as foreign students and got married in Japan. The three of us still live in Japan. My husband is not interested to take care of the child and has started to complain, “I want more free time,” and “I cannot get relaxed because of the kid.” The other day, he asked me to sign my name t

Labels: Legal Advice

Women's Peace Prize in 2011

2011.11.30 Wed

This year's Nobel Peace Prize is one of great milestones for women activism. The Worldwide Women's Action Network (W-WAN) is pleased to post related information, provided by Betsy Kawamura who is the founder of Women for Non Violence (www.w4nv.com) in Norway, for celebrating two big events in this fall: womens’ peace prize and the launch of W-WAN’s weblog. ***** Women's Peace Prize Saturday, December 10th the Nobel Peace Prize will be handed ou

Labels: Commemoration

The 1st National Exam for Certified Care Workers under EPA to be Held in Jan.2012.

2011.11.23 Wed

The Association of Japanese Language Education (AJLE) has a working group to support nurses and care workers who are candidates for certification in Japan under the Japan-Indonesia Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). This article mainly focuses on the current situation of the candidates for care workers, as the examination system differs for nurses and care workers. The first group of care workers sent to Japan under the EPA for ce

Labels: Other

What’s Going on in Schools and Homes and on Streets? ----3rd Symposium on Victims of Pornography and Human Rights of Women and Children

2011.11.16 Wed

The Association for Victims of Pornography and Sexual Violence has been raising questions about Japan's social conditions where the violation fo sexual rights and the wide-spread of pornography do not receive enough attention. This year we are organizing our 3rd symposium to consider the environment in which children are being raised as well as the sexual harassment and abuse in schools and local communities.The symposium will be held in a la

Labels: Event Information

Sociologist Chizuko Ueno’s Online Seminars

2011.11.02 Wed

Chizuko Ueno, an author of many well-known books, Japan’s foremost feminist, sociologist, and former professor of the Graduate School of the University of Tokyo, started seminars we can watch online. Since she retired from the university, she has been active as the managing director of Women's Action Network (WAN).Her current research interest is "how single men and women can live alone for a long time and die at home."The first Ueno Seminar pres

Labels: Ueno Seminar

Join Us! - Women's Organization against Nuclear Power

2011.11.01 Tue

We launched Women's Organization against Nuclear Power. (You can find the list of who "we" are in the original website but it's only available in Japanese.) The kick-off meeting starts at 1:30 p.m. on November 23rdin Tokyo .The Fukushima nuclear power plants’ accident teaches us that human beings cannot control nuclear power plants. Operating power plants in Japan, the earthquake-prone archipelago, is extremely risky and we don't have any solutio

Labels: Organizations

Where a Women’s Lib Activist Met Creative Works on Homosexual Themes -- report on the Yaoi/BL Symposium

2011.10.31 Mon

The word yaoi in Japanese refers to a genre of creative works whose theme is male and male gay relationships, and yet ones that target female audience. It is also called “BL,” which stands for “boys love.”On October 2, at the campus of Osaka University, a symposium on Yaoi/BL was held for the second time following the last year. The title this year was Female Writers of JUNE Fictions  the Era of Azusa Nakajima’s Courses on Fiction Writing. JUNE

Labels: Other

Women's Korean Wave vol.21 Definitely Neighbors (Part 2 of 2)

2011.10.21 Fri

Women's Korean Wave vol.21 Definitely Neighbors (이웃집 웬수) written by Yeong-ae Yamashita(You can read Part 1 here.)The protagonist is Yun Jiyeong (actor: Yu Hojeong). Jiyeong, a housewife, and her husband Kim Seongjae (Son Hyeonju) lose their son in a traffic accident while they are quarreling. Shocked by the loss, the couple gets divorced. She soon gets a part-time job at a restaurant, where she meets its owner and chef, Chang Geonhui (Sin Seongro

Labels: Other

Women's Korean Wave vol.21 Definitely Neighbors (Part 1 of 2)

2011.10.20 Thu

Women's Korean Wave vol.21 Definitely Neighbors (이웃집 웬수) written by Yeong-ae YamashitaDefinitely Neighbors is a Korean drama series which sheds light on a divorced couple facing various events and going through complicated feelings with a light touch. SBS aired it on weekends in 2010. The number of episodes is 65.Korean dramas in general relate divorce with "adultery" or "revenge" but you will never see either of them in this drama. Rather, it ch

Labels: Other

Kusama’s Body Festival in 60s

2011.10.10 Mon

An art exhibit named Kusama’s Body Festival in 60’s, which features the artist Yayoi Kusama's works in that decade, is being held in Tokyo. o August 6, 2011 (Sat.) – November 27, 2011 (Sun.)o The Watari Museum of Contemporary Arto 3-7-6 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyoo Tel: 03-3402-3001The exhibit website: http://www.watarium.co.jp/exhibition/1108kusama/index.html (in Japanese only)The artist's official website has an extensive Englis

Labels: Art (A-WAN)

A View on the Two Female Members in the Noda Cabinet

2011.09.21 Wed

Since the historic political shift from the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) in 2009, Japanese politics has seen three prime ministers and thus three sets of Cabinet members. On September 2, 2011, the newly appointed Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda formed a Cabinet, which includes two female members: Yoko Komiyama, the Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare, and Renho, State Minister in Charge of Government Revitaliz

Labels: Other