La stérilisation des lépreux dans le Japon moderne. Les paradoxes d'un eugénisme à contre courant

Leprosy has been associated with a deep stigma that dates back to the most ancient times. In the case of Japan, public health policies were enforced at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century and resulted in forced isolation of leprosy patients. If the isolation policy has been largely investigated, the sterilization policy has received much less attention and criticisms. While sterilizations were performed without legal basis on leprosy patients until 1948, post war eugenic policies were much more severe after 1948 and leprosy patients were included as eligible for sterilization. After describing the development of public health policy for leprosy in modern Japan, we focus on its eugenic policy and emphasize the particularities of the 1948 Eugenic Protection law. Focusing on the violations of human rights of leprosy patients, we wish to illustrate the ethical dangers of an eugenic policy in a democratic country.