When the mayor of a small town in western Japan announced she was taking maternity leave, she expected some raised eyebrows.

But the reaction was far stronger - and more divided - than Shoko Kawata had ever anticipated.

The 35-year-old has been plunged into a national debate about whether elected officials should take time off for childbirth, in a country that's struggling to lift birth rates.

"I was so surprised because the reaction was so big," Kawata tells the BBC.

Sitting on a blocky, cushioned armchair, she's flanked by two older men - her deputies - in a fifth-floor meeting room at City Hall in Yawata, a town south of Kyoto known for its shrines and cherry trees.

As there is currently no legal framework for local elected officials to take time off when they have babies, Kawata won't be taking maternity leave officially. Instead, she is assigning the man on her left, Shigeto Nose, to temporarily carry out her role.

She laid out her plans at a news conference in May, where she said she'd be off two months before and two months after her mid-September due date. She will be making history as Japan's first ever mayor to take maternity leave.

Everyone at work, where the average age is 39, was supportive, she says.

But that wasn't the case among members of the public, who've expressed varying views in thousands of X posts and several YouTube videos.

Some say having a baby is tough and Kawata is doing her best. Japanese society has failed to design systems with pregnancy in mind, one claims.

Another says Kawata is setting a wonderful example by putting her family first and making it easier for other women to enter politics.

But critics argue that stepping away from public duties is "irresponsible", and if she wanted to get pregnant "she should have done so before taking office". One says top officials wanting to take extended leave "should resign". Others insist salaries should be cut during maternity leave.

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Kawata has brushed off the criticisms, proudly declaring she enjoys her job and believes now is the time for her to have a child and start a family.

"If we were to criticise politicians taking maternity leave, it means we are effectively excluding all women in their 20s through 40s - women who are capable of becoming pregnant - from public office."

Shinji Ishimaru, the former mayor of Akitakata city in the Hiroshima prefecture, believes the real issue is figuring out how to make sure duties are carried out during maternity leave.

People agree maternity leave is good, he suggests on his YouTube channel, but he wants this case to spark a constructive discussion on finding a solution that doesn't disrupt municipal work.

Yawata, near Kyoto, is known for one of Japan's top shrines and an impressive 1.4-kilometre (0.9 mile) stretch of cherry trees

Kawata became Japan's youngest-ever female city mayor aged 33. She graduated from Kyoto University with a degree in economics before pursuing a career in local government and politics. She enjoys tea ceremonies, wearing kimonos and visiting shrines and temples, according to her official profile page.

And she's risen through the ranks in a very male political scene. As of last year, only about 4% of Japan's 1,720 municipal leaders were women.

While the country may now have its first female prime minister, the government has regularly come under fire for not doing enough to encourage more women into politics.

Some say the male-dominated cabinet and ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has governed Japan for much of its post-war history, are part of the problem.

A Cabinet Office survey released in July 2025 identified several barriers preventing women from entering politics: pregnancy, an assumption politics is a man's job and harassment.

Japan is the world's fourth-largest economy but consistently ranks low on the gender gap index. In the most recent report released by the World Economic Forum in June 2025, Japan ranked 118th out of 146 countries. It is the worst performing G7 nation when it comes to gender equality.

Although there is statutory maternity and paternity leave - which guarantees time off and partial income compensation - not everyone takes it.

Women can get six weeks before their due date and eight weeks after giving birth. Fathers get up to four weeks of flexible paid leave within eight weeks of a child's birth.

Both parents are also entitled to childcare leave until the child turns one, during which eligible employees receive 67% of their wages for the first 180 days and 50% thereafter. Since April 2025, some parents can receive more support for the first 28 days if both parents take leave.

"I do think many people are watching to see how situations like this - when a woman gives birth while serving as a mayor - can be handled in practice," Deputy Mayor Shigeto Nose says.

The 62-year-old father-of-two is set to exercise all mayoral authority during Kawata's absence, discussing major matters with her remotely once a week.

He never took any parental leave himself and left virtually all of the childcare to his wife. "When I came home, I was tired. Even if the baby cried during the night, I left it to my wife. Looking back now, I genuinely feel that's something I should reflect on."

Now, his son-in-law is taking six months off work to help his daughter take care of their second child. "Seeing that makes me happy. Times have really changed and it's great to see them working together like that."

Kawata says part of the criticism against her stems from the strongly held belief that those in certain positions - like public office - must abandon their private life and devote themselves entirely to the people.

When asked what her future child will think about the attention surrounding her pregnancy, she says: "I really hope they will be surprised."

"I think we really need to create a society where it's so common for women to do both - and not have to choose between working and having a family." (BBC News)

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