Development of Public and Private Support for Homeless People in Japan after the 1990s: Focus on Housing Support Akiko Nakajima, Michiko Bando, Hajime Osaki, Rebecca Tanaka Akiko Nakajima, Professor of Housing, Wayo Women’s University 2-3-1 Konodai, Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, Japan 272-8533 Tel (81)47-371-2186, Fax (81)47-371-1336, email:
[email protected] Michiko Bando National Institute of Public Health Hajime Osaki Architect Office Takumiya Architects, Ltd. Rebecca Tanaka Wayo Women’s University Introduction In Japan, the term homeless officially means rough sleeper. It includes people, primarily men, who sleep in parks, train stations, under railroad viaducts, on the streets, and beside rivers—in essence, people without a house or shelter to live in. Since the 1990’s when Japan began experiencing recessionary conditions, rough sleepers have been seen not only in big cities but also in medium-sized and small cities. The number of rough sleepers hit 25,000 in 2003, according to a survey that was conducted in all municipalities in Japan. The survey was based on the Homeless Self-reliance Support Law (2002). Throughout this research report, the term rough sleeper will be used to define people without housing who live on the street, whereas people who stay in public shelters, emergency centers, or transitional housing facilities will be defined as the homeless. The recession is not the only cause of increasing rough sleepers, however. Three other factors have contributed to the increase of this type of homelessness in a country that for centuries had virtually none. First, in the background lie the increasingly unstable relations between employers and employees that resulted when Japan switched to neoliberalism policies, like many other developed nations.