Emperor Akihito and his abdication

[Muhler]

I'm so sorry, I thought the laughing emoji meant you were joking! I apologize! From my current reading, the dynamics you describe still operate to a certain extent, although not to the same degree perhaps as in the 80's. I think I've mentioned this on previous threads, but my DH and I had some very interesting conversations last year while we were in Japan with women who described their feelings about their lives and the obligations they undertook when they got married. One of the things they described was the recent phenomenon of women in their 50's who divorce their husbands because once their children are grown and out of the house, they are tired and want to live a less burdened life, and I think that ties in with what the woman in Prisma's article is talking about. If even extending Golden Week for a few extra days for the enthronement seems more stressful than fun, that's noteworthy to me.

Alas, the laugh is on me, for thinking this was in the past.

This really interest me. And I will return later today, with a few more examples, which may shed a little more light on Japanese mentality as it was (hopefully) beforehand and perhaps you can tell us whether it is still the case.

Right, Japanese culture, not least day to day culture fascinate me. - Not that I would wish live like a Japanese..!

Like I explained briefly, back in the 80s, women should preferably marry before they turned 24 and that was the end of their career if they had one. From now on they were homemakers, with sole responsibility for the household, including de facto bringing up the children.
It was you job to ensure that your children were not only well behaved, but also well turned out in their school uniforms. (The idea that it might be more practical to have all school uniforms washed and ironed at a central cleaners was not an option!) Not only that you made sure your children studied, because it was ultimately your responsibility if they did not do well at school. Failing to do so meant that you lost face, your husband lost face as well.
It was also your responsibility to look after the elderly relatives, typically your father-in-law or worse, your mother-in-law.
Apparently it was/still is that in a household your mother-in-law outranks you, even if you are doing all the work.
And it was customary for mother-in-law to nag their daughters-in-laws at every opportunity.
Pointing out every possible flaw or potential flaw. Perfect simply isn't good enough. Pointing out that their precious son would have been so much better off with another wife and so on and so on - you get the picture.
Your son would not put his foot down. Apart from that simply not being socially acceptable there is also the Japanese concept of "giri" Which can be translated to something like honor-debt.
A child is indebted to it's parents for being born and brought up. A Japanese is indebted to Japan for being a Japanese.
Failing to acknowledge and honoring that debt (here by being a grateful, devoted and dutiful son) is a personal loss of face.
So there is no way in this world a son would side with his wife against his mother.
On the contrary. The running of the household is the job of the wife, including ensuring harmony within the household. Bringing up a discord between the wife and her mother-in-law is ruining the harmony.

And even if her husband is sympathetic to her plight, she would not see much of her husband anyway. In a society where working very long hours is the norm and where working even longer hours is pretty much expected, a wife will see a tired husband for at best a few hours in the evening. A husband who is no doubt in no mood to discuss conflicts within the household.
That is if she even see her husband, because if his superior decides they should all go to a bar, everybody goes to a bar!
- There was an article recently where a young man really wanted to meet and date a girl, but he worked long hours, and on the days they go off from work early, his superior usually decided they should celebrate by going to a bar. So our young man rarely meet a girl and dating? Forget it!
So it's hardly a surprise that for Japanese in the early 30s, some 30-40 % have never had intercourse. - That according to a recent study.

That is if our young man can even find a girl willing to marry! because why should they? Marriage = end of career, end of financial and personal independence and a tedious life as a homemaker to a husband who more often than not she will basically only see for a few hours a week.
Apart from that, the vast majority of unmarried adult children live at home, where their mother looks after them, washing, cooking, cleaning. - Why give that up in order to marry a junior executive?
Demographically that is of course a disaster! It has been estimated that the Japanese population in less than 50 years will have been reduced by a third if the current trend continues.
With the current national-conservative government very little is being done to make things easier for families with children.

So men go out with their friends and co-workers (whether they want to or not) and young women go out with their friends and their paths don't really cross - except professionally.
There are bars in Japan, where men who have had a rough day at the office go to. Here a girl will boost their self-esteem by telling them that they are not hopeless at their jobs, that they do have talent, that they are something...
Who else should do it? You can't go home to your parents and complain about your boss being after you again. That would disappoint them. You can't tell your friends, then you would lose face. You certainly can't tell your co-workers!

