Grandmother Sitting Still on Park Bench... It Was a 'Japanese Version of Goryeojang'

Revealed to Have Been Abandoned on Park Benches
Japan's Population Aged 65 and Over Hits Record High of 29.1%

As Japan faces aging as a social issue, a man in his 50s was arrested on charges of abandoning his elderly mother in a park, leading to her death.

According to Japanese media including NHK on the 3rd, local police arrested unemployed man Matsuda Ichiaki (57) in Miyagi Prefecture on the afternoon of the 30th of last month.

Matsuda is suspected of abandoning his elderly mother, Matsuda Tokii (86), who required nursing care, in a park near their home on October 14, resulting in her death.

Matsuda is accused of abandoning his elderly mother, Matsuda Tokii (86), who required nursing care, in a park near their home on October 14, leading to her death. The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. [Photo by Pixabay]

Fire authorities found Matsuda Tokii sitting in cardiac arrest around 5 p.m. that day and immediately transported her to the hospital, but she was ultimately pronounced dead.

The police initially struggled with the investigation as they could not find any belongings to identify the body, but upon learning that she lived near the park with her son, they visited the home around the end of October. When the police visited, Matsuda reported his mother missing for the first time, saying, "My mother left the house and did not return."

Suspicious, the police confirmed through investigation that Matsuda had taken his mother to a park bench and left her there, leading to his arrest. Matsuda reportedly admitted to the charges.

It was found that Matsuda had lived with his parents since 2014 and had been living only with his mother since his father's death earlier this year. The police are investigating the circumstances and reasons why Matsuda abandoned his mother.

Japan, for the first time in history, 1 in 10 people aged 80 or older

Japan has long struggled with the issue of an aging population, as it has the lowest birth rate in the world. The United Nations (UN) explained that Japan has the oldest population globally when considering the proportion of people aged 65 and over relative to the total population.
[Photo source=Pixabay]

Japan, which recorded the lowest total fertility rate and number of births last year, has long struggled with the problem of population aging.

According to data released by the Japanese government in September, 29.1% of Japan's total population of 125 million are aged 65 or older, marking a record high. The proportion of people aged 80 or older exceeded 1 in 10. In terms of the ratio of people aged 65 or older to the total population, Japan is the oldest country in the world.

Following Japan, Italy and Finland have proportions of people aged 65 or older at 24.5% and 23.6%, ranking second and third respectively. Japan's National Institute of Population and Social Security Research predicts that by 2040, people aged 65 or older will account for 34.8% of the total population.

"Elderly should commit group seppuku" - Yale University economics professor stirs uproar in Japan

The aging problem in Japan is not new. Despite the Japanese government spending hundreds of billions of yen over the past decade on various policies to solve this issue, it remains unresolved.

Among them, Yusuke Narita, a professor of economics at Yale University in the United States, sparked controversy by saying in an online news program at the end of 2021, "There is only one solution. Ultimately, the elderly must commit group seppuku."

Narita Yusuke, Professor of Economics at Yale University [Photo by Online Community]

In the program, he emphasized, "Whether you like it or not, this is a problem that requires an answer. If you think it is a good method, you can try to create such a society."

Despite causing a major uproar with this statement, Professor Narita has continued to make remarks about euthanasia for the elderly, saying, "There will come a time when mandatory euthanasia will be discussed."

His statements advocating euthanasia for social welfare have touched on one of the most sensitive issues in Japanese society.

Although Professor Narita is relatively unknown in the United States as an economist, tens of thousands of people follow his social media accounts due to his outspoken remarks. Most of his followers are young people who believe that an aging society hinders economic growth.

The reason Professor Narita's extreme remarks receive support in Japan is because the rapidly increasing elderly pension burden has become a social problem, considering Japan's low birth rate and massive fiscal debt. Additionally, the rise in dementia and solitary deaths is intensifying problems associated with an aging society.

Before Professor Narita, there were also claims in Japan that the elderly should be phased out. Ten years ago, Taro Aso, a powerful figure in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and then Minister of Finance, caused a scandal by saying the elderly should "die quickly."

Also, last year, film director Chie Hayakawa depicted salespeople enthusiastically promoting the government's euthanasia policy in the dystopian film "Plan 75."