Government Panel Begins Debate on Woman Ascending Japanese Throne

[Tsiyu]

TOKYO (AP) - The head of a government panel debating revisions to Japan's imperial succession law said Tuesday that public opinion, which strongly supports allowing a woman to reign, would be the most important factor in their discussions.
Japan's royals are facing their most serious succession crisis in centuries, with no boy born to the imperial family since the 1960s and the current law barring women from ascending the ancient Chrysanthemum Throne.

Increasing pressure to amend the succession law prodded the government to announce last month that it was setting up a 10-member panel to examine legal revisions.

After its first meeting Tuesday, the panel's chair, Hiroyuki Yoshikawa, acknowledged the delicacy of overhauling the world's oldest monarchy, which holds no political power but carries immense symbolic weight in Japan.
http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBIJADCE4E.html

[demnan]

1. I have an easy solution to all this

They could let the girl marry a Windsor. And I know a fascist-loving red-haired one who is available.

[nickinSTL]

2. What?

You have any clue what you're talking about?

1. The Princess marrying wouldn't change the need for a change in the law, as the Prince you refer to wouldn't have the right to succeed in Japan

2. The Princess is THREE YEARS OLD. And you want to marry her to a 20 year old?

It's about time they changed the law. It needs to be done. Princess Aiko should have the right to succeed her father, the Crown Prince, when the time comes.

[demnan]

4. No, of course I wasn't serious

:D

[AngryAmish]

3. She should have to get a job

Seriously, what right does she have, even nominally, to rule a nation of millions of people? I am always suprised when royalty is discussed on DU. Do you people really want someone to rule you without your consent?

Even nominal rulers suck taxpayers dry with palaces, security, etc. It also does not help that a certain percentage of the Japanese people think the Emporer is God. There are rightly a great hue and cry about the seperation of church and state in our nation, but could you imagine being a liberal Japanese person and have an official state religion that you don't suscribe to and your tax dollars/yen are spent to support the religion.

Bottom line: Should that little girl succeed her father. Hell, no. She should be put in public school. Her parents should be forced to make a living. I'm sure with a decent education and training she would make a fine gas station attendant or perhaps a dishwasher.

[TahitiNut]

5. The celebration of 'royalty' is detestible, imho.

Millenia of abuses and tyranny ... the inheritance of an entitlement to pillage the products of the labors of others ... totally detestible. How many thousands and thousands people died impoverished and broken over the centuries to build the House of Windsor wealth? For what? Because their ancestors were 'good' at killing people and then fucked enough to have descendants? Detestible.

[MasonJar]

6. I have to differ with you. Just because the US chose not to have

a monarch does not mean that some countries do not want such an ruler. I do not think that our so-called democracy has worked so well (especially the past 5 years) that we have the right to decide anything for any other country. In addition, they did not ask nor will they. And as to Prince Harry..he is a kid. As all kids he makes stupid errors and will continue to do so I'm sure. It's called growing up. But I dare say that he will be on his best a long time before our prince presumptive does anything worthwhile, and he is almost 6 mentally and 60 literally.

[AngryAmish]

7. I'm speechless

All royalty is enforced at the point of a gun. They either they personally seized power through violence or their ancestors did. Do you really want this sort of survival of the fittest to determine your ruler?

Like all military dictators, royalty is per se bad.

I also know much royalty is no longer in power, but kept for traditions sake. But, they are still leeches.