Succession and Membership Issues

[CrownPrinceLorenzo]

Silly

It's silly isn't it?

I hope the next Prime Minister after Prime Minister Koizumi is as open-minded as he is.

 

[mandyy]

Japanese ministers oppose quick moves to female succession
TOKYO -- Senior Japanese cabinet ministers Friday came out against any quick decision to allow female succession to the throne amid a growing conservative campaign against changes in the world's oldest monarchy.
It was the first time ministers openly called for caution on a female succession proposal, which Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has pledged to submit before the current session of parliament ends on June 18.
"Is this a bill that we must handle rashly...?" Foreign Minister Taro Aso told reporters. "It is necessary to have more debate."...........................
http://news.inq7.net/breaking/index.php?index=3&story_id=65006

Japan minister urges royal debate
Japan's foreign minister has questioned plans to allow female royal succession, the first Cabinet member to do so. Taro Aso called for more debate before a bill proposing to change the Imperial Household Law's succession rules comes before parliament later this year...................
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4676308.stm

Ministers urge caution over revisions to Imperial House Law
Foreign Minister Taro Aso and Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki asked for caution on Friday over any possible revisions to the Imperial House Law that would allow a woman to ascend to the throne.....................
http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20060203p2a00m0na013000c.html

Aso, Tanigaki also balk on female reign
Senior Cabinet ministers Friday joined growing voices within the Liberal Democratic Party expressing concern over a government-sponsored bill to allow females and their descendants to ascend to the Imperial throne.......................But if a reigning empress marries a commoner and their child would be allowed to be an emperor, it would terminate the centuries-old paternal bloodline and the family would eventually become no different from ordinary families, conservative politicians have argued..........................
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20060204a1.html

 

[CrownPrinceLorenzo]

Omg...

Why do they have so many excuses?!

It's beyond silly, this whole debacle.

 

[MoonlightRhapsody]

People have to understand that Asian cultures are very into conserving traditional values. Now, I don't agree with the bringing the concubines back or with reviving some of the other noble lines, but I have to be open-minded about how the Japanese might view what to do with their own crisis. It's easy to pass judgement as an objective viewer, but each culture has its own constraints and beliefs that make decisions harder to do when you're a member of the culture.

Again, I don't think this protest will be a problem. Polls show time and time again that the majority of the Japanese support the reform. Out of 722 members of the Diet, only about 40 members are protesting. Uneven odds, wouldn't you say?

 

[mandyy]

Head to head: Japan's succession crisis
The only daughter of Japan's Emperor Akihito has married in a ceremony in Tokyo, amid a mounting debate over whether women in Japan should be allowed to ascend the throne.
Princess Sayako married a commoner, Yoshiki Kuroda, so she has lost her royal status and left the imperial family.
Since the emperor's sons have no male children, the future of Japan's royal succession is in doubt.
A government panel recently concluded that Japan should change its laws to allow women to take the throne, though any change will need parliament's approval. The BBC News website invited two readers, from different sides of the debate, to put their cases...............................
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4426176.stm

Editorial/ An imperial controversy

Prince Tomohito, Emperor Akihito's cousin, has now repeatedly voiced his opinion about the imperial succession. In addition to contributing an essay on the subject to a newsletter published last year by a welfare organization he chairs, the prince gave an interview to a monthly magazine Bungeishunju. The Sankei Shimbun and the magazine it publishes, Seiron, also carried his interviews.
The gist of his comments is that the imperial lineage is precious because it has been passed on through the male bloodline, uninterrupted, since the first Emperor Jinmu. The male lineage, he says, should be maintained by reinstating former male members of the imperial branch families who lost their imperial status after World War II.............................
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200602030139.html

 

[CrownPrinceLorenzo]

Progress

People have to understand that Asian cultures are very into conserving traditional values. Now, I don't agree with the bringing the concubines back or with reviving some of the other noble lines, but I have to be open-minded about how the Japanese might view what to do with their own crisis. It's easy to pass judgement as an objective viewer, but each culture has its own constraints and beliefs that make decisions harder to do when you're a member of the culture.

