'Birth-giving machine' gaffe hits nerve in Japan

TOKYO, Feb 2 (Reuters) Even his wife was angry. When Health Minister Hakuo Yanagisawa called women ''birth-giving machines'' he outraged the many Japanese who have shed traditional gender stereotypes, confirming their suspicions that Japan's leaders are out of step with the times.

The gaffe -- which coincides with a slump in Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's popularity -- has prompted opposition party calls for Yanagisawa to step down and has given the ruling camp another headache as it gears up for an upper house election in July.

''My wife scolded me,'' Yanagisawa told Japanese reporters this week after having told local party faithful on Saturday: ''Because the number of birth-giving machines and devices is fixed, all we can ask for is for them to do their best per head.'' Yanagisawa altered his remarks almost as soon as spoke them, but critics say the fact he said them at all reflects deep-seated views that permeate Japan's male-dominated corridors of power.

''What women are angry about is that Yanagisawa's remarks are evidence that this is the view of men who have power,'' said Sumiko Iwao, an honorary professor at Tokyo's Keio University who until last month headed a government advisory panel on gender equality.

It isn't the first time conservatives in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) have seemed out of sync with ordinary Japanese on gender matters.

Last year, a proposal to give women equal rights to ascend the throne was scrapped after the birth of Japan's first prince in four decades, despite surveys showing the vast majority of the public would be happy to see a reigning empress.

''We have seen this time and again, and women are now convinced that this is a sort of shared attitude among many men in power,'' Iwao said.

Japanese women still lag their counterparts in other advanced countries in terms of political clout and earning power, but faced with a sagging birth rate, companies have stepped up efforts to make better use of the abilities of female workers and managers.

''Women have become equal and many are working, so what was he thinking of in describing them that way?'' said 26-year-old part-timer Keiko Otsuki as she headed for work today.

''As a woman, I find it offensive to be treated like an object.'' BABY SHORTAGE Preliminary estimates show Japan's fertility rate -- the average number of children a woman bears in her lifetime -- may have edged up last year after hitting a record low of 1.26 in 2005, but the rate is expected to start falling again this year.

Japan's population has already begun shrinking, raising worries about future economic growth, and just two days after Yanagisawa's comment, Abe set up a new panel to draw up steps to address the problems of Japan's declining population.

The shortage of babies has been linked to a variety of factors, including a trend towards late marriages and the difficulty women face in balancing family and work needs, in part because of the long hours their husbands spend at work.

''The comments place the responsibility for the falling birth rate on women,'' Mizuho Fukushima, leader of the small opposition Social Democratic Party, told a news conference.

''They ignore the role of the government in creating an environment for women to raise children more easily,'' she said.

The gaffe has reinvigorated opposition parties, who now scent blood after a spate of ruling party missteps including the resignation of a cabinet minister over a political funds scandal.

The uproar could affect local elections on Sunday for the governor of Aichi in central Japan and the mayor of Kitakyushu City on the southern island of Kyushu. The results of those polls in turn could influence whether Yanagisawa stays or goes.

But the main opposition Democratic Party and its smaller allies have also come under fire for boycotting parliamentary debate on the budget as a way to force Yanagisawa to step down.

''I think Yanagisawa should quit. He isn't looking at people, whether men or women, as human beings. He's looking at them as tax-paying machines,'' said Yukie Horikoshi, a 38-year-old nurse.

''But I don't think other parties are any better. They make promises but they aren't listening to the voice of the people.'' REUTERS BDP PM1540