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Tokyo rail companies are providing pregnant women with badges in the hope of prompting other passengers on the Japanese capital‘s crowded trains to offer them seats.
The pink and blue badges reading: "There is a baby in my belly" are being handed out at stations around the region to try to make commuting and other train journeys easier for pregnant women, who are often left standing.
"Especially in the early stages, it is difficult to tell from someone‘s appearance whether they are pregnant," said an official at the Health Ministry which came up with the idea. "But these early stages are rather unstable and it is important to take care."
The move comes as Japan scrambles for ways to persuade women to have more babies. The dwindling birth rate has left the nation with a shrinking population and the world‘s highest proportion of elderly people.
"We want to create an environment that is pleasant for pregnant women," the agency official said.
The move was welcomed by many.
"When I was three months pregnant and got on the train, no one would really notice me and I couldn‘t really ask them to give me a seat," said Yoshiko Kato, a self-employed 38-year-old who is five months pregnant. "So these badges, I hope, will help some people to notice I am pregnant," she said.
近日，东京地铁公司向孕妇们发放怀孕徽章，目的是提示其他乘客在拥挤的地铁上为她们让座。
这些粉蓝相间的徽章上写着：“我肚子里有孩子”。目前，东京地区各个车站都在发放这种徽章，这对坐车时常没位子的孕妇来说，坐地铁上下班或乘火车出行就容易得多了。
提出此计划的日本健康部的一位官员说：“尤其在妊娠早期，人们很难从外表上判断她们是否怀孕了。但是孕妇在妊娠早期又很不稳定，所以要十分小心。”
这项措施是日本政府促使妇女多生孩子的一项举措。日本因出生率持续下降而导致人口不断减少，现已成为世界上老年人口比率最高的国家。
那位健康部的官员说：“我们想为孕妇们创造一个愉快舒适的环境。”
这项举措受到很多人的欢迎。
已有5个月身孕的38岁个体户良木香子说：“我怀孕三个月时坐火车，没有人注意到我，而我也不可能让别人给我让座。所以，我希望这些徽章能让人们注意到我是个孕妇。”
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