Again, I don't think this protest will be a problem. Polls show time and time again that the majority of the Japanese support the reform. Out of 722 members of the Diet, only about 40 members are protesting. Uneven odds, wouldn't you say?

I'm Asian, so I know how it is. And it's time for a change. Traditions and Religion get in the way of Progress.

 

[Amina]

I don't think this protest will be a problem. Polls show time and time again that the majority of the Japanese support the reform. Out of 722 members of the Diet, only about 40 members are protesting. Uneven odds, wouldn't you say?

Thats a relief. Its gr8t if the bill is passed - don't those who oppose the changes have any sympathy for CP Masako whose suffered so much? All the pressure that she's been put through, just becuase they wanted her to have a boy.

Well Princess Aiko is her only child for now - they should deal with it.

 

[CrownPrinceLorenzo]

^_^

They should also let Crown Princess Masako do what she does best. Being a diplomat instead of just an egg that would hatch out a Prince.

 

[mandyy]

Opposition growing to female succession in Japan
TOKYO: A strong majority of Japanese back maternal succession to the throne but support has slipped amid a conservative campaign to block the historic change, a poll showed Monday.
Some 63 percent favor letting a woman ascend the throne and putting her children next in line..................
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2006/feb/07/yehey/opinion/20060207opi8.html

Poll: Japanese opposition to female emperor rises sharply
TOKYO -- Public opposition to a female monarch in Japan has shot up sharply since conservative politicians voiced concern about the idea, a poll published Monday showed.
The percentage of people opposed to the idea of a woman on the throne jumped to 21 percent from 6 percent last month, said the respected Nihon Keizai Shimbun newspaper, which carried out the polls...............
http://news.inq7.net/world/index.php?index=1&story_id=65334

 

[mandyy]

Koizumi reiterates desire to revise imperial law
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi reiterated on Tuesday that his government will submit a bill to revise the Imperial House Law during the current regular Diet session in an attempt to pave the way for female monarchs in Japan, Kyodo News reported.
Koizumi's remarks followed the pregnancy of Princess Kiko.........................
http://english.people.com.cn/200602/08/eng20060208_240868.html

News will dampen bid to revise male-lineage succession system
The announcement that Princess Kiko is with child will likely sap Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's drive to revise the Imperial House Law to allow females and their descendants to ascend the Chrysanthemum Throne.
Even proponents of the revision bill acknowledged that politicians and academics who believe Koizumi is in too much of a rush to change the law will pick up more supporters. Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe told reporters Tuesday after word of Princess Kiko's pregnancy was out that the revision issue must be handled with care......................
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200602070569.html

Imperial succession bill may not be submitted: Koizumi hints
.............Koizumi's comments suggest that he is becoming more hesitant about the government's plan to submit the bill to revise the Imperial House Law......................
http://home.kyodo.co.jp/modules/fstStory/index.php?storyid=228909

 

[MoonlightRhapsody]

Hmm, before the recent news I was confident that the bill would be presented and would pull through with minimal fuss. Now, I'm not so sure. It will all depend on the sex of Prince Akishino's third child. I wish the reform would go through regardless, but if the child is born a boy, chances are the reform will not happen.

 

[galuhcandrakirana]

If the baby will born a boy then the succession law reform probably won't happen soonest, but as we know the spirit to ratify the succession law already there in Japanes society then I do belief that reform will be happened one day.

 

[fanletizia]

Japan baby could end royal reform

...
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who had pledged to get the succession law changed by the end of Parliament's current session in June, has turned more cautious.
"It's desirable that the legislation be enacted when everyone can support it," he said on Wednesday, one day after news of Princess Kiko's pregnancy caught Japan by surprise.
His turnaround suggests that he may no longer be willing to take on powerful, conservative forces opposed to female succession.
...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4693950.stm

 

[mandyy]

Koizumi shifting stance on passing female-emperor bill

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi shifted Wednesday from his adamant stance about swiftly passing legislation to allow females and their descendants to become emperor, saying "caution" is now needed.
A day after the news broke that Princess Kiko is pregnant, Koizumi told a Lower House Budget Committee: "It is desirable for various political parties and the Diet to calmly debate the issue. This is something that should be judged after seeing the results." Koizumi had insisted that the bill to revise the Imperial House Law, which allows only male emperors and ascension through the male lineage, be passed during the current Diet session..........................
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200602080516.html

