Prince Akishino's Personality

[Jia]

I just reviewed the old thread with various reactions to the birth of Hisahito.
And I was rather surprised to see that so many people remarked that they weren't impressed by Akishino.
I haven't followed him and his family (and the entire royal family in fact) so I hardly understand why that is.
Could someone explain it?

[Elspeth]

Apparently he had a rather wild past and has been considered a bit of a lightweight compared with his brother. But I think it was the way he sided with the IHA against his brother when Naruhito spoke out against the IHA for making his wife's life so difficult that upset a lot of people. Several books and articles have said that he was jealous of his older brother, and so his behaviour seemed like vindictiveness. Then the birth of his son, so many years after the birth of his younger daughter, seemed part of the pattern of Prince Akishino trying to displace his brother.

[Al_bina]

Your observations are quite correct, Elspeth. Prince Akishino was very "outspoken" critic of Crown Princely during the male heir crisis. As told by an NHK newsreader, Prince Akishino urged his older brother to look into how their ancestors would deal with this issue (the resolution might have included a concubine) and use all means possible to secure the bloodline. This news was read in English.

[kimebear]

I had not read that Prince Akishino urged his brother to consider past methods. I did read that Prince Tomohito of Mikasa suggested this. However I would not be suprised if Akishino did as well. He had no trouble speaking out against Naruhito's unexpected statements about the IHA denying Masako her personality. Under the guise of protecting the Emperor and Empress of course.

He has always carried a bit of a chip on his shoulder as the second born son. He had quite a reputation as a ladies man as a young man and it is said that the Imperial Family was forced to break with the tradition of the older son marrying first when Kiko's parents insisted that he stop dallying with her and marry her.

[Al_bina]

Unfortunately I cannot provide the link of this newscast. The members of this Forum have to take my words for it. I know that this forums does not accept "I heard on TV... or I read somewhere..." as a sufficient proof, but I am unsuccessful in my attempts to provide a link.
Prince Akishino's remarks critical of his elder brother Crown Prince Naruhito are usually viewed constructive. The IHA does not want Prince Akishino's remarks to be taken as criticism or hostility toward the Crown Prince. These remarks are meant to facilitate communication and jointly find an applicable solution to issues encountered by the parties concerned.

[Jia]

Oh, thanks a lot folks. I think I'm getting it.
I kinda knew about the tension going on in this household, but
I never knew that the second son Akishino was in it publicaly.

[Al_bina]

The key point here is that Prince Akishino's remarks are fully backed by the IHA. I believe that no one can openly express disapproval of certain members of the Imperial family without having the IHA's permission to do so.

[kimebear]

I wasn't questioning your sources Al_bina. I just had not heard this myself and am not suprised by it. Prince Tomohito's remarks caused such a stir at the time because the debate about the possibility of Aiko ascending was raging. The subtlety of public remarks by the Imperial family are such that they would seem to be saying one thing and really implying something else. So while the IHA would like Akishino's remarks to be seen as helpful, they could be perceived as suggesting something altogether different. For my part, I believe that Akishino is trying very hard to reform his image as the Imperial bad boy and solidify his position as his parent's protector and father of the long awaited male heir. In short, better Emperor material than Naruhito.

[Al_bina]

You fully agree with your point on communication subtleties. I would say that subtlety gives communication a whole new level. It allows for elusive suggestions. In my personal opinion, the IHA and diplomats of Vatican tend to be the epitome of subtlety. They give people the slightest hints, and even those hints might mean just about anything. Under such circumstances, subtle “look into how the ancestors would deal with this issue” might mean many things: a concubine, an IVF, and etc.

[lucien]

Originally Posted by Elspeth

Apparently he had a rather wild past and has been considered a bit of a lightweight compared with his brother. But I think it was the way he sided with the IHA against his brother when Naruhito spoke out against the IHA for making his wife's life so difficult that upset a lot of people. Several books and articles have said that he was jealous of his older brother, and so his behaviour seemed like vindictiveness. Then the birth of his son, so many years after the birth of his younger daughter, seemed part of the pattern of Prince Akishino trying to displace his brother.

He's of the backward,as in stabbing in the back,while smiling in the face,part of the Family.
Never trusted him nor that japanese version of the barbie doll he married to.They deserve each other.
Going public against ones brother,in this position,is an absolute stab in the back,
sponsored by the IHA no doubt otherwise it wouldn't/couldn't have happened,as Al Bina already said in the post above.

[bekalc]

Originally Posted by lucien

He's of the backward,as in stabbing in the back,while smiling in the face,part of the Family.
Never trusted him nor that japanese version of the barbie doll he married to.They deserve each other.
Going public against ones brother,in this position,is an absolute stab in the back,
sponsored by the IHA no doubt otherwise it wouldn't/couldn't have happened,as Al Bina already said in the post above.

Princess Kiko has a masters degree, she's no "barbie doll."
Actually Naruhito's statements were seen as going against his own father. The Crown Prince's statments. The Emperor has much more say in things then you would think he does. Apparently, the Emperor was upset by Naruhito's remarks.

