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Asahi Shimbun
2 days ago
- General
- Asahi Shimbun
Parties fail to reach consensus in imperial succession talks
Diet chamber speakers and representatives of parties and factions attend a meeting based on the law concerning special measures for the imperial household on April 17. (Takeshi Iwashita) Ruling and opposition parties have essentially shelved talks in the Diet on whether to grant imperial family status to spouses and children of female family members, sources said June 3. The parties, discussing how to secure stable succession to the Chrysanthemum throne, decided they cannot reach a 'consensus of the legislature' during the current Diet session, which closes on June 22, the sources said. In the talks so far, the parties agreed that female members of the imperial family should retain their status after marriage. But the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan could not narrow their differences over the treatment of spouses and children of female family members. Taro Aso, the LDP's top adviser, CDP President Yoshihiko Noda and the speaker and deputy speaker of the Lower House have been discussing the issue behind the scenes. The four were scheduled to hold talks on June 3, but the meeting was canceled because no compromise was expected. Noda proposed that the status of spouses and children be determined by the imperial household council, whose members include the prime minister and speaker and deputy speaker of both Diet chambers. However, Aso rejected the proposal, saying a system under which a civilian male can become an imperial family member could lead to acceptance of an emperor who inherited the imperial bloodline from the mother's side of the emperor. The LDP had confirmed its opposition to the proposal at a party meeting in May. An agreement appeared more likely concerning how to deal with the descendants of 11 family branches that lost their imperial status after World War II. The four discussed a system that would allow the imperial family to adopt only male descendants of the 11 branches who inherited the imperial bloodline from the father's side of the emperor. Although they were nearing an agreement on this measure, they decided not to make a conclusion because of the lack of consensus on the other issue. A proposal has now emerged to organize and present the current points of agreement and differences for linkage to future discussions. (This article was written by Anri Takahashi and Takahiro Okubo.)
Asahi Shimbun
6 days ago
- Politics
- Asahi Shimbun
Lower House reviews three bills on dual surname issue
Takahiro Kuroiwa of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan goes over the outline of a bill he submitted for dual surnames during the Lower House Committee on Judicial Affairs' meeting on May 30. (Takeshi Iwashita) The Lower House Committee on Judicial Affairs began discussions on May 30 on multiple opposition party bills that would allow married couples to have different surnames, the first time it has met on the issue since 1997. The three bills vary in framework and were submitted by the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, the Democratic Party for the People and the Japan Innovation Party (Nippon Ishin). Even though all three bills are unlikely to pass, any making it to the voting stage would mark a first for any piece of dual surname legislation and put the pertinent party's convictions to the test. One past instance where resolve crumbled was in 1991 when the justice minister at the time requested the ministry's Legislative Council to review the single-surname policy. Japan's ratification of the United Nation's Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) prompted this request because the CEDAW committee usually demanded its member parties to correct their domestic laws discriminating against women. The Legislative Council then proposed allowing each spouse to choose their last names in 1996 and the government responded positively with a plan to submit a bill to revise related civil laws. The plan was shut down after opposition from conservative members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. The next push for dual surnames saw more success when the now-dissolved Democratic Party of Japan's bill made it to the Lower House in 1997. However, the Judicial Affairs Committee discussed the bill but didn't hold a vote and the bill was abandoned. Although married couples can choose to adopt either spouse's last name, more than 90 percent of women change their surname to their husband's. This has prompted four separate instances, as of last year, where the CEDAW committee has recommended that the Japanese government revise the civil law around family names. SAME INTENT, DIFFERENT APPROACHES The ruling LDP has lawmakers who both support and oppose the issue. This internal division has led to the party postponing its decision on whether to submit its own bill and no set timeline on when this would occur. The three bills submitted were discussed simultaneously during the Lower House committee session, with lawmakers from each party outlining each of their respective bills. Of these, the bill of the CDP of Japan most closely matches what the Justice Ministry's Legislative Council proposed and would grant married couples the freedom to either share or keep their respective surnames. If a couple opts for separate last names, the legal marriage process will include a required step where they must choose which name their children will use should they have any. Regardless of their choice of a single or separate surnames, the couple and their children are registered as the same family. The DPP's bill is also based on the Legislative Council's outline. Its key difference is that couples must choose who to register as the head of the family and this will dictate the surname of any future children. The party tailored its bill to better suit couples without children in recognition that not every married couple has them. Nippon Ishin, meanwhile, is the outlier. Its bill maintains the one-surname policy but also provides legal assurances for the official use of maiden names as the practice currently has no legal framework. Its outline indicates that spouses have the option to also register a maiden name that can be used for the My Number Card system without having to also list their registered surname. Further discussion on the three bills will occur next week and requests for expert testimonies are also expected. The CDP currently chairs the committee and the party appears to be seeking a vote, a contrast to the LDP's current indecisiveness.
