TOKYO - The annual spring garden party, held at the Akasaka Imperial Gardens in Tokyo, has once again drawn attention to a pressing issue facing Japan's Imperial Household: how to maintain the number of family members as it continues to decline whenever female royals marry.
This year's event welcomed a range of guests, including medalists from the Winter Olympics. Princess Hisako and other members of the Imperial Family attended, while Prince Hisahito was absent due to university classes.
Among the royals present, women accounted for an overwhelming majority. Under the current Imperial House Law, however, five unmarried female members of the family, including Princess Aiko, would lose their imperial status upon marriage. This has heightened concerns that the number of royals will continue to shrink.
The issue has surfaced repeatedly in recent years. When former Princess Mako married and left the Imperial Family, she said the marriage was a necessary choice in order to protect their hearts while living their lives.
Even if a female royal marries a commoner and has children, those children cannot become members of the Imperial Family under the current system. The decline in the number of royals is directly linked to the issue of imperial succession.
Calls for stable succession reform have emerged before. The birth of Princess Aiko in 2001 reignited debate over whether Japan should allow a female emperor.
In 2005, under the administration of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, an expert panel issued a report recommending that not only female emperors but also emperors from the maternal line be permitted.
That debate shifted dramatically the following year with the birth of Prince Hisahito, the first male royal born in 41 years. Since then, discussion over maternal-line succession has largely been shelved.
Now, with a new administration committed to revising the Imperial House Law, attention has turned once more to what form institutional reform may take.
Asked whether allowing a female emperor was included in the ruling party's election pledges, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said the current law clearly stipulates that the throne is inherited by male descendants in the paternal line, making such a change unacceptable.
While insisting that succession should remain limited to male-line males, Takaichi has recently stressed another urgent matter: securing enough members of the Imperial Family.
Discussions formally began this week on two proposals. One would allow female royals to remain in the Imperial Family after marriage. The other would bring male-line male descendants of former branch families back into the household as royals.
The decisions made now could significantly reshape the future of Japan's Imperial system.
Source: TBS
