Concerns over further postponement of revision of throne succession measures: Ruling and opposition parties divided, aware of upper house election

 

 On January 12, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met with Hiroyuki Hosoda, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Akiko Sando, Speaker of the House of Councillors, and others in the Diet, and handed them a report compiled by a government advisory panel on the stable succession to the throne. The report focuses on two proposals to secure the dwindling number of members of the Imperial Family: (1) female members of the IF should remain in the IF after marriage, and (2) male members of the former IF should return to the IF as adopted children.

 

Unfortunately, the report does not go into drastic measures such as the pros and cons of a female or female lineage emperor. This is due to the fact that there are strong calls among conservatives to maintain the male line. There is also a large gap between the positions of the various parties, and with the Upper House elections coming up in the summer, there is a risk that discussions in the Diet will be postponed.

 

Toshimitsu Motegi, secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party, told reporters at the party headquarters on 12th, "Due to the nature of the matter, we would like to proceed with the gathering of opinions in a quiet environment.” Prime Minister Kishida declared his opposition to the acceptance of a female emperor in his campaign for the LDP presidency last year, and the party plans to make securing the number of members of the IF a priority in the ruling and opposition parties' discussions, rather than making fundamental revisions to the succession to the throne. The former cabinet minister said, "It would be good if the former IF members are reinstated and a female emperor is allowed in the future," but added, "The female line is no good.”

 

The Opposition Party Accepts the Female Emperor

 

In response, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan is ready to call for drastic measures to ensure a stable succession and the creation of a "female imperial family," including the acceptance of a female or female line of emperors. At a press conference, Chinami Nishimura, secretary general of the Rikken DPJ, criticized the party for "further postponing issues that should not be postponed. A study committee headed by former Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda will discuss the issue within the party. At the first meeting of the committee held in the Diet on January 14, the party pointed out that "granting privileged status to male members of the former IF is discrimination based on family origin, which is prohibited by the Constitution.”

 

Nobuyuki Baba, co-chairman of the Japan Restoration Association, pointed out at a press conference, "Our party also has a view that accepts a female emperor.” Communist Party National Committee Chairman Keiji Kokuda also said at a press conference, "Based on the spirit of the Constitution, there is no reason to exclude women.”

 

The chairmen of the House of Representatives and the House of Councillors issued a joint statement on January 12, saying that they would leave the issue to the discussion of each party and each faction, following the debate between the ruling and opposition parties over the Emperor's abdication in 2017.

 

A supplementary resolution to the Special Law on the Abdication of the Emperor, passed in June 2017, requested the Diet to promptly consider and report on issues related to the stability of the throne, but discussions were slow under the Abe and Kan administrations. The results of the study were finally submitted after nearly five years, but as mentioned above, it did not go into specific succession measures. There are concerns that the debate in the Diet will soon stall.

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