Japