Half of the People with Disabilities Living in Facilities Sent to “out-of-Tokyo facilities” [Podcast Episode]

By Barrier Free Japan

December 12 2025

Kita-Akita City, Akita Pref – Aikawa Shinseien, a remote facility in Akita Prefecture housing nearly 90 intellectually disabled people sent from Tokyo, illustrates the long-standing practice of placing disabled residents far from their home communities due to Tokyo’s high land prices and neighborhood resistance to disability facilities, with some locals claiming such facilities would “damage the image” of the area. Many residents have lived there for decades, seldom see their families, and feel trapped, one 65-year-old man, who has lived there since the facility opened, says poignantly, “I don’t want to end my life here.” As parents age and die and “out-of-Tokyo facilities” continue to fill in replacements, some question what a truly inclusive living environment for disabled people should look like.

Episode notes:

“ ‘I Don’t Want to End My Life Here”: Half of the Disabled People Living in Facilities Sent Outside Tokyo’:

“I Don’t Want to End My Life Here”: Half of the Disabled People Living in Facilities Sent Outside Tokyo