MY LIFE IN JAPAN a blog from kyoto for friends and family

I was a little shocked to hear this... foundling wheel:

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Friday expressed strong reservations about a contentious plan by a Kumamoto city hospital to set up a "baby hatch" where infants can be left anonymously for any reason -- even though the health ministry said it sees no legal ground to block the plan.

but it turns out these have existed since before the middle ages, under the prosaic name, founding wheels. I warmed up to the idea after reading this:

In Germany, babies are first cared for for eight weeks during which the mother can return and claim her child without any legal repercussions. If this does not happen, after eight weeks the child is put up for adoption.

Labels: japanese culture