Experts Say Female Emperor OK, 3 out of 4 Open to Emperor of Male Lineage: Advisory Panel
The Japanese government held the fifth meeting of an advisory panel (chaired by Atsushi Seike, former president of Keio University) to discuss a stable succession plan for the throne, and heard opinions from four experts on foreign royal families and history. on May 31. This was the fourth time the panel has interviewed experts in this field.
PositiveOpinion on Female Emperor, Experts Say (Kyodo News) - Yahoo! News
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to see the progress of the expert panel to date.
The Prime Minister's Office page on the expert panel is here (with minutes).
Naotaka Kimizuka, a professor of British political and diplomatic history at Kanto Gakuin University, argued that the current system, under which only males of the male line whose father's side of the family is related to that of the emperor should succeed, should be changed and that both male and female lineages should be recognized as heir to
the throne. He argued that priority should be given to the first child of
Emperor, regardless of gender, in the order of succession. Kanako Sone, an auditor of the Japan Junior Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that a male lineage of women "is possible when temporarily necessary," but opposed a female lineage because "it would open up a new dynasty and nation. Yuki Hashimoto, Associate Professor of Family Law at Waseda University School of Law, is in favor of expanding the qualifications to include female members of the imperial family, the 内親王 (i.e.princesses), who are the children and grandchildren of the emperor. He explained, "Female emperors have existed in the past and cannot be denied from the viewpoint of tradition. As for the female line, he said, "There is room for discussion of the possibility of an emperor of female lineage, depending on changes in public awareness.” Takeyuki Tokura, Associate
Professor of Modern and Contemporary Japanese Political History at Keio
University, stressed that he is in favor of accepting the male line of women as
long as the legal conditions are met. As for the female-headed lineage, he
said, "It is the way of the future to secure the way of succession as the
last option. |
The government will conclude hearing from experts at the next meeting on June 7. The next round of hearings will cover novelists and cartoonists.
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