The packed room quieted down as Rie Saito took the stage. Instead of picking up the microphone, however, she smiled and silently pointed to the big screen next to her. This was the beginning of her speech — at a political rally on March 15 — which she based around a Power Point presentation.
Saito, who lost her hearing at age 1, plans to run in the April 26 election in Tokyo's Kita Ward Assembly as a Nippon wo Genki ni Suru Kai (Party to Revitalize Japan) candidate. A best-selling author who was once the No. 1 hostess at a club in Tokyo's Ginza district, Saito was known as the hitsudan hostess who used writing to communicate with her customers.
"I have been wanting to do something to support people with disabilities to bring out their dormant potential and create an environment where they can be active," she told The Japan Times in an interview last week, using mostly written responses supplemented by occasional verbal answers and gestures. "Entering the world of politics was a way for me to take action in that direction."