Children's Homes in Japan

Children's Homes in Japan- Over Packed and Neglected

According to the National Children’s Homes Conference (NCHC), there were total of 568 homes nationwide as of March 2009. They further report that both child abuse and children being admitted to children’s homes have been continuously increasing. Both issues, as well as an increase in dysfunctional families call for serious attention.
Brief History of Children’s Homes in Japan

Children’s Homes have been called, “Jido (children) yogo (protection) shisetsu (Institution)” since 1997. The name is often times confused with “Yogo Gakko,” a school for the physically handicapped since they sound very similar. The children who make up the jido yogo shisetsu are mostly those who were abused or neglected by their parents (or guardians) unlike old orphanages which were comprised of children whose parents were deceased.

Past orphanages in Japan were called, “kojiin”, and the foundational form was established in 593 A.D. by Prince Shotoku. A few more establishments were built to accommodate children who lost their parents due to domestic wars and rebellions between powerful clans through the Edo Period (1600 – 1868). In 1879, Ishii Jyuji, a Japanese Christian, built the first kojiin in Okayama prefecture. At age 22, Ishii gave up on becoming a doctor to take care of orphans and dedicated himself to social service. He believed strongly in educating orphans instead of just feeding them. Ishii is considered a pioneer in Japan’s Children’s Welfare System. Two years after the end of WWII, Children’s Welfare Law was enacted and the name kojiin was replaced by yogo shisetsu.

In recent years, the children’s homes in Japan have been facing countless problems while the number of children needing to be admitted has been increasing; these include low wages, long working hours, and an insufficient worker to child ratio.
Increase of Child Abuse Cases

According to the Ministry of Welfare in Japan, in 2008, there were 42,664 cases of child abuse, which increased by 2,025 (5%) from the previous year. Among the case reports, the most common was physical abuse (16,343 cases) followed by neglect and refusal (15,905 cases) by parents. Children’s death caused by child abuse has decreased between 1975 and 2005; most deaths were inflicted by the biological mothers (63.3% vs. 21.6% by father).

Read more at Suite101: Children's Homes in Japan- Over Packed and Neglected http://japan.suite101.com/article.cfm/children-homes-in-japan--over-packed-and-neglected#ixzz0n9xRtyFu


Read more at Suite101: Children's Homes in Japan- Over Packed and Neglected http://japan.suite101.com/article.cfm/children-homes-in-japan--over-packed-and-neglected#ixzz0n9x9KK00


Children's Homes in Japan- Over Packed and Neglected