In a rapidly aging nation that has unsuccessfully promoted birth rates for years, women who actively choose not to have children are often treated as "invisible," Kajiya states.

Kajiya, now 29, has never wanted children. She is one of five plaintiffs suing the government, demanding amendments to the Maternal Protection Law, arguing that it "chains" women's rights.

Under current law, women can only be sterilized if they have had multiple children and if pregnancy poses a life-threatening risk. Even when medically eligible, they must still seek their husband's permission. This regulation makes it impossible for young, healthy women like Kajiya, who choose a child-free life, to undergo the procedure in their home country.

Kajiya flew to the United States for a tubal ligation. She calls this the most resolute rejection of being treated as a "backup incubator."

_Japanese girls in kimonos pose for photos on coming of age day at Todoroki arena in Kawasaki, Kanagawa prefecture, on 12/1. Photo: AFP_

"From a young age, I was taught that the uterine lining was a 'bed for babies' and menstrual pain was preparation for labor. I felt like I was forced onto a train with a single destination: motherhood," Kajiya recalls. "Through surgery, I shattered the window and jumped off that train. We are not uteruses; we are human beings."

Attorney Michiko Kameishi, handling the lawsuit, argues that the maternal protection law is a relic from wartime, a period when women were considered a "resource" for population growth. Requiring a husband's written consent for sterilization "is tantamount to denying women's independence and self-determination."

The lawsuit also points out that Japan is going against global trends. According to a 2002 study by EngenderHealth, more than 70 countries consider sterilization a legal and voluntary method of contraception, while Japan is among the few nations that strictly restrict it.

_Japanese mothers with their children attend an event at Sensoji temple in Tokyo on 26/4/2025. Photo: AFP_

In Japan, condoms are the most common form of contraception. 0,5% of women choose sterilization, and 2,7% use birth control pills, a method often considered expensive. Attorney Kameishi aims to help women secure their constitutionally guaranteed rights to bodily autonomy, placing sterilization on par with voluntary services like cosmetic surgery or tattooing.

Kajiya once wondered if her internal discomfort was a manifestation of gender identity conflict. However, she soon ruled out this possibility. She still embraces feminine identities: she enjoys dressing up, fears growing a beard, and accepts gender characteristics like menstruation.

An innate aversion to reproduction, societal pressure for women to have children, and the desire for safe contraception have connected the plaintiffs. Among modern democracies, Japan is an exception regarding access to sterilization. Although regulations for vasectomies in men also require a wife's consent, this barrier is rarely strictly enforced in practice. Urological clinics openly advertise the service as a routine procedure. Meanwhile, the government insists on maintaining restrictions for women, citing the need to protect them "from future regret."

In documents submitted to the Tokyo District Court, the government argues that because sterilization is irreversible, current regulations are necessary to ensure individuals have carefully considered their decision. However, attorney Kameishi believes the greatest barrier is "the notion that women are incomplete without motherhood." When society views childlessness as a shortcoming, it becomes difficult for women to bravely speak out and demand the right to actively relinquish their reproductive capacity.

"Just being childless makes them feel guilty, so how can they openly talk about wanting to actively eliminate their reproductive ability?" she asks.

Another plaintiff is Rena Sato, 26. She associates childbearing with traditional heterosexual love. As an asexual and aromantic individual, she feels that reproductive capacity is an alien part and has no place in her personal identity.

For Sato, pregnancy is a prospect that could only occur in the worst-case scenario of sexual assault. Sato argues that "because the law prevents women from sterilization, the government is inadvertently forcing her to face the risk of unwanted pregnancy due to a crime."

_Kazane Kajiya shares about the lawsuit demanding sterilization rights in Yokohama on 1/3. Photo: AFP_

Kajiya is married to a partner who respects her choice. She does not regret her sterilization. But sometimes she wonders if Japanese societal norms pushed her to an extreme.

"If I had been born in a country where women have the same bodily autonomy as men, where no one assumes I will become a mother, perhaps I would not have chosen to cut my body to gain freedom," Kajiya says.

The court's ruling on the lawsuit, titled "Motherhood is not the purpose of my body," is expected to be announced this week and could significantly impact Japanese society.

Hong Hanh (According to AFP)