"Chauvinistic Husbands" Respond to New Japanese Divorce Laws

"Chauvinistic Husbands" Respond to New Japanese Divorce Laws

The Japanese Chauvinistic Husband Association is opening its doors and branching out.

We've discussed the plight of Japanese men who are affected by a new divorce law that allows ex-wives 50 percent of their ex-husband's pensions before here at FWW — basically, a whole bunch of wives are threatening to waltz out the door after decades of marital neglect.

But now we have numbers and they're pretty shocking.

Japanese wives have played second fiddle to careers, strip clubs, and drinking with the boys. Now that the divorce laws have changed, wives who are fed up have an attractive reason to leave. Some enterprising husbands have formed a support and learning group to help them figure out how to be nice to their wives.

The change in divorce law was first put on the books in 2003, but it didn't come into effect until this year. April showed a 6.1 percent increase in divorce filings, and 95 percent of the petitioners were women. Marriage counselors and legal experts across the country are predicting this is going to get worse before it gets better as wives nearing retirement age look ahead and see a future that looks bleak.

The group's founder is 55-year-old Shuichi Amano, and he says that the fear of divorce is very real for the men of Japan.

"To be divorced is the equivalent of being declared dead," he says. "We can't take care of ourselves."

When his own wife told him she was ready to leave him eight years ago, his sole knowledge of domestic responsibility consisted of pouring water over noodles and frying eggs. He realized something needed to be done. He set about starting the group, and in the meantime learned to cook, take out the garbage, and clean the house.

One member of the group — considered the only 10/10 on the good husband scale by his fellow group members — says he's still learning to actively love his wife. His long-suffering spouse frequently comes to speak at group meetings. Of their relationship before the change, she says that not only was he physically absent, he also didn't even give her contact information in case of an emergency. The 66-year-old businessman has changed his ways, though, and she's delighted to announce that he gave her 60 roses on her recent 60th birthday — the first birthday present he had ever given her.

If that is the state of marriage in Japan, the Chauvinists better get printing some extra pamphlets. With this new change in law, floundering Japanese businessmen are going to need all the help they can get.