Koizumi puts off submission of imperial succession bill
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has decided not to submit revisions to the imperial succession law to the Diet during the current session following the news of Princess Kiko's pregnancy, a government source said Friday.
The news, which was reported earlier this week, came as the government was getting closer to submitting a bill to revise the law to pave the way for female monarchs. The current law only allows male heirs on the male line to ascend to the throne.........................
http://asia.news.yahoo.com/060210/kyodo/d8fltkf81.html

Koizumi forgoes submitting imperial succession bill to parliament

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has withdrawn a plan to submit to parliament revisions to the Imperial House Law during the current session, following the news of Princess Kiko's pregnancy, a government source said Friday. The premier's decision came amid growing calls from lawmakers of his ruling coalition to freeze discussions at least for a while about a revision of the law.......................
http://asia.news.yahoo.com/060210/kyodo/d8flur9o0.html

Koizumi puts off proposal to allow woman to take throne
TOKYO (AFP) - Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has decided not to suport a change that would allow women to take the throne after news of Princess Kiko's pregnancy raised hopes of a male heir, reports say.
Kyodo news agency and major dailies, citing unnamed sources, said that Koizumi had abandoned a plan to submit the controversial proposal during the current parliament session ending in June.
Koizumi told close aide Shinzo Abe on Thursday he would drop his proposal so as not to split the country, the conservative Sankei Shimbun newspaper said...................
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060210/wl_afp/japanroyalsuccession_060210022334

Gov't likely to delay bill to allow females to ascend to Imperial throne
The top government spokesman suggested Friday that the government will abandon submitting to the current Diet session a bill that would allow female members of the Imperial Family to ascend to the throne following revelations that Princess Kiko is pregnant.....................
http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20060210p2a00m0na023000c.html

 

[purple_platinum]

i don't like this... i think Koizumi or whoever in-charge with the succession law should just go ahead with the proposal for anti-gender law...

Koizumi abandons plan to allow princess to take throne

TOKYO (AFP) - Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has abandoned plans to allow a woman to take the throne, reports say, three days after the royal family announced that Princess Kiko is expecting a child.

The royal announcement has raised the possibility of a male heir for the world's oldest monarchy, but Koizumi's U-turn could also save him from a political debacle at the end of his five years in power, analysts said.

Koizumi on Thursday told his close aide Shinzo Abe, a frontrunner to succeed him as premier, that he would drop his proposal on royal succession so as not to split the country, the conservative Sankei Shimbun newspaper said.

Koizumi declined to give a clear-cut answer on succession Friday, saying his party "will hold study meetings to proceed cautiously so as not to make this a tool for political struggle."

Tetsuro Kato, a political science professor at Tokyo's Hitotsubashi University, said he believed Koizumi "has already given up" on his push.

"He may have been able to push ahead if it had not been for the pregnancy news. But the situation has changed amid emerging hopes for maintaining succession by male heirs," he told AFP.

http://asia.news.yahoo.com/060210/afp/060210061538asiapacificnews.html

 

[CrownPrinceLorenzo]

Koizumi is showing cowardice. I have lost respect for him.

 

[Elspeth]

If pushing ahead on the reform would have split the country, it pretty much stands to reason that abandoning it will also split the country. There appear to be people on both sides of this issue. Using Princess Kiko's pregnancy as an excuse to keep the status quo and consign Princess Aiko to the scrapheap of royal history isn't going to please everybody.

 

[CrownPrinceLorenzo]

:-(

Progress rarely does please people in the beginning. It happened with women's rights and then racial rights in America, people were against it but eventually they warmed up.

I think the problem here is that the female population will not stand up and demand their rights. I know that on paper, Japanese women have the same rights as Japanese men, but they're still discriminated by tradition and religion.

 

[mandyy]

Koizumi gives up imperial revision
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Friday abandoned plans to submit a bill allowing female emperors to the current Diet session, effectively ending what could be his last major reform project.
"We have decided that we should thoroughly examine the issues concerned, calmly discuss them and recognize the gravity of the issue," Koizumi told reporters Friday. As for the timing of submitting the revision bill, Koizumi said, "We will make a decision at the right moment, and we shouldn't make it a source of political strife."...........................
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200602110222.html

 

[grevinnan]

If Kiko has a son - and I believe they know it is - I believe Naruhito will step aside and let his brother take his place.