How about the young women you ask?
Well, if you are pushing 30 or more, and your mother is in despair, because there is no hint of grandchildren in the horizon, and your ovaries are itching, what to do? Well, how about getting married? To yourself...
Everything is there, ceremony, flowers, wedding dress, bride-girls, music. Everything, except the little detail about a spouse...
Okay, admittedly most young women don't go to these extremes. Instead they spoil themselves at the spa with their friends - they can afford it, being financially independent and living at home.
As late as the 80s young women, married and unmarried were often fans of actors or rather actresses.
There is a particular kind of traditional theater in Japan, (can't remember the name) where women play the leading roles of young men. These are young "men" who woo their female counterparts with poetry, romance and attention, something there can be precious little of in the daily life of any women on this planet come to think of it, (?) but perhaps especially Japanese women.
Some of these female fans were deeply in love with the leading actress at these theaters. Not because they were lesbians, no, no, they were not even in love in the actress herself. They were in the love with the character the actress played.

When you on top of that consider that many Japanese don't go on holiday, and most don't go on as much holiday as they are entitled to, there really isn't much room for a little private date, husband and wife. Something that in my experience is so important to maintain the spark in a relationship.

- I could go on, but let me end this post with something that already back in the 80s struck me.
We had followed a younger wife, with her terror of a mother-in-law, in the documentary. At the end she said that she looked forward to the day her son married, then she could take it (all her current frustrations) out on her daughter-in-law.

Well, if you take Masako. An intelligent, well-educated woman and substitute mother-in-law with the senior courtiers - then perhaps it's no wonder she has a depression?

 

[Ista]

Muhler, I'm far from an expert, but from both reading and conversations I believe that the dynamics you are describing are still the underpinnings of family relationships and expectations, although they don't seem to play out to that extreme level as often or as predictably. As you pointed out, one difference is that there are more married women now who have jobs outside the home. In many areas of Japan, especially the large cities, dual incomes are a necessity since living costs are so high.

Which also plays a part in one of the other dynamics that you reference, the working long hours and not having time to date. Apparently this has caused a resurgence in matchmaking because young men literally do not have time to date. And, as you also pointed out, young women are increasingly ambivalent about trading their freedom for marriage, rising at dawn to take care of husband and children, and dealing with a disapproving mother in law.

This is completely anecdotal, but in the early 2000's a Japanese friend of mine who had moved to the US with her husband and children for her husband's job (which was with a Japanese company doing business in the US) moved back to to the Tokyo area when her husband was posted back to the home office. They had been in the US in a small midwestern town for about 5 years. She had learned to drive, the children had attended public school, and they had settled in to the typical middle American lifestyle of sports activities for the kids, cookouts with friends on the weekends, volunteering at school, etc. She said that as a family they had never been so happy, not because they loved American culture (they didn't) but because even though the children had to attend both US public school and Japanese school, they still had free time as a family, they saw a lot of her husband, they had time to be involved with the community, and because she had the use of the car, she had the personal freedom to plan her day as she chose, make and spend time with friends, and so on. And no in-laws.

Then they moved back. I heard from her for a while and then she dropped contact. She was so, so unhappy. No car, so no freedom. Her life was confined to taking care of the children and their home and attending to her in-laws. They literally never saw her husband who was completely occupied in trying to get ahead in his job after being out of the loop for years while they were in the US. The children were behind in school, and were mocked for it. The cultural norms felt oppressive. All of this is not to imply they were better off in the US, because there were many, many things they disliked about US culture, but to point out that even for some modern Japanese, the norms are difficult to deal with, and seem extraordinarily resistant to change.

The era name struggle continues...

Conservative LDP lawmakers in a bind over calendars ahead of era name change - The Mainichi

Oh, the irony. By being so rigid about using the era name, but not wanting to use the new era name until the new emperor signs off on it, they are being forced to use the Western dating conventions. Somehow that seems so very... typical.

It will all be moot soon enough, but it's certainly ironic in the short term.

Thank you for posting the links to those articles, Prisma!

 

[Muhler]

Most fascinating, Ista.

If I may venture a guess your friend saw the car as a means of escape, to have the luxury of being on her own in her own little sphere.
Because as you know the collective traffic in Tokyo is very good, so if you live in the Tokyo area, having a car only to get from A to B to C isn't that high on the priority list.
That is of course also why the Japanese form of relaxing or escapism is unique. Not least in regards to cosplay which is a huge industry there!
While you elsewhere in the world meet with your friends (or co-workers for that matter, with no boss around) to "be yourself" in Japan you go to "be someone else."

