Comments: [from Cornelia 9/2007] Bunkyoku has a recent bad history regarding their public creche system. They closed two nurseries and reduced the capacity by not replacing retired full time staff between 1997 and 2002. This was at a time when the need for nursery care rose. They were having financial problems (still are, due to over-construction near the end of the bubble), and they shaved the budget at the cost of those with the weakest political power.

Parents were quite outraged. It was the first (and only time) that I experienced political activism here in Japan, first-hand. The child minders' union initiated it and involved the parents. There were two hour plus long meetings at the Bunkyo ward City Hall starting at 18:30pm attended by 65-85 parents and chld minders. The reaction of the ward officials was so lame (almost rude) at the first meeting that several parents became vocally angry, and the everyone attending was clearly very insulted. I thnk all that activism won a postponement of one year. But ultimately the plans to cut back on the public daycare facilities went through as planned. This was around 1998-2002.

Related links:

Japan With Kids - Life at Japanese Public Daycare (Hoikuen)
Japan With Kids - Forums: Daycare in Japan
Japan With Kids - Forums: Private Daycare -- Hoikuen, Hokushitsu

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