 

[janos614]

If Kiko has a son - and I believe they know it is - I believe Naruhito will step aside and let his brother take his place.

Do you think he'll be pressured to, or will he do it voluntarily? I don't want to see that happen, since it's the position that he's been groomed for his entire life, but that's an excellent point. It would be a more peaceful life for Masako if that happened, surely.

 

[Mahoogie]

If Akishino's third child is a male, I think they should not jump too quickly that it would be Naruhito's heir...What if Princess Masako get pregant again??..Well, there is still a possibility that it would happen..and who knows she might finally bore a son...I do hope that it would really happen.

 

[Charlotte1]

If Kiko has a son - and I believe they know it is - I believe Naruhito will step aside and let his brother take his place.

There is no reason for Naruhito to step aside, if the succession law does not change, Akishino will continue to be Naruhito's heir. Therefore after Naruhito is Emperor upon his death Akishino will become Emperor ( Akishino is 5 years younger than Naruhito. Belgium had the same situation with King Baudoiun (sp!) his brother Albert succeeded him and then Albert's son) If the new baby is a boy he will succeed after both Naruhito, and his father Akishino.
Naruhito has been prepared since babyhood to be emperor, one of the reasons given to change the succession laws is that Aiko needs to begin her preparation as soon as possible to become empress if the law changes. Akishino never had this preparation, this would be seen as a stumbling block, if anyone were to be encouraged to step aside it would Akishino, not Naruhito.

 

[Toledo]

This just in:
Japan PM denies shelving royal succession bill
(AP) Updated: 2006-02-10 14:32

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Friday denied a report that he will shelve a bill that would let women take the country' imperial throne, but he urged cautious discussion of the issue...

...Opponents have even suggested bringing back concubines to help provide male descendants, or reinstating the aristocracy (banned after World War II ) to increase candidates for the throne...

 

[purple_platinum]

ridiculous.. ridiculous...

i honestly hope that Prince Akishino & Princess Kiko will have a baby GIRL,

and when (former Princess) Sayako & Mr. Kuroda have a child, it will be a baby BOY...

hmm....

 

[Elspeth]

These dinosaurs have a thought process that is completely impenetrable. They're getting their collective knickers in an almighty twist about the appalling prospect of the imperial succession going through a diluted bloodline because a female heir or empress might marry someone who isn't a Japanese prince with a pedigree going right back to God. Yet they seem perfectly happy about a male heir being produced by an out-of-wedlock concubine.

 

[Elspeth]

ridiculous.. ridiculous...

i honestly hope that Prince Akishino & Princess Kiko will have a baby GIRL,

and when (former Princess) Sayako & Mr. Kuroda have a child, it will be a baby BOY...

hmm....

That really would be poetic justice!

 

[altagrace]

Well it would certainly give the old guard a run for their money...

 

[CrownPrinceLorenzo]

These dinosaurs have a thought process that is completely impenetrable. They're getting their collective knickers in an almighty twist about the appalling prospect of the imperial succession going through a diluted bloodline because a female heir or empress might marry someone who isn't a Japanese prince with a pedigree going right back to God. Yet they seem perfectly happy about a male heir being produced by an out-of-wedlock concubine.

It's funny too, because they claim the line goes back to the Sun GODDESS. So the line started with a diluted female blood LOL.

Plus I doubt Princess Aiko would marry a foreigner if she's raised by the IHA. I mean none of the Princes married foreigners, and when they married commoners they were Japanese women. The Princesses didn't marry foreigners either, and when they married commoners, they married Japanese men.

 

[Toledo]

ridiculous.. ridiculous...
I honestly hope that Prince Akishino & Princess Kiko will have a baby GIRL,
and when (former Princess) Sayako & Mr. Kuroda have a child, it will be a baby BOY...
hmm....

That would be a headline made in heaven! And written no less by the female Japanese creationism Goddess Amaterasu