TOKYO – LGBTQ rights activists are hoping that Japan will finally allow same-sex marriage if Taro Kono, who has publicly supported such unions, becomes the country’s next prime minister.
However, change will not come easily.
Kono is seen as the leading contender to win the ruling party’s leadership vote tomorrow and become prime minister.
Of the four candidates for the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leadership, Kono and Seiko Noda have supported gay marriage. In Asia, such marriages are only legal in Taiwan.
The fact that same-sex marriage, long seen as a cultural flashpoint among conservatives in Japan, is even being discussed in the leadership race shows how much wider acceptance the issue has garnered among lawmakers and the public, said activists.
“It’s great that he (Kono) clearly supported same-sex marriage, and it’s significant that this came from someone inside LDP” during a leadership race, said Gon Matsunaka, an LGBTQ rights activist here.
Same-sex marriage is not legal in Japan, but there has been a gradual move to broaden acceptance of gay couples.
“This shows the extent that the LGBTQ rights movement has moved forward here – same-sex marriage was just never raised as an issue in previous leadership races,” said Makiko Terahara, a lawyer who heads an organisation that campaigns for gay marriage.
Since Shibuya ward here became the first municipality to issue certificates recognising same-sex partners in 2015, some 100 local governments have followed suit to cover over a third of the country’s population. The certificates recognise same-sex couples, but provide limited legal rights.
A March poll by the Asahi newspaper found that 65% of respondents support gay marriage, while 22% are opposed.
Despite the public backing, political change will be a different matter, said advocates.
“It’s a very big thing that he (Kono) is in favour, but if he becomes PM, will he quickly make this happen?... I think that’ll be kind of hard,” said Takeharu Kato, a lawyer involved in a landmark ruling that states disallowing same-sex marriage is unconstitutional.
Kono has also come out in support of separate surnames for married couples and allowing heirs of female lineage to succeed the imperial throne.
The timing and careful wording of his statement suggest that it is a strategic move to capture support among more progressive party members, said experts.
“(Kono) seems to think that his best shot at victory is being the overwhelming choice of not just the grassroots, but among the electorate as a whole,” said Tobias Harris, a senior fellow at the Centre for American Progress. – Reuters, September 28, 2021
