Japanese Imperial succession controversy

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The Japanese Imperial succession controversy refers to the question of whether Japan's laws of succession under the The Imperial Household Law of 1947 should be changed from male-only primogeniture to equal primogeniture. This would again permit unmarried or widowed female descendants in the male line of the Imperial House to inherit the Chrysanthemum Throne, but also allow something unprecedented: making it possible for married princesses and princesses' children whose fathers are not descendants in the male line of the Imperial House to ascend the throne. This might mean that princesses' husbands born in the common class would be regarded as members of the Imperial House.

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[edit] Historical background

There are references in Chinese sources about early Japan, to (predominantly) female tribal leaders (the predecessors of the later "emperors") that ruled over the people before the earliest Japanese records (see Himiko).

[edit] Ruling Empresses in Japanese history

Seven women have served as tenno, i.e. reigning Empresses, during the approximately 1,500-year recorded history of Japan on nine occasions. Two of those empresses have, after abdicating, reascended the throne under different names. The last time Japan had a reigning Empress was in 1771, when Empress Go-Sakuramachi abdicated in favor of her nephew, Emperor Go-Momozono.

The ruling empresses have been:

  • Empress Suiko (推古天皇 Suiko Tennō) was the 33rd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession, and the first known woman to hold this position from 593 until 628.
  • Empress Jito (持統天皇 Jitō Tennō) was the 41st imperial ruler of Japan, and ruled from 686 until 697.
  • Empress Gemmei (also Empress Genmyō; 元明天皇 Genmei Tennō) was the 43rd imperial ruler of Japan ruling from 661 – December 7, 721.
  • Empress Koken (孝謙天皇 Kōken Tennō) also Empress Shōtoku (称徳天皇 Shōtoku Tennō) was both the 46th and 48th imperial ruler of Japan from 749 to 758. She reascended in 764 and ruled until 770. Her posthumous name for her second reign (764-770) was Empress Shotoku.

[edit] Post Meiji-era laws

(See Emperor of Japan: Succession)

Women were barred from the throne for the first time in 1889 by a Prussian-influenced Constitution during the 19th century Meiji Restoration, and this prohibition was continued by the Imperial Household Law of 1947, enacted under Japan's post-World War II constitution during the American occupation. The 1947 law further restricts the succession to legitimate male descendants in the male line of Meiji only (excluding other male lines of imperial dynasty, such as Fushimi, Higashikuni, Kitashirakawa, etc.), and specifically bars the emperor and other members of the imperial family from adopting children.

[edit] The current situation

Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako have one child, HIH Princess Aiko (her official appellation is Toshi no Miya, or Princess Toshi), born on December 1, 2001. The child's birth, which occurred more than eight years after her parents' marriage and after the Crown Princess had considerable (and widely noted) difficulty in conceiving a child, has sparked a lively debate in Japan about Imperial succession. To add to this dearth of male heirs, Crown Prince Naruhito's brother, Prince Akishino, had two daughters, and the two other collateral members of the Imperial Family, Prince Tomohito of Mikasa and the late Prince Takamado, also had daughters. No male heir had been born into the Imperial Family in nearly 41 years (see Current order of succession). Prince Akishino's wife, Princess Kiko, gave birth to a baby boy in September 2006. The child, Prince Hisahito, is now third in line to the Imperial Throne.

Some, as in The Japan Times editorial on February 12, 2006[1], expressed their hope that Princess Kiko's child would be a daughter, so that Princess Aiko could become reigning empress. They believe that it is necessary to have an empress regnant to act as a symbol for social reform over womens' issues in Japan. The Asahi Shimbun published an editorial on May 5, 2006[2] suggesting that the current system was unsustainable. Although it did not expressly call for revising the succession law to allow women to sit on the throne, it said that the birth of a male child to Princess Kiko could not provide a long-term solution to the issue of the imperial succession, and that flexibility was needed for the continuation of the imperial family. Following the birth of Prince Hisahito, the controversy surrounding the succession issue has abated. However, it is not certain that the new Prince will sire male heirs of his own, thus the debate over succession of female heirs may still be prevalent.

[edit] Timeline of recent events

  • On January 24, 2005, the Japanese government announced that it would consider allowing the Crown Prince and Princess to adopt a male child, in order to avoid a possible "heir crisis." Adoption is an age-old imperial Japanese tradition, for dynastic purposes prohibited only in modern times by Western influence. The child would presumably be adopted from one of the former imperial branches which lost imperial status after World War II. However, a government-appointed panel of experts submitted a report on October 25, 2005, recommending that the Imperial succession law be amended to permit equal primogeniture.
  • In November, 2005, it was reported [3] that Emperor Akihito's cousin Prince Tomohito of Mikasa had objected to the reversal of the male-only succession, in a column of the magazine of the welfare association which he serves as president. Prince Tomohito had suggested four options to continue the male-only line succession there; the fourth was permitting the Emperor or Crown Prince to take a concubine, which was allowed by the former law of imperial succession.
  • On January 20, 2006, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi used part of his annual keynote speech to address the controversy when he pledged to submit a bill to the Japanese Diet letting women ascend to the throne so that imperial succession may be continued into the future in a stable manner. Koizumi did not announce any particular timing for the legislation to be introduced, nor did he provide details about its content, but said that it would be in line with the conclusions of the 2005 government panel.[4]
  • On February 1, 2006, former trade minister Takeo Hiranuma caused a controversy by arguing against the proposed reform bill because Princess Aiko might marry a foreigner in the future [5]. A precedent, Empress Koken's relationship with a foreign man, had however not then been an obstacle for her to reascend the throne as Empress Shotoku. A similar fear has not been expressed to hinder succession of males, though they also may marry foreigners - having just not yet done so. A foreign marriage is hardly any more likely for Aiko than for any of her male relatives.
  • On September 6, 2006, Princess Kiko delivered a baby boy, later named Prince Hisahito. According to the current succession law, he is third in line to the throne, but Princess Aiko, who now holds no right to succession, would have precedence over him as well as over her uncle if the law is changed. [6] It is expected that subsequent discussion of the law will be held off until the new Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, has time to assess Japanese public opinion; it is widely believed that Abe opposes any change to the current succession law. Upcoming elections in 2007 may also divert public attention away from the issue.

[edit] External links

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