Japanese law was originally created to identify the father financially responsible of a newborn baby.
Japanese cabinet ministers approved Friday that a law that requires women to wait 100 days after a divorce decree was repealed by Japan.
The law has been in effect for more than 100 years and does not apply for men.
Critics have pushed for the withdrawal of the 1896 Law — which had for six months prohibited remarriage until it was revised in 2016 — calling them outdated and discriminatory.
A rule that allowed parents to discipline their children in any way they deemed necessary was also removed by the change.
According to local media, the government will submit the revised code civil to the current parliamentary session which concludes on December 10, and the change is expected be enacted by 2024 if passed.
Japan consistently ranks low on the World Economic Forum’s annual Global Gender Gap reports. This report considers political empowerment as well as economic participation and health. In 2022, Japan was ranked 116th among 146 countries.
Two years ago, the government delayed a nearly two-decade-old target that at least 30% of political and business leadership positions should be held by women.
New five-year plans stated that efforts would be made by 2030 to achieve the target, instead of 2020.