Asahi Shimbun
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Asahi Shimbun
Nippon Ishin submits bill to Diet to legalize maiden names
Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party) members heads to the Lower House to submit a bill to legalize the use of maiden names as common names on May 19. (Takeshi Iwashita) Opposition Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party) submitted a bill to the Lower House on May 19 to maintain the much-criticized 'one-surname' policy but allow for the legal use of maiden names. The party's plan is a departure from the bill submitted by the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan in April to allow married couples to use dual surnames. Nippon Ishin's bill would essentially uphold the principle of 'same family register and same family surname.' But it would also legally recognize a married person's maiden name as a 'common name' if so desired. Currently, couples can use dual surnames for their passports and My Number identification cards, but Nippon Ishin's bill would allow the use of only the legal common names. Public opinion polls have shown increasing support for a change in the legal system to allow couples to register their marriages under dual surnames. There have also been calls within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to legalize the use of maiden names, but LDP leadership is cautious about consolidating the party's views. Like the bill submitted by the CDP, Nippon Ishin's proposal does not appear to be supported by a majority in the Lower House, so it likely won't be passed during the current Diet session. 'LOSS OF IDENTITY' Article 750 of the Civil Code stipulates that upon marriage, 'the husband or wife shall take the family name of his or her spouse.' This means married couples in Japan are obliged to use the same family name. An overwhelming 95 percent of married couples take the husband's surname, according to a 2023 survey by the Cabinet Office. Critics have said the spouse who loses his or her family name upon marriage faces such disadvantages as a 'loss of identity' and 'inconvenience in daily life and work.' However, opponents of a dual-surname system argue that it would have 'undesirable effects' on the couple's children, and that the 'one-surname' policy is well-established in Japan.' The business community, local assemblies and others have called on the central government to activate discussions to introduce the system as soon as possible. Some LDP lawmakers have proposed keeping the one-surname system but promoting an 'expansion of the use of the maiden name as a common name.' Junior coalition partner Komeito, which submitted a proposal to the Diet to introduce such a system in 2001, wants the ruling parties to establish a forum to discuss the issue. (This article was compiled from reports written by Ryohei Miyawaki and Suzuka Tominaga.)
Asahi Shimbun
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Asahi Shimbun
EDITORIAL: Let Diet members vote freely on married couple surname system
Members of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan submit a bill to the Lower House in late April for a new surname system for married couples. (Takeshi Iwashita) One part of Hikaru Utada's latest song created a buzz on social media over the Golden Week of national holidays in early May because of lyrics that asked, 'In what year of the Reiwa Era (2019-present) will it be OK in this nation for married couples to use separate surnames?' While the lyrics can be interpreted in a number of ways, there is no doubt it shows the high interest in how surnames should be used by married couples. The proposed system for choosing separate surnames upon marriage gave couples the freedom to choose either using one of their surnames by both or continuing to use separate surnames that each used until marriage. The Justice Ministry's Legislative Council issued its recommendations about the surname system in 1996, so all the major points of debate have been placed on the table in the ensuing 29 years. Under current law, couples can choose between the surnames of the husband and wife, but in actual practice wives in 95 percent of the cases change their surname. The U.N.'s Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has issued recommendations to the Japanese government on four occasions calling for legal revisions because the current provision forcing couples to use the same surname is 'discriminatory.' In 2024, Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) called for legal revisions as soon as possible. Above all, the sudden breach of the achievements and assessment built up through work before marriage is severe. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has said in the Diet that there was no good reason for delaying reaching a conclusion to the issue. The legislative branch will be seen as negligent if the situation of the Diet not doing anything should continue. But the ruling Liberal Democratic Party has already decided not to summarize opinions among members in the current Diet session. The opposition parties that appeared to be more in favor of a new surname system are also not on the same page. In late April, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan submitted a bill in the Lower House that proposed having the couple choose a surname at marriage and using the same surname for all their children. The proposal more closely followed the recommendations of the Legislative Council because of concerns raised about the 2022 proposal compiled by five opposition parties that said the surname of children could be decided at their birth. There were concerns that proposal would lead to the possibility of siblings having different surnames. But support for the proposals has not spread. The Democratic Party for the People included a plank in its platform for the Lower House election last October that called for introducing a new surname system. But party leaders have made comments that are more cautious about pushing forward. While junior coalition partner Komeito's stance is that any legislation should be submitted by the government, it has not been aggressive in encouraging discussions within the LDP. Serious discussions should be held in the Diet on the proposals submitted by the opposition. And it would be preferable if parties allowed members to vote according to their conscience when the bill came up for a vote rather than forcing them to toe the party line. That would more appropriately reflect the views held by society as a whole. It is Diet members who are the representatives of the people and it has been pointed out that excessively forcing all party members to vote the same way interferes with active discussions in the Diet. There have been past cases in which parties allowed members to vote however they chose, particularly on legislation that was closely tied to the views of values and ethics held by lawmakers, including the bill on organ transplantation. Delaying Diet discussions just because the LDP cannot come up with an internal consensus is inexcusable. Each individual lawmaker will be asked to choose between overlooking the entrenchment of inequality or showing greater respect for the individual. --The Asahi Shimbun, May 17