The details you wrote about the family who returned to Japan is - unfortunately - also telling.
They have been tainted.
The children are behind their Japanese classmates, yes. But after five years in USA they would no doubt speak better English than their English teacher and they would have a much greater understanding of foreign cultures and mindsets. A valuable asset. - But not in a country that a growing increasingly national conservative.
Up to circa 1920 the Japanese who traveled abroad were admired and respected, destined for high careers. Because they were the best of the best, whose job it was to make Japan at par with any other country on Earth and eventually better.
But after 1920 when the national-conservatives had taken over, by now they were fully fledged fascists, people who had gone abroad were tainted, they were "unclean" so to speak. - Just as merchants had been in the time of the Shoguns in the centuries before.
The result was a disaster for Japan!
By dismissing those who had gone abroad and by looking down on foreigners and by Japan becoming isolationist, they were unable to comprehend, analyze and ultimately foresee the consequences of their actions.

Japanese today travel abroad - in groups. With little real interaction with foreigners.
Working abroad doesn't really count in your career, as you so well illustrated, when you return to Japan.
And while the Japanese via the Net can reach every corner of the world and interact online with everyone else, Japan is big enough for the average Japanese not having to do so.
So I think Japan indirectly is increasingly isolating itself.

However, the Japanese are not the only ones doing that these years!

Matchmaking. I think that's a logic consequence of the way the Japanese society works.
If you genuinely love your wife you long to be with her - or at least you feel at ease in her company.
But if you rarely see her, that little spark will be extinguished soon enough...
So why not look at it from a mainly practical point of view?

That both man and wife now have to have a job to make ends meet, is hardly something new on a global scale, but there is the little detail that the wife in Japan on top of that still has to do the cooking, cleaning, shopping and looking after the children.

So if I were a young Japanese woman, give me three good reasons why I should marry?

 

[Somebody]

On a side note: why does the Japanese imperial family send their members and possible spouses of to be former members to European universities if the focus is more snd more on Japan itself?

 

[Muhler]

On a side note: why does the Japanese imperial family send their members and possible spouses of to be former members to European universities if the focus is more snd more on Japan itself?

My guess: Because the Imperial Family by it's very nature is more internationally minded than average.
After all one of their main purposes of existence is to interact with foreigners.

Apart from that it may very well be a family-tradition and seen within the family as a sensible and sound thing to do.

 

[Ista]

Muhler, that was very thoughtful and compassionate commentary. I appreciate your thoughts very much.

"So if I were a young Japanese woman, give me three good reasons why I should marry"

I think that's the crux of it, for me.

Somebody: My understanding is that they do it to improve English skills because English is broadly used now as a common language, the way French used to be in the past, to expose them to internationally renowned academic programmes, and to expand their knowledge of foreign cultures. It's certainly not because the foreign universities are better than anything in Japan: Japan has excellent universities.

Considering some of Prince Akishino's leanings, I will be interested to see if Hisahito also ends up attending a foreign university, and if so, which one(s).

 

[Prisma]

Some bits from Sankei that English articles below didn't cover:
- costumes for rituals will be reused from Heisei era as much as possible
- about 80% of staff members will wear existing garments
- simpler banquet for Daijosai
- Emperor Akihito and CP Naruhito wish to keep the costs down

Key ceremony hall for new emperor to be scaled back: The Asahi Shimbun (has photos of the proposed changes but their article make it sound like Akishino's comments spurred those changes which isn't true)

[...] It will be scaled back by about 20 percent.

The changes come after Prince Fumihito, Naruhito's younger brother, raised concerns in a November news conference about using public funds for a ceremony with religious overtones.

The proposed changes will center on the Daijokyu, the temporary hall constructed for the ceremony that is later dismantled.

Although the size of the structures will be reduced to cut costs, the overall expense is expected to exceed the 1990 Daijosai, said officials, citing increased personnel and materials costs.

[...]

Construction will probably begin in July, with completion planned for late October.

[…]

While the Dec. 19 committee meeting decided to retain the same number of structures and basic layout, some of them will be prefabricated rather than built from scratch.

[…]

Reducing the area of the site for the temporary hall will result in other savings, officials said, citing the need for less gravel and fewer trees being cut down.

