Princess Mako of Japan, the world’s oldest monarchy, gave up her royal status on the 26th of October to marry Kei Komuro, a commoner. The two met in college and became engaged four years ago, but the marriage was delayed due to a financial scandal involving Komuro’s mother and her former fiancé. Princess Mako has rejected the $1.3 million payout which is given to female members upon their departure from the royal family, and has moved to New York City shortly after the marriage.
The shortage of heirs has begun to threaten the existence of the monarchy and has since re-sparked a debate between liberals and conservatives over changing the rules of succession, from a male-only one to one that is eligible for women as well.
Being the world’s oldest monarchy, the royal family plays a symbolic role in Japan. The general public sees the emperor as a figure holding the society together, symbolising unity. This comes from the belief that the emperor is a descendant of Amaterasu, a Shinto deity. Emperor in Japanese is Tenno (天皇), 天, which means heaven and 皇, sovereign. During the Meiji restoration, when the practical imperial role was restored, the emperor became the head of the country’s Shinto religion and gained more religious importance.
In 1947, the Imperial Household Law stated that only male figures in the male line were allowed to be heirs to the throne. The imperial succession debate erupted as the extinction of the royal family became a real concern. Currently, there is a shortage of heirs, as there are only 3 among the 67 members, the youngest being Princess Mako’s 15 year old brother, Hisahito. Panel members have been discussing how best to tackle this issue.
It may be crucial to bring attention to the misogyny and rooted patriarchal structures and beliefs that exist within Japanese society. Despite the recent awareness around it, sexism in places such as the workplace and schools still exist. Since the royal family is respected greatly by the population, allowing women to be eligible for succession may allow citizens to accept and actively consider a non-patriarchal system of gender equality, hence combatting this ingrained sexism. Royal families around the world such as the United Kingdom and Sweden have allowed both men and women to have equal rights to the throne. These reforms were announced in light of the awareness around gender equality.
Personally, as I identify as both Swedish and Japanese, I understand the complexity of this issue. While countries such as Sweden have decided to change the right of succession to promote gender equality, I believe that the primary reason that political leaders in Japan are considering changing it is because of concerns around the possible extinction of the royal family. If the shortage of heirs was not a concern, the ban against women may barely be considered in the first place, which is, in my opinion, alright too.
Conservatives often argue that an empress would make the imperial system illegitimate, since the 2600 year old patrilineal tradition which is essential to the legitimacy of the throne would be broken. There are strict traditions in Japan such as sumo, where women are unable to enter the dohyo (sumo ring). Similarly, women are not able to appear in Kabuki, which is a form of traditional Japanese art which involves singing, dancing, and acting. These traditions have not been broken because Japanese people deeply respect their culture and history. It is likely that it is rooted in a patriarchal ideology, but now that it is seen as a significant part of Japanese culture and history, it is believed that it may be inappropriate to change it.
Currently, Kishida’s (the Prime Minister of Japan) government is assigned to address this issue; however, it seems like the discussions are not bound to end anytime soon. I strongly think that Japan should be able to move towards a non-patriarchal society without changing these customs and traditions. I understand how important tradition is to Japanese culture, and despite living in a world where change seems inevitable, especially in the 21st century, keeping these traditions alive allows Japanese people to feel deeply connected to their culture.
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