While allowing female employees to take maternity leave is becoming the norm in the nation's private sector, women in politics can still face a storm of criticism even for getting pregnant.
On July 12, independent House of Representatives lawmaker Takako Suzuki, 31, announced on her blog that she was pregnant with her first child, writing, "On this occasion, I have been blessed with the gift of a new life."
She went on to say she felt "very conflicted" since she had been prescribed bed rest by her doctor due to the risk of a premature birth. This meant, she said, that she would have to limit, though not altogether cease, her political activities.