The roofs of the Yukiden and Sukiden will be covered with wooden shingles rather than thatch, due to growing difficulty in obtaining thatch. Some of the lumber used in pillars will also be changed to reduce costs and construction time.

After the committee meeting, Yasuhiko Nishimura, vice grand steward at the Imperial Household Agency, said, "We have held discussions for more than a year about possible changes without damaging the significance of the Daijosai."

Imperial Household Agency to scale down ritual for Crown Prince's enthronement - The Mainichi

[…] The agency plans to reduce the number of people who will be invited to the specific event by about 200, as roughly 20 percent of those invited the previous time were absent.

[…]

According to the Imperial Household Agency, the content of the ritual will remain unchanged from the previous event in 1990 and the agency will build 40 structures that comprise Daijokyu, where key ceremonies of Daijosai will be held. These include three main structures -- Yukiden, Sukiden and Kairyuden.

However, the total floor space of the buildings will be approximately 2,600 square meters, a decrease of some 600 square meters from that for the previous rite held in 1990 […]

Moreover, a land lot for the Daijokyu will be approximately 6,500 square meters, over 20 percent smaller than that used for the previous rite.

[...]

Many of the materials for the buildings will be reused as much as possible after the rite, although most of those for Daijokyu in the previous event were incinerated.

[…]

Fumihito offered solid alternative to public funds for imperial rites: The Asahi Shimbun

Fumihito proposed using the “Shinkaden” hall in the Imperial Palace for the ceremony instead of constructing new facilities, called “Daijokyu,” that will later be torn down, sources said Dec. 24.

Fumihito's proposal was aimed at drastically cutting costs for the ceremony and covering them with the imperial family’s private funds, rather than public funds, they added.

Daijosai is performed by a new emperor only once during his reign. It is believed to have been started by Emperor Tenmu in the seventh century.

[...]

According to the sources, Fumihito believes it is vital that events held to commemorate a new emperor should be conducted in accordance with the understanding of the people.

They said the prince flouted the idea to Noriyuki Kazaoka, the former grand steward of the Imperial Household Agency, after Akihito’s hopes of abdicating became known to his inner circle.

Fumihito told the aide, “It is not appropriate to use public funds.”

He also expressed the same sentiment to the current grand steward, Shinichiro Yamamoto.

Fumihito apparently demanded that the agency consider his opinion seriously before the government decides to use public funds for Daijosai.

At the time, Fumihito said, “The heart of the ritual will not wane even if it is held at Shinkaden in the imperial palace without constructing Daijokyu.”

[...]

Fumihito's proposal, had it been accepted, would have brought the costs of holding Daijosai to several hundreds of millions of yen that could be covered with the imperial family’s private funds.

Fumihito made his views known publicly in a Nov. 22 [birthday] news conference, which was a brave thing for him to do as it is extremely rare for an imperial family member to express doubts over a government decision.

The prince also griped that the grand stewards had no intention of listening to what he had said.

[...]

However, he smoothed ruffled feathers by telling those around him: “I have no intention to express objections to what the government has decided. I simply want to let the people know that there are various opinions in the imperial family in the hope that my opinion will become a reference point in future discussions.”

When Fumihito becomes crown prince, his position will be next to that of the emperor who is prohibited from wielding political power under the Constitution. Thus, he will be required to be more circumspect from May next year.

“I think he felt the news conference was his last chance to express his opinions,” one of the sources said.

Major rise in anti-terror funding in police budget - News - NHK WORLD - English

More than 34 million dollars is earmarked for security at ceremonies marking the abdication of Emperor Akihito and the accession of Crown Prince Naruhito.

Costs for key Daijosai Imperial ceremony to total ¥2.7 billion | The Japan Times

The Imperial Household Agency said Friday expenses for Daijosai [...] will total ¥2.72 billion, up a nominal ¥470 million from the previous rite held in 1990.

The agency plans to scale down the Daijokyu complex to be used for the ceremony in a bid to reduce spending, but steep growth in personnel and materials costs will push up the total outlays.

[...]

It curtailed related expenses by about ¥600 million through a cut of more than 20 percent in the size of the complex and by using different materials for the roofs of the main three structures.

Costs for Daikyo no Gi (official banquets) to be held after Daijosai will total ¥258 million, down from ¥347 million in 1990. There will be two grand banquets, down from three, while the number of invited guests will be reduced from some 900 to 700.

