Japan relaxes succession rules but keeps ban on female emperors
Parliament has approved new regulations for the shrinking imperial family; women, including Princess Aiko, were not granted the right to ascend the throne.
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The Japanese parliament has passed a bill introducing changes to succession and family membership rules due to the shrinking size of the imperial family. The regulation was brought to the agenda following a decline in the number of individuals capable of carrying out royal duties.
With the new law, the path has been opened for male relatives of the imperial family older than 15 to be accepted into the family. Additionally, female members of the imperial family will be able to retain their royal status even if they marry a commoner.
However, the regulation did not change the most critical issue long debated in Japan: the rule preventing women from ascending the throne remains in effect. For this reason, Princess Aiko, the only child of the current Emperor Naruhito, is not included in the line of succession despite the new law.
THE LINE OF SUCCESSION IS NARROWING
Japan possesses one of the world's oldest continuous hereditary monarchies, with origins believed to date back more than 2,600 years. Despite this, the current line of succession is quite limited.
The emperor's younger brother, 60-year-old Fumihito, is first in line for the throne. While Fumihito's 19-year-old son, Prince Hisahito, is second in line, the emperor's 90-year-old uncle is also cited as the third and final eligible candidate.
If current rules do not change and Prince Hisahito does not have a son, there is a risk that the line of succession could come to an end. The new regulation aims to reduce this risk by allowing the male descendants of 11 former branches that were removed from the imperial family after World War II to be readmitted to the family.
The ability of female members to retain their status after marriage could also provide the family with a larger pool of personnel for palace ceremonies and official public duties. Previously, female members who married commoners were required to relinquish their titles. Princess Mako also left her royal status when she married someone she met at university in 2021.
Despite this, children born to female members from marriages with commoners will not have the right to ascend the throne. Thus, while the reform relaxes some rules regarding the functioning of the imperial family, it has maintained the principle that succession continues only through the male line.
The issue of a female emperor remains politically controversial in Japan, despite strong public support. In a survey conducted by the Mainichi Shimbun in June with more than 2,000 people, more than 70 percent of participants stated that they support a female emperor. This rate was measured at 83 percent in a Kyodo News poll.
Conservative political circles argue that the system, in which only men have the right of succession, must be preserved for the sake of the empire's legitimacy. The new law stands out as the first change made to the main text of the Imperial House Law since 1949.