By Kanoko Matsuyama
June 19, 2023
Japan approved its first abortion pill in April, decades after countries like the US and France, for use by women who are up to nine weeks pregnant.
The green light finally gives Japanese women an option to abort pregnancy without surgery, and empowers our rights in a country ranked 116th in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report last year — near Burkina Faso and Tajikistan — and where women must consult with doctors to get oral contraceptives.
But it’s hard for us to be overjoyed about our progress, as access to the treatment is highly restricted.