Gaffe-Prone Former Premier Infuriates Women
Jul 1, 8:56 AM (ET)
TOKYO (Reuters) - Former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, renowned for his propensity for gaffes, faced demands for an apology Tuesday after implying only women who bear children should be eligible for pensions.
'I think it is really strange to be told to use tax money to take care of women who haven't even had one child,' Mori told a discussion group.
'The real purpose of a welfare system is to look after women who have a lot of children, as a means of thanking them,' Kyodo news agency quoted Mori as saying last week during a politicians' panel discussion in front of an audience."