Total outlays related to Imperial succession ceremonies will stand at ¥3.78 billion, up 42 percent from the ¥2.66 billion it cost in 1990.

The agency’s draft budget for fiscal 2019 increased 12.8 percent from the previous year to ¥24.06 billion.

 

[Kitty1224]

So will the current emperor not partake any public duties once he abdicates?

 

[Muhler]

I think it would in any case be wiser if the then ex-emperor keeps his public appearances to a minimum.
There can be only one emperor...

 

[Kitty1224]

I think it would in any case be wiser if the then ex-emperor keeps his public appearances to a minimum.
There can be only one emperor...

So like Queen Beatrix?

 

[Muhler]

Yes, and like the pope who abdicated. - I can't remember his name off hand.

Retire and only appear for major family events.
For better or worse there should never be any doubt as to who the emperor is and that there is only one.

 

[Prisma]

As crown prince, Fumihito to keep doors open to public on trains: The Asahi Shimbun

Prince Fumihito and his wife, Princess Kiko, will break with custom and travel in train cars that are open to the public after he becomes next in line to the Chrysanthemum Throne.

The Imperial Household Agency on Dec. 17 announced the transportation methods for Fumihito, who will become crown prince after the abdication of his father, Emperor Akihito.

Fumihito’s brother, Crown Prince Naruhito, who will become emperor next year, and his family now travel in Japan Railway and other train cars that are closed to other passengers.

Train cars used by Fumihito and his family are currently not off-limits to other passengers. [...]

"This is the result of talks with the JR side," Yasuhiko Nishimura, vice grand steward of the agency, told a news conference on Dec. 17.

However, the decision is believed to be based on Fumihito’s own intentions.

[...]

After the ascension and abdication, Naruhito, Crown Princess Masako, Akihito and Empress Michiko will travel by special chartered train service, the same method currently used by the emperor and empress.

According to Jiji, Japan Rail requested the new emperor and empress continue to rent train cars as the extra security and personnel would be a burden on train cars with the general public.

 

[Muhler]

That's probably a good idea, considering how they mistreat their cars at the Imperial Court. ?

I was shocked! Shocked to the core!

 

[Somebody]

It looks like Akishino truly wants to set himself apart from the rest of his family as the 'modern' prince (although he doesn't seem that modern when it is about his eldest daughter).

 

[Ista]

As crown prince, Fumihito to keep doors open to public on trains: The Asahi Shimbun

According to Jiji, Japan Rail requested the new emperor and empress continue to rent train cars as the extra security and personnel would be a burden on train cars with the general public.

Somehow, I can't help being a little cynical about this. We'll see if it actually happens, or if the realities of security and the additional entourage they'll acquire will make this impractical. Since Japan Rail already has pointed out the burden this entails, it sounds to me as though Fumihito mostly wants to draw attention to himself.

 

[Prisma]

I agree. The idea sounds nice and all but who knows what'll actually happen with the extra security and such. I can see Prince Akishino and his family wishing to keep some of the perks they have now. He was not raised as crown prince and his family, like other Imperial branches in the "outer court," enjoy easier movement and less fuss. Sudden restrictions could be stressful. I wonder if Masako's condition could have benefited from less security/entourage.

Japan's new era to be named on April 1st - News - NHK WORLD - English

NHK has learned that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has decided to have the name of the country's new era announced on April 1st, after it is approved by the Cabinet earlier in the day.

Abe intends to outline his plan at a news conference on Friday.

[...]

Sankei reports the news conference is planned after PM Abe worships at Ise Grand Shrine on January 4th.
Originally April 11 was considered as the announcement date but it was discovered that the Windows operating system may not be updated by May on all government and private companies systems. That could interfere with pension and unemployment payments.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

I agree. The idea sounds nice and all but who knows what'll actually happen with the extra security and such. I can see Prince Akishino and his family wishing to keep some of the perks they have now. He was not raised as crown prince and his family, like other Imperial branches in the "outer court," enjoy easier movement and less fuss. Sudden restrictions could be stressful. I wonder if Masako's condition could have benefited from less security/entourage.

Japan's new era to be named on April 1st - News - NHK WORLD - English

Sankei reports the news conference is planned after PM Abe worships at Ise Grand Shrine on January 4th.

