Kikuchi Keifuen Sanatorium or National Sanatorium Kikuchi Keifuen is a sanatorium for leprosy patients or ex-leprosy patients at Kohshi-shi, Kumamoto-ken, Japan founded in 1909. The mean age of residents (ex-patients) is about eighty.

History

Background

The Japanese Government promulgated the first leprosy prevention law on March 19, 1907, but did not come into effect until April 1, 1909, because of financial constraints. Under this law, patients who did not have family to support them were forcibly treated in public leprosaria. Japan was divided into five areas, the fifth of which included Nagasaki-ken, Fukuoka Prefecture, Ooita Prefecture, Saga Prefecture, Kumamoto Prefecture, Miyazaki Prefecture and Kagoshima Prefecture. In this area, Kumamoto was selected as the site of the sanatorium. The two main reasons for the leprosy prevention law were that foreigners visiting Japan after the Meiji Restoration (1868) were very much surprised to find leprosy sufferers wandering at large and claimed that something should be done about it and the Japanese Government was worried about a large number of people with the condition among those who were examined for the draft at age 20.

Kyushu Sanatorium

National Sanatorium Kikuchi Keifuen

Number of patients

The number of patients in the sanatorium varied. It depended on the numbers admitted, the number of deaths among residents and the number of patients who escaped or were discharged, Recently they were encouraged to be discharged, but for a long period, the segregation policy which caused leprosy stigma influenced the number of those who left and were readmitted into society.

Directors

Other personalities

Four big incidents at Kikuchi Keifuen

Forced hospitalization of leprosy patients at Honmyoji Temple

On July 9, 1940, 157 patients living around Honmyoji temple were forcibly hospitalized and sent to other sanatoriums. This incident was also called the Honmyoji incident. This was considered to be one of the "no leprosy patients in our prefecture" movements.

Fujimoto's case

Matsuo Fujimoto was considered to have received unfair treatments in two trials because he was a leprosy patient.

Tatsudaryo incident or Kurokami primary school incident

Children born from patients with leprosy were denied schooling at Kurokami primary school in 1954. There were strikes, riots and no schooling for some time. After one year, three children finally attended the school from the house of Mr. Takahashi, the President of Kumamoto College of Commerce. See also Tatsudaryo Incident

Hotel reservation rejection incident

Also called the Aisutaa incident, because of the name of the hotel. The hotel building was destroyed by the hotel administration.