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Th* Fortinir WOUAM COOPER ,Strtw» Miwwi Stilt WriterTOKYO?—A decade of American Gls will lie grieved to bear that the “Poor Butterfly” days are fast going from Japan. Japan’s women have proved that the kimono vote counts the same as any other. Now they have taken a roundhouse swing at the island em-pire's ancient and gaudy system of prostitution.An anti-prostitution bill passedyesterday by re- Cooper luctant males thinking of the upcoming national elections — with their heavy women’s vote—won’t immediately end Japan’s post-war roles as the most cheerfully sinful spot in the Far Eastw W WThe bill doesn’t go into effect for two years. Even then it will permit “personal” prostitution,which includes girls roaming the streets, if they are not too bothersome.The bill hits mostly at pan-derers, procurers and shady Japanese “teahouses,” an institution familiar to Gls. The houses range from the luxurious to the tawdry. In them it is possible to spend an evening innocently sipping tea and listening to music. In some a patron can have an attractive Japanese girl scrub his back in a steaming Japanese bath. In many it is also possible to stay all night.WWWUnder the law, such places will be closed and operators will be fined if they’re found tq be engaged in prostitution. Estimatesare that the measure will put 200,-000 girls out of work.The surprise of the bill was that it included geishas if they stray into the field of prostitution. Geishas—always a puzzle to Westerners—are trained entertainers wholiven Japcaeee music, dancing and venation.' . .■;$ fTechnically,, their morale are their own. But most are under a« • *. ft* . .*• £ •- * . . ,f.crushing debt for training and elaborate obstante, k 4ream ofmany is to find a rich patronwill free them frombondage:This system Japan’i newly militant women voten hope to end.Many apprentice geishas are little more than children easily led into prostitution to pay off loans. Othen are lured from small-paying jobs in teeming Tokyo with promises of luxurious wardrobes— which keep them in debt for years.♦ w »\ ' ' * ' *The law, therefore, strikes more at procurers and operators thanat the girls themselves. The operators are screaming that It is aclear case of government interference in a legitimate business.Public reaction has been varied. One big Tokyo red light district is setting aside part of its profits as a sort of social security or welfare fund to benefit the girla they will have to release. Osaka operators plan to defy the law, when the two-year interim period ends* by listing the girls as “boarders” and running a call system for inns and hotels.T X • • Japanese nien smile and comment that laws are easier to past than to enforce. The girls, only yawn. To the young, two years is s long time.WWWBut Japanese housewives arepounding the table and pointing out that only Turkey and Costaong civilized nations haveno anti-prostitution laws. After four previous futile tries, politicians are listening.A tougher law will be proposednext year. The doll-like Japanese bride is emerging from feudalism and may legislate the old mar into staving home nights after all.
Newspaper Details
El Paso Herald Post
El Paso, Texas, US
Tue, May 22, 1956
Page 10
Full Page
Clipped by
Wilmette P.
IL, USA 27 Apr 2023
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