Japan clears way for first emperor abdication in over 200 years
World
Japan clears way for first emperor abdication in over 200 years
Japan’s parliament passed a law Friday that clears the way for its aging Emperor Akihito to step down, in what would be the first imperial abdication in more than two centuries. The popular 83-year-old monarch shocked the country last summer when he signaled his desire to take a back seat after nearly three decades on the Chrysanthemum Throne, citing his age and health problems. The unexpected move presented a challenge, since there was no law to deal with an emperor retiring from what is usually a job for life. The one-off rule was passed in the upper house on Friday in a unanimous decision, after the lower chamber gave its stamp of approval last week. The abdication must take place within three years — and the law only applies to Akihito.
The one-off law is a result of political compromises, but it will become a precedent for future abdications.
Setsu Kobayashi, a constitutional expert and professor emeritus at Japan’s Keio University
The status of the emperor is sensitive in Japan, given its 20th century history of war waged in the name of Akihito’s father, Hirohito, who died in 1989. Some worried that changing the law to allow any emperor to abdicate could put Japan’s future monarchs at risk of being subject to political manipulation. Akihito’s pending abdication had reignited concerns about a potential succession crisis. There are no more eligible male heirs after the 10-year-old son of Crown Prince Naruhito’s younger brother, Akishino. Japan’s centuries-old succession would be broken if that son, Hisahito, does not have a male child. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s conservative government supports male-only succession, but for now parliament put off a debate over how to tackle the shrinking royal population and whether to allow women to ascend the throne.