[kimebear]

Askishino's statements are assumed to have had the backing of the Emperor, but probably not in the way that many people think. In allowing Akishino to say what he did, it was more likely that the Emperor was trying to get the point across that he didn't appreciate Naruhito airing the family's dirty laundry in public, not that what Naruhito said was untrue. There is a big difference between disagreeing with the accusations and disagreeing with how they were publicly presented. Now that Akishino is trying to present himself as the golden boy, he is very careful to toe the family line and is rewarded with more high profile engagements and duties.

[ChiaraC]

But the main reason for this is his behaviour towards his wife.

Sure, I agree that he rather increased the conflict between the emperor and the crown prince instead of softening it. It would certainly have been wiser if he – instead of blindly supporting his father´s understandable anger – had told him: “I absolutely agree that Naruhito should under no circumstances have washed our dirty laundry in public. But now he has done it that does not mean that we should do it, too.” And publicly he could have said: “I was absolutely surprised to hear my brother´s complaints. And I was, of course, very sorry to hear that he and his wife are having such a problem and very sorry that they seem to have been having it for such a long time without the rest of the family knowing of it and being able to support them - although I really cannot understand why he went public with it instead of asking our father and mother for help first. But as things happened like they happened I would propose that we look to the future. And I can say, for my part, that I will do everything in my power to help and to support a good communication.”

(I do not mean that by saying that prince Akishino would have been absolutely correct concerning the facts as I understand that Naruhito had indeed DONE everything in his power to get help BEFORE he went public. But there was no need to publicly admit this, Naruhito himself would have understood that this would not have helped anybody.)

If prince Akishino had chosen this way of behaviour that would have meant to support his father and still to keep a hand outstretched for his brother. But it would have needed much wisdom and, yes, altruism to do this, and it is probably asked too much. It is not very noble but certainly quite human and understandable that he could not resist this one chance to become the darling son that he has probably been craving for all his life. I understand that it can be very hard to be always the second one.

But for his behaviour towards his wife I cannot accept any excuses.

Naruhito has become famous for his promise to protect his bride with all his might but I think that ALL princes belonging to the imperial family should make such a promise before marrying. (And keep it afterwards, of course.) That would be only fair because which young woman ever enters the imperial family as a bride - she is stuck there. She cannot leave ever again and is, basically, at her husband´s mercy.

I do not know much about Akishino´s affair in Thailand and I do not even know how it did came out but that he not only betrayed his wife in such a way but lacked even the consideration to, at least, spare her from having the whole world talking about it, this is, in my opinion, quite disgusting. (And I suspect that this changed the atmosphere in the family, too, so that his daughters suffered from it. It has been remarked often in this forum how serious they usually look and how little they smile. But when you take a look at the older pictures, from the nineties, you see that they were quite funny little creatures and smiled and laughed a lot. It changes around 2000 or 2001, I think. – It is quite unfortunate that these links are no longer working. -> http://www.theroyalforums.com/forums...ily-15445.html

When I was watching these pictures the thought how much these children have changed came to my mind for the first time. Of course, face expressions change and it was just my impression. But just to give you an idea of what I mean – take a look at these two pics:
Before:
http://www.theroyalforums.com/forums...5&d=1120260121
And after:
http://www.theroyalforums.com/forums...8&d=1120261166)

Kiko does not have the option like you and me to say: “If you do not know how to behave like a gentleman I want a divorce.” as she would certainly never give up her children. She has to stay for good or for worse. And I suspect that the most important motive for her to get pregnant again (with Hisahito) was to save her marriage and to get back her husband. Did not she when they came out of the hospital with little Hisahito as well as at the baby´s presentation look several times at her husband as if to say: “Are you happy now? Did I do it right?” Whereas Akishino glanced back with a triumphant smile, quite smug , as some said in this forum, and never ever had a soft moment when looking at his wife that said: “I know I have done nothing to deserve this. Thank you for having forgiven me.” I have never seen from him a single moment of remorse, of humility, of gratitude. And I do not think that it bettered his character that he was bribed into decent behaviour by the chance of maybe becoming an emperor hereafter. As I see it he has no sense of responsibility and does just what he likes. As long as he is being entertained and in a good mood he will be nice and charming, but when he gets bored you cannot predict what he will do. (Of course, I am only guessing here, and my guesswork is mainly based on the expression of faces but - as we have so little insider information we are all obliged to guess - my guess is as good or as bad as another´s.)

As for Kiko, I really cannot blame her. Sure, she would probably not win the world cup in female solidarity. But she would probably say that she is the last person to owe Masako anything. Talking about women being unfairly treated, Kiko could tell a story, too: She has been the perfect wife, with all the traditional qualities. She is pretty, loving, she bore her husband children (and I am sure, would have gotten pregnant as often as necessary already after Kako had he insisted on having a boy) and got along very well with her parents-in-law, notably her mother-in-law. And she had “modern” qualities, too: she was charming on official trips abroad, knows German and English and has a master´s degree (which she acquired in between attending to her official duties and the getting and raising of her children). She was the perfect wife – and still her husband after ten years got bored and went to another woman!

