- 14 Mar 2002
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Iwate Prefecture officials decided to remove a marriage promotion booklet from their website on 28 October after it faced widespread criticism online for its gender-biased content. The 2019 guide titled "Make a Nice Meeting Happen in Iwate: For Those Who Want to Improve Their Marriage-Hunting Skills" advised women to wear "natural and elegant makeup." Online users criticised it as outdated and biased, saying it promoted gender stereotypes and risked discouraging young women from staying in the prefecture.
The publication was written by a marriage agency based in neighbouring Miyagi Prefecture and printed by a local company under commission from the Iwate Prefectural Government. Following the backlash, the prefecture withdrew the booklet and acknowledged the need to review how such content is produced and presented going forward.
The "appearance and impression" section of Iwate Prefecture's matchmaking booklet offered women advice focused mainly on clothing and grooming. It outlined how they should dress and present themselves, promoting a conventional image of femininity that many later criticised as outdated and one-sided.
The publication was written by a marriage agency based in neighbouring Miyagi Prefecture and printed by a local company under commission from the Iwate Prefectural Government. Following the backlash, the prefecture withdrew the booklet and acknowledged the need to review how such content is produced and presented going forward.