"I can’t really speak for Asia as a whole, but Japanese women definitely do have the image of being quiet. There is a part of me that doesn’t feel too bad about the positive stereotype that we are well mannered and such, but I definitely think that it’s important to change the stereotype: Japanese women do have opinions; we are not going to say yes, all the time or agree to everything. Instead of people thinking that ‘oh, she’s Japanese, so this is the way she is,’ I would love to make a change and have society think that I am the way I am because I am Naomi and not because of where I am from. I want to just to be seen as an individual."

The legislator, Yuka Ogata, said that the Kumamoto municipal assembly does not offer daycare, and so she had no choice but to bring her child along to a session. Still, officials insisted that she was violating the rules, as visitors and observers are forbidden from the floor. After 40 minutes of debate, Ogata was able to find emergency childcare and the session continued. "I wanted the assembly to be a place where women who are raising children can also do a great job," said Ogata, who was attending her first session since giving birth seven months ago. She stressed the difficulty for women to juggle careers and raise children in Japan.

In South Korea, they're in about 50 different parks and public spaces. But Japan wants these statues to come down. Some in the country's ruling party have questioned whether the war-era imperial government was really involved in the sex slave program — or, as they contend, the women volunteered.

"There is definitely an imbalance in Japanese society. There are many girls who live outside of Tokyo who can only see themselves as becoming a school teacher or a nurse, at best. They face adversity. But this is the story of a woman who was born a slave, who fought against all odds, who learned to read and write and eventually won her freedom. I hope that the girls and boys who read this realize that they can do anything they want, become who they want, if they apply themselves. There are people who've faced worse odds. This is a story about triumphing over adversity."

Yoshida will admit that “since sake brewing is a classic Japanese tradition, it tends to refuse change." She can recall a time when women weren’t even allowed in the brewery, but insists that she’s faced "no obstacles that were gender-related.” She actually dismisses the idea, firmly stating instead that she’s “lucky be a woman.” Yoshida is focused on bucking a different set of traditions.

The Japanese police department in Tokyo has put together an all-female squad of officers for specific assignment to first lady Melania Trump and other visiting female dignitaries, including presidential adviser Ivanka Trump, according to a report. The first lady arrives in Japan on Sunday for a two-day visit with President Donald Trump; Ivanka Trump landed in Tokyo on Thursday.

Japan has one of the worst records in the world for female political representation. With women holding just over 9 percent of seats in the lower house of parliament, the nation ranks 165th out of 193 countries in the proportion of women in its national legislature, according to international data. Among the world’s richest countries, it is dead last.

"Basic numbers over time are going to favor a larger and larger number of women being involved [in politics] because women are taking up more and more positions in society in general," said Michael Cucek, adjunct professor of political science at Waseda University. "The flip side is Japan's very great resistance to immigration. Women have to take over many roles that previously men were doing."

Ms. Koike’s rise through the male-dominated world of Japanese politics comes as other women have recently struggled. This summer, two prominent women — the leader of the opposition Democratic Party and Mr. Abe’s second female defense minister — resigned, raising questions about the persistence of the glass ceiling.

Traditional disapproval of women drinking in public has faded due to social change, with more women in the workforce, earning money to spend any way they want. But attitudes have changed in other ways too, and brewers had to learn old marketing strategies that relied on gender stereotyping weren’t going to persuade modern Japanese women to buy their drinks.