Japanese mayor makes history with maternity leave that caused a stir

Shoko Kawata, 33, the mayor of Yawata, became Japan's first sitting mayor to take maternity leave and had to create a leave protocol for the role.
Before leaving, she joined the Taiko festival procession—walking behind the mikoshi while heavily pregnant—a striking local moment.
The move drew mostly local support but also online criticism (including over her full pay), spotlighting Japan’s wider gender-gap and low birth-rate concerns.