One Year After Japan’s Disability Discrimination Laws Were Revised, 60% of Disabled Are Unaware of Rights

From Jiji

April 29 2025

TOKYO – One year has passed as of April since the revised Act for Eliminating Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities came into effect, which obligates businesses and other entities to provide “reasonable accommodation” to people with disabilities. However, awareness remains an issue—according to a private survey, 60% of people with disabilities said they were unaware of the obligation—highlighting the challenge of increasing public recognition. Experts emphasize that “support systems from the national and local governments are essential.”

Reasonable accommodation refers to responding, within a scope that does not impose an excessive burden, to requests made by people with disabilities when using facilities or services. For instance, a supermarket employee guiding a visually impaired customer to the product shelves is one such example. “Constructive dialogue” between both parties is key. Prior “environmental improvements,” such as making facilities barrier-free, are also essential as a foundation for reasonable accommodation.

Last July, the consulting company Mirairo, which provides apps for people with disabilities, conducted an online survey targeting users with disabilities. Among the 1,007 respondents, only 36.4% were aware of the mandatory reasonable accommodation under the revised law, while the rest answered they were unaware.

Takeshi Kajio, Director of Corporate Planning at Mirairo, said, “If people with disabilities don’t know about it, then ‘constructive dialogue’ is unlikely to happen. The government should do more to raise awareness.” Since the enactment of the revised law, the government has held online briefings for businesses and reached out to disability groups. However, a Cabinet Office official acknowledged, “Understanding is still insufficient, so we want to continue raising awareness.”

Professor Emeritus Jun Ishikawa of Shizuoka University (sociology/disability studies) noted, “Awareness has spread to some extent through disability groups, but there are also individuals who are not affiliated with such groups. Without direct information provision from the government, understanding won’t progress.” He added, “Reasonable accommodation for individual cases is not a panacea. It is crucial to advance it in tandem with ‘environmental improvements.’”