Mako's lump-sum payment to be withdrawn
It was reported by the Yomiuri Shimbun on
the 25th that the government is making final adjustments to respect Mako's
wishes and not provide her with a lump-sum payment when she leaves the Imperial
Family.
According to the report, the Imperial
Economic Council, which decides the amount of the lump-sum payment, is also not
expected to be held. This will be the first time since the end of World War II
that a lump-sum payment will not be paid to a female member of the Imperial
Family who leaves the Imperial Family through marriage.
The Imperial Household Economy Law
stipulates that a lump-sum payment be paid to a member of the IF who is leaving the Imperial Household to maintain his or her dignity as a
former member of the IF. According to a government official, Mako
has informed the Imperial Household Agency of her intention to decline the
lump-sum payment in consideration of public sentiment critical of her marriage.
However, since there is no provision in the law for declining and there is no
precedent for this, the Cabinet Legislation Bureau and others in the government
have been checking the interpretation of the law.
As a result, they came to the conclusion
that while maintaining dignity is important, receiving the lump sum is not
necessarily obligatory, and that it is legally possible to allow people to
decline.
Until now, the amount of the lump-sum
payment for postwar marriages of female members of the Imperial Family has been
decided by the Imperial Household Economic Council, an eight-member body that includes
the Prime Minister and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. The
government is considering not holding the meeting this time on the grounds that
the council is a body that decides the amount of the lump-sum
payment and not a place to discuss the pros and cons of the payment.
The IHA, which
executes the budget for the lump sum, will confirm Mako's intentions and decide
not to provide it. According to the law, the maximum lump-sum payment for
Princess Mako is 152.5 million yen.
According to a source, the couple is expected to register their marriage with the local government as early as October and get married. In consideration of public opinion that is critical of marriage, it is being arranged that no engagement or marriage ceremony will be held.
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