Short of female free divers, Japanese sea festival turns to volunteers

MINAMIBOSO - Bearing torches that light up the night as they swim out into the ocean, Japan’s storied “ama” pray for an abundant catch in a ceremony held by female free divers for decades.

In 2024, however, most of the 80 white-clad female participants in the weekend event in Minamiboso on the Pacific coast were volunteers, as age and a lack of interest has seen fewer women in this fishing community willing to make a livelihood out of this type of diving.

Japan is home to the world’s oldest population, and the number of ama, a Japanese word meaning sea-diving fisherpeople, fell to just 40 in 2023 in the Shirahama district in Minamiboso, down 70 per cent from 2006, according to a local fisheries cooperative.

Their ages averaged 72 in 2023, compared with 68 in 2006.

“Those who still go out to sea are getting rather old. We have managed to keep the festival going by asking people in this area and beyond for cooperation,” said Ms Shoichi Iida, who has helped organise the festival for years.

In keeping with their centuries-old practice, the ama still dive without any scuba gear or air tanks. Many divers say it is hard work that does not offer much pay, and their numbers continue to dwindle, as hardly any young women want to take up the tradition.

“This is not the kind of job on which you can make instant money,” said Ms Yoshino Hirano, who has worked as a freediver for 16 years.

Despite the drawbacks, Ms Ayumi Inoue, a 51-year-old local resident, trained to become an ama three years ago.

“I grew up seeing older women working as ama, and found the smiles on their suntanned faces very attractive and cool,” Ms Inoue said. “Seeing the number of ama divers dwindling, to be honest, makes me sad.” REUTERS