Thank you, Prisma. Is PM Abe normally a frequent visitor at Ise Shrine? Is the same-day shrine visit coincidental or is it a consideration for optics, given that some ultranationalists may see the announcement as a slight to them?

Originally April 11 was considered as the announcement date but it was discovered that the Windows operating system may not be updated by May on all government and private companies systems. That could interfere with pension and unemployment payments.

To tell the truth, I have wondered whether all of the ultra-traditionalists lobbying for a delayed announcement understand how computer systems operate, particularly in view of this news item: Japan cybersecurity minister who doesn't use computers says he's also not familiar with cybersecurity | The Japan Times

 

[Ista]

Thank you, Prisma. Is PM Abe normally a frequent visitor at Ise Shrine? Is the same-day shrine visit coincidental or is it a consideration for optics, given that some ultranationalists may see the announcement as a slight to them?



To tell the truth, I have wondered whether all of the ultra-traditionalists lobbying for a delayed announcement understand how computer systems operate, particularly in view of this news item: Japan cybersecurity minister who doesn't use computers says he's also not familiar with cybersecurity | The Japan Times

For some reason, I don't find that at all surprising.

I've wondered the same thing about the ultra-nationalists and the delayed announcement. I have the feeling that if left to themselves, business would still be conducted with pen, ink and carrier pigeons.

 

[bekalc]

I wonder if Hisahito is old enough if his father will want to just bypass being Emperor altogether and have his son follow his Uncle. It's best for him to be the heir right now but 15 years from now?

I am glad the Emperor and the Empress are being allowed to retire... They deserve a break and be able to enjoy their family and friends.... I see the concerns about being forced abdications but I know Pope Benedict said he felt there was a point where you are not at a certain capacity that you had actually a duty to retire.

 

[O-H Anglophile]

I wonder if Hisahito is old enough if his father will want to just bypass being Emperor altogether and have his son follow his Uncle. It's best for him to be the heir right now but 15 years from now?

I am glad the Emperor and the Empress are being allowed to retire... They deserve a break and be able to enjoy their family and friends.... I see the concerns about being forced abdications but I know Pope Benedict said he felt there was a point where you are not at a certain capacity that you had actually a duty to retire.

There is no guarantee that Prince Akishino (at 53) will live longer than his older brother (who is now only 58 years old) to even become Emperor. And it will be 27 years before the Crown Prince is the age the Emperor is now, so many things can happen before then.

 

[Ista]

I agree, and if Fumihito outlives Naruhito, my guess is that he will want to be emperor, even if it's just for a few months or years. Barring something major happening, I don't see Fumihito agreeing to be bypassed in favor of his son.

 

[Prisma]

Thank you, Prisma. Is PM Abe normally a frequent visitor at Ise Shrine? Is the same-day shrine visit coincidental or is it a consideration for optics, given that some ultranationalists may see the announcement as a slight to them?
[...]

I did a quick search on Getty Images and one caption states "Abe kicks off his first day back at work after the holidays by praying at Ise Jingu shrine, continued a tradition observed by successive prime ministers."

Any shrine in Mie according to another photo caption: "It is customary for the Japanese Prime Minister to visit Ise Jingu or one of the 125 other Shinto sanctuarys in the area at the beginning of a new year."

As for the possibility of bypassing Fumihito... I doubt it although there is provision for altering the line of succession in the Imperial House Law.

Article 3. In case the Imperial Heir is affected with an incurable and serious disease, mentally or physically, or there is a serious hindrance, the order of succession may be changed by decision of the Imperial House Council ...

Abe decides Emperor Akihito will sign Cabinet order promulgating new era name: gov't - The Mainichi

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has decided that the new era name following the enthronement of the Crown Prince will be announced on April 1, and a Cabinet order promulgating the new era name will be signed by Emperor Akihito sometime in April, according to people close to the government.

[...]

Conservatives did agree to a prior announcement, but requested that a Cabinet order promulgating the new era name be signed by the new emperor, so that "the indivisibility of the emperor and the era name" could be maintained.

The request was discussed inside the government, but the prevailing view was that the arrangement is problematic for two reasons. First, it runs counter to the practice of receiving the Emperor's signature on Cabinet decisions as soon as those decisions are made. Second, waiting for the signature of the new emperor raises questions of compatibility with Article 4 of the Constitution, which stipulates that he "shall not have powers related to government."

