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Kyodo

Japan’s largest opposition party is seeking to push forward a legal revision to enable married couples to have separate surnames by urging some members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to join hands with it.
The development comes as a deep divide surfaced within the LDP led by Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga as to whether to introduce such an alternative to a single surname per couple.
Yukio Edano, head of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, plans to call for adopting a revision to the Civil Code, which opposition forces submitted in 2018 to introduce separate surnames, in the regular parliamentary session starting later this month.
“Let’s make it clear who in the LDP is opposed to it and who is not in the plenary session,” Edano said in a video post on Twitter dated December 18, telling LDP members supportive of separate surnames, “We can make this pass the Diet.”
In Japan, Shinzo Abe’s ‘cherry blossom’ scandal has soured his legacy – but Suga stands to benefit, analysts say
Under Japanese laws, a couple must choose between either of their surnames upon marriage. While the rule is applicable to either, as it is women who change their surnames more than 90 per cent of the cases, it has been criticised as discriminatory.
Suga was supportive of the change long before becoming prime minister, and he even suggested in a Diet session in November that he remains committed to introducing the option.
But in an interview broadcasted live online the following month, Suga called for “taking things slowly” in light of a rift within his party that surfaced in compiling the government’s basic gender equality promotion policy for the next five years.
“It became quite a debate within the party,” he admitted in the programme, adding he hopes people do not get “too emotional” over the topic.
In late December, the government approved the policy, which, however, failed to include a commitment to allowing married couples to use different surnames.

Its initial draft acknowledged some people are suffering by being unable to keep their surnames and called for a parliamentary debate.
But after going through revisions at LDP meetings, the final policy only vaguely stated, “Further considerations will be made on the surnames of married couples.”
“In the Liberal Democratic Party, even when the prime minister and the minister in charge of the issue make supportive statements, the rearguard overturns them,” Edano said following the revisions.
Conservative members of the LDP claim having separate surnames damages the unity of a family, while more liberal members say introducing the option will help people, mostly women, who have been inconvenienced by having to alter their surnames.

Speaking at a press conference in early December, Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said, “I would be against it if it were a system that requires people to have separate surnames, but if it is just about allowing the option, I have no reason to oppose it.”
The CDPJ is adding pressure on Suga to exercise leadership over the matter, particularly as the LDP’s junior coalition ally Komeito has been pro-change.
“The LDP should squarely face social change and make a decision suited to the times,” Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi said in early December.
A recent survey conducted by a civic group targeting people under 60 has shown more than 70 per cent of respondents were supportive of having the option of separate surnames.
In addition, the Supreme Court is expected to rule on the constitutionality of the same surname rule as it announced it will hold a trial on the issue with all 15 judges.
The move comes amid a lack of progress in a parliamentary debate on the issue despite the top court calling for it when it ruled in 2015 that the same surname clause is constitutional in a 10-5 vote.


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Japan

Japan opposition party pushing divided Liberal Democratic Party over separate surnames for married couples

Under current Japanese laws, a couple must choose between either of their surnames upon marriage. Photo AFP

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga talks to the press after meeting with ministers at his office in Tokyo on Dec. 31, 2020. Tokyo reported over 1,300 new infection cases, a record high, the same day. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Yukio Edano, head of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, addresses a meeting of the party's senior lawmakers in Tokyo on June 18, 2019. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is facing criticism for a third wave of coronavirus cases that appears to have been exacerbated by his drive to restart economic activity. Photo: Kyodo

People wearing face masks to help prevent the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus walk along Sensoji temple shopping street in the Asakusa district of Tokyo on January 2, 2021. - Tokyo's governor asked the central government to declare a new state of emergency as the country battles a third wave of coronavirus, with the capital reporting record new cases. (Photo by Behrouz MEHRI / AFP)

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Former prime minister Shinzo Abe speaks during a House of Representatives committee session in Tokyo on Thursday about allegations his camp illegally paid for dinner receptions attended by his supporters. Photo: Kyodo

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga speaks to reporters at the prime minister's office in Tokyo, Monday, Dec. 28, 2020. Suga says he plans to submit legislation that will make coronavirus measures legally binding for businesses, punish violators and include economic compensation as his government struggles to slow the ongoing upsurge.(Kyodo News via AP)

Will Japan PM Suga’s new gender equality plan make any difference after Abe’s ‘womenomics’ policy falls short?

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks during an interview in Tokyo earlier this month. Photo: Kyodo

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga speaks to reporters at his office in Tokyo on Nov. 19, 2020. He said Japan is on "maximum alert" after the country hit a daily record of more than 2,000 new coronavirus cases the previous day. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Commuters wearing face masks to protect against the spread of the coronavirus walk on a street in Tokyo, Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020. Japan has set a record for its daily new cases exceeding 2,100 cases of the coronavirus, the health ministry said Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020 as Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga called for maximum caution but without asking for restrictions on traveling or business activities. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga speaks during a House of Representatives Budget Committee session in Tokyo on Nov. 2, 2020. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Pedestrians cross a road in Shinbashi, Tokyo. Photo: Bloomberg

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Under Japanese laws, a couple must choose between either of their surnames upon marriage
A legal revision would enable married couples to have separate surnames



A deep divide surfaced within the LDP led by Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga as to whether to introduce such an alternative to a single surname per couple.


Japan opposition party pushing divided Liberal Democratic Party over separate surnames for married couples

Under Japanese laws, a couple must choose between either of their surnames upon marriage A legal revision would enable married couples to have separate surnames

Under Japanese laws, a couple must choose between either of their surnames upon marriage

A legal revision would enable married couples to have separate surnames