Masako meanwhile failed from the beginning in two points: getting pregnant and having a good relationship with her mother-in-law. According to tradition, two important duties of a daughter-in-law. (From the point of view of tradition it is not important what parts the husband and the mother-in-law are playing in the matter.) And then Masako even started complaining because she wanted to travel and finally fell ill and was not good for anything anymore. But although she was such a failure her husband always supported her and stood by her side and has never been reported to have shown the slightest interest in another woman! If this is not unfair, what is?

Sure, there was nothing Masako could have done about her brother-in-law cheating on his wife. But still it is quite understandable if Kiko is not overly fond of Masako. Otherwise she´d be a saint.

(I do not want to raise misunderstandings: I have described Masako here from Kiko´s point of view. I understand this perspective – but as you probably know from the thread I started, I do not share it. For my part, I AM fond of Masako. I am only trying to do justice to both women.)

[Vanesa]

Your insight is more than interesting ChiaraC, and shows that things are far from being easy to depict. One could have more or less sympathy for Princess Kiko, Princess Masako, Prince Naruhito or so on, but I think that this issue es cultural over all things and that only future could say what will happen with Japan dinasty and succesion problem.

Vanesa.

[Marquesa d Yolombó]

Akishino has always seemed to me as more difficult than his siblings, and far far more conservative than his parents. He seems to desire going back to the time of his grandfather. He seems to me like the kind of Emperor that would speak again in ancient Japanese !!

[Vanesa]

Well, my semi-liking for him and his wife (I can't said I do like him, since I do not know him very deeply) is for he is conservative. Nowadays, there's only and accepted way to see the world: the one encouraged by stablishment. In this kind of world, family is bad seen, women must be rebell, pornography and drugs are O.K, religion is a bad thing and patriotism is a bad thing too. Of course, a person who likes family, religion, his/her country and a decent life is a troglodite he must not exist. Only a way of thinking is encouraged.

So; if a man wants to dignify Monarchy he is a totalitarian. And if his wife is a good woman who doesn't want to play the rebell girl is a "Barbie"...Oh, well.

I admit that if I like Prince Akishino a little more than his brother, it's only for he seems to like to be Japanese, and doesn't act as if EEUU culture is superior to his own. And I don't think that he had a son only to bother his elder brother (that's too childish...when his wife become pregnant, he wouldn't know what was the baby's sex. He could have been another girl). Poor prince Hisahito just come...

Vanesa.

[kimebear]

I think maybe that his character is a bit on the hypocritical side. A man who had real family values would not have been under such unprecedented suspicion as the Thailand affair. Also, today's science advancements have allowed Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis. A procedure that, while having been devised for genetic screening of hereditary diseases, is becoming increasingly more popular for choosing the sex of a baby. I don't see a coincidence in Akishino and Kiko having the long awaited son just in time to stem the tide of support for a change in the succession laws.

[Marquesa d Yolombó]

Originally Posted by Vanesa

Well, my semi-liking for him and his wife (I can't said I do like him, since I do not know him very deeply) is for he is conservative. Nowadays, there's only and accepted way to see the world: the one encouraged by stablishment. In this kind of world, family is bad seen, women must be rebell, pornography and drugs are O.K, religion is a bad thing and patriotism is a bad thing too. Of course, a person who likes family, religion, his/her country and a decent life is a troglodite he must not exist. Only a way of thinking is encouraged.

So; if a man wants to dignify Monarchy he is a totalitarian. And if his wife is a good woman who doesn't want to play the rebell girl is a "Barbie"...Oh, well.

I admit that if I like Prince Akishino a little more than his brother, it's only for he seems to like to be Japanese, and doesn't act as if EEUU culture is superior to his own. And I don't think that he had a son only to bother his elder brother (that's too childish...when his wife become pregnant, he wouldn't know what was the baby's sex. He could have been another girl). Poor prince Hisahito just come...

Vanesa.

No; you got me wrong: I am conservative too, actually; but I don't understand why staying in one place forever makes life better. This is what, in my opinion, is this guy doing.

I am not wishing any harm to the baby: he is only a consequence of what his parents have done so far. Besides, and most important, he is a new life, and a new life is always a blessing, no matter where is born and to whom.

What I am meaning, is that there are social dynamics and processes that are now happening, and that there is important for social institutions as the Imperial Family to be aware of and, sometimes (not always) to participate in, as Naruhito and his parents are trying to do with their opened attitude: to get more involved with the current japanese society and their daily lives.

[XeniaCasaraghi]

Bumping an old thread to hopefully reignite the convo. It seems a lot of people on here dislike Akishino because he didn't side with his brother but sided with his father, and that his son will help the IHA and makes things difficult for his brother.

[mariaantoniapia]

Originally Posted by XeniaCasaraghi

Bumping an old thread to hopefully reignite the convo. It seems a lot of people on here dislike Akishino because he didn't side with his brother but sided with his father, and that his son will help the IHA and makes things difficult for his brother.

When you watch Youtube, many utra-right people are supporting Prince Akishino and call his wife the Seibo (Holy Mother) who brought the salvation to the succession crisis.