[...]

 

[kathia_sophia]

I love Japan, but I'm a bit sad that they continue to keep the Salic Law. It's so outdated for "modern" countries. Even in Thailand, a princess can inherit the throne if she doesn't have brothers...I hope they change it someday. It won't be in Aiko's time, though she is the "first-in-line". I find it weird that the only child of a future emperor won't be the heir.
Sorry people, I will never understand this situation. If it was a middle east country, okay, but Japan claims to be one of the most modern countries in world, and has fought for human rights, though not so much for women it seems...

 

[Biri]

And there was even a discussion someday of allowing concubines, if I remember well.

 

[Muhler]

And there was even a discussion someday of allowing concubines, if I remember well.

Quite.
The mere suggestion shows how far out some of the conservatives are in their opposition against females becoming regents in Japan.

 

[M. Payton]

Seems to me of course being a woman that the men in Japan are very insecure of being men if they are so afraid of a woman empress. Hasn't the Japanese caught up with the 2019 yet or are they still back in the dark ages. I think the entire world would be better off if all the countries were governed by women.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

Seems to me of course being a woman that the men in Japan are very insecure of being men if they are so afraid of a woman empress.

The policy against women emperors reflects the wishes of political leaders (above all Shinzo Abe) rather than most men (or women) in Japan. Roughly 80% of the polled voters in most surveys believe female succession should be allowed. Here is a 2017 poll regarding succession and membership issues: 70% back female emperor or succession from the female line：The Asahi Shimbun

And there was even a discussion someday of allowing concubines, if I remember well.

Quite.
The mere suggestion shows how far out some of the conservatives are in their opposition against females becoming regents in Japan.

Are you perhaps referring to the editorial written by the late Prince Tomohito of Mikasa, and if so, didn't he proceed to say the remark about concubines was a joke?

Even in Thailand, a princess can inherit the throne if she doesn't have brothers...

Hasn't the Japanese caught up with the 2019 yet or are they still back in the dark ages. I think the entire world would be better off if all the countries were governed by women.

Even in 2019, most hereditary monarchies and aristocracies continue to ban women and girls from the succession.

According to this article from 2012 (have the laws been updated?), the official laws of succession in Thailand follow male primogeniture, albeit the Thai monarchy customarily used a flexible approach to following succession laws. A brief guide to Thailand’s royal succession | Andrew MacGregor Marshall

 

[M. Payton]

I understand where your coming from yet all these political leaders are men....any man that acts like a woman is less then him shows me how insecure and little he thinks of himself for he takes that out on women......that is my view on the majority of men in this world. I look at the world and all the problems and still the horror that some countries treat their women and wonder why aren't more women in power to change the world today....this is 2019.....not 1219 or even 1919..........okay I am off topic here and will shut up.....I should never start this topic of men and how the world is today and how they treat women with such disrespect.....the stories I could tell in divorce court.......

?

 

[kathia_sophia]

Even in 2019, most hereditary monarchies and aristocracies continue to ban women and girls from the succession.

According to this article from 2012 (have the laws been updated?), the official laws of succession in Thailand follow male primogeniture, albeit the Thai monarchy customarily used a flexible approach to following succession laws. A brief guide to Thailand’s royal succession | Andrew MacGregor Marshall

That's true. Even so, we've seen so many changes in succession laws the last decade, and for the better. Monarchies are disappearing slowly, there are only a few left, so every positive change is welcome in order to survive, e.g. Sweden. Japan needs to modernize the monarchy as well, be more approachable to the people, not only men but women too.
Even if in Thailand they favor males, if they were in the same position as the japanese imperial family, it would be the daughter of the monarch to succeed not the nephew.
Look at what happened to Monaco, even though they favor male successors, they changed the law for Caroline to be in line of the monegasque throne (when Albert didn't had legimate children).


Now, I ask, what if Naruhito's nephew dies or something? What will happen then? They don't have a spare, do they?

 

[Tatiana Maria]

Now, I ask, what if Naruhito's nephew dies or something? What will happen then? They don't have a spare, do they?

Years of debate in Parliament, and amongst the rank and file, on which change to the Imperial Household Law ought to be enacted: enable female royals to inherit the throne, or enable distant male cousins who are commoners to become royal. (At the moment, the Imperial Household Law excludes both females and commoners from the throne and allows only female commoners (consorts) to become royal.)