Japan’s top government spokesman yesterday apologized in parliament for discriminatory comments about same-sex marriage made last week by an aide to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who has resisted calls for marriage equality.
Masayoshi Arai, a secretary to Kishida, was dismissed from his post over the weekend for telling reporters in an off-the-record briefing that he did not want to look at same-sex couples or have them live next door to him.
He added that some people would abandon the country if same-sex marriage were introduced.
Photo: EPA-EFE
“Prime Minister Kishida is aiming for an inclusive society,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told a parliamentary committee.
“I apologize to all those who were hurt or made to feel uncomfortable by former secretary Arai’s comments,” he said.
He added that the incident had created misunderstanding about the Cabinet’s policy.
Among the G7 major democracies, Japan is the only one without a legal system for same-sex unions, something campaigners say causes problems in areas from immigration to inheritance and medical treatment. Business groups have also said the lack of such provisions puts them at a disadvantage in competing for global talent.
Arai’s remarks came after Kishida told lawmakers last week that “extreme caution” was needed in deliberations on same-sex marriage and implied it would be seen as a negative change.
His long-ruling and conservative Liberal Democratic Party tends to boast stronger support among older voters, who polling shows have been slower than younger Japanese to embrace LGBTQ rights.
A survey carried out by the Mainichi Shimbun and Saitama University from November 2021 to January last year found 71 percent of respondents aged 18 to 29 said same-sex marriage should be legally recognized. The number fell to 25 percent among those 70 or older.
Local governments, including Tokyo, have sought to provide support by offering partnership registration systems, though these do not carry legal weight and still leave couples facing problems with lack of recognition of their relationship.
Marriage equality groups are also pursuing a series of cases through Japan’s courts, claiming damages arising from the lack of rights for same-sex couples. Results so far have been mixed, and a verdict in a Nagoya case is due on May 30.
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