Kiyomi Tsujimoto, Member of the House of Representatives of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Deputy Representative of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, and Representative of the Osaka Prefecture Alliance

The importance of having dreams, something I learned from running Peace Boat

■ Profile

Born in Nara Prefecture in 1960, raised in Osaka. Graduated from the Faculty of Education at Waseda University.
While a student, he founded an NGO and engaged in private diplomacy with 60 countries around the world.
He was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1996.
She served as Vice Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism in 2009, Special Advisor to the Prime Minister in charge of Disaster Volunteers in 2011, and the first female Diet Affairs Chairperson of the largest opposition party in history in 2017. She is currently the Deputy Leader of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.

What you want to do is put into action. These words addressed to young people tell the story of House of Representatives member Kiyomi Tsujimoto's life so far. After starting an NGO that addressed various issues both domestically and internationally at university, she unexpectedly embarked on international exchanges by ship. After graduating, she pioneered a new field of work, regardless of the trends of the times. We asked her about her efforts towards internationalization as a member of parliament, which is an extension of that.

■Peace Boat, an NGO founded out of concern for the textbook issue

When I was in university and aiming to become a social studies teacher, something very shocking happened to me. I was unable to understand the textbook controversy that occurred in the 1980s. At the time, descriptions of the Japanese government's actions during World War II in history textbooks were being called into question, but I knew nothing about this historical awareness.
This was the catalyst for the launch of Peace Boat, an NGO that promotes international exchange in various countries on themes such as peace, democracy, and human rights.
During the Cold War, we did our utmost to close the wall between East and West and be the first to break through it. We carried out a variety of activities, including transporting aid supplies to Cambodia after the war to support women, guiding ships through Western countries such as Vietnam and Cambodia to send antibiotics to Palestine, and sometimes even traveling to North Korea on ships that had been to South Korea.
Today, Peace Boat has special consultative status with the United Nations, is a member of ICAN, a coalition of NGOs working to prohibit and abolish nuclear weapons, and has even been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. It still moves me to think that a group that started with just four students has grown to this extent.

■Aiming to become a legislator to establish legal status for NPOs

However, in the 1980s, Japan had yet to catch up with the trend in Europe and the United States toward social enterprises dealing with environmental and human rights issues. We were groping our way through trying to establish Peace Boat as a pioneering social enterprise, but the most difficult parts were raising funds and gaining public trust. Peace Boat is known for its "round-the-world trips," but its first trip cost nearly 15 billion yen, and we even had to go into debt.
In order to rent a boat at a cheaper price, we went to Greece, Ukraine, and other countries to negotiate, but since we were not a corporation, it was difficult to gain their trust. Even the first negotiation with a Greek ship owner took place after repeated attempts, including going to Athens in a yukata kimono. Furthermore, when volunteering for the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, non-profit organizations were not well-trusted in Japan at the time, and insurance did not cover injuries.
So, one of the reasons I became a member of parliament was that I wanted to somehow create a legal status for NPOs in Japan similar to the NPO laws in Europe and the United States. After I was elected, I was able to get a bill passed as a member of parliament at a time when the term NPO didn't even exist in Japan. 

■I chose to "regret doing something rather than regret not doing it." And then I became a politician. 

Another reason I became a politician was when Takako Doi, then the first female Speaker of the House of Representatives in Japan, asked me to run for office. Because there are few female politicians in Japan, she wanted me to use my experience as a representative of women in politics. I was hesitant at first, since I wasn't a hereditary politician and had no money. But I decided to run the next day, leaving Peace Boat, which had been a neutral organization, because I thought I would be more satisfied if I tried and then regretted it. The election was just one week away. With this in mind, I would like to tell young people that when they face a turning point in their lives, they should "do it without hesitation." If you're young, you can still start over even if you fail. And only think for an hour. If you think about it all day, you might become afraid of failure and give up on trying. 

■Becoming a politician made me keenly aware of the importance of listening to the voices of those on the ground

In addition to enacting the NPO Act, I worked with victims of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake to create the Disaster Victims Reconstruction and Livelihood Support Act. In the past, even if a house was completely destroyed in a disaster, the government would not provide a single yen in compensation because it was considered private property. However, by changing this situation, the funds were able to be used to help victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake and the torrential rains. After the earthquake, I began to believe that protecting lives is also a role of politics, so I obtained a disaster prevention specialist qualification and have been working on disaster response.
While working as a politician, I also obtained a qualification as a caregiver. What is important for a politician is to know the situation on the ground firsthand. As we are now in an aging society, and everyone may need to care for their parents, even if it is not for themselves, I felt a strong need to know the situation on the ground.

Towards a gender-equal society where everyone can choose how they want to live

One of the issues I am currently working on is the option of separate surnames for married couples. Of the 206 Olympic participating countries, Japan is the only one where, by law, couples must decide on one surname after marriage, and I believe that not allowing married couples to have separate surnames is unreasonable from an international perspective. The days when marriage between "households" was the norm are over, and nowadays, an increasing number of women are working rather than becoming full-time housewives after marriage. I believe that in the future, there should be more options for families and individuals to decide on surnames, rather than the state.
We are also working towards realizing same-sex marriage. In Taiwan, Digital Minister Audrey Tang has publicly declared herself transgender, and New Zealand has not only decided on the number of cabinet ministers from ethnic minorities and immigrant backgrounds, but has also introduced gender parity. I believe that Japan should follow the example of these countries and respect diversity.
Furthermore, given the current employment status and salaries of working women, I believe there needs to be a trend towards consciously incorporating women into decision-making positions. In fact, countries where there are equal numbers of men and women in decision-making positions have a high level of information disclosure and advanced social security policies. This ultimately leads to peace of mind in old age, economic circulation, and a reduction in fiscal deficits. However, not every country has achieved gender equality from the start, and it has been gradually achieved through quota systems that include a certain percentage of women. I, too, would like to continue working towards the establishment of such equal parliaments with equal numbers of men and women and the resolution of the declining birthrate issue.

■ I want you to value "living in the present"

My message to university students is, "Have dreams no matter how old you are." When you reach a certain age, you may be told to "face reality." But it takes energy to keep talking about dreams forever. As you maintain this energy, your dreams become words, and words become will. Eventually, will gives rise to action, and action gives rise to solidarity. I realized and came to believe in the importance of this process while running Peace Boat. I want to continue to be someone who pursues this process, and I hope everyone does too. Even if you don't have a dream yet, I want you to cherish the idea of ​​"living in the present." I believe that if you live the present to the fullest, something will lead to the next.

 Interviewed by Student Newspaper Online on March 10, 2021 by Tsuda University sophomore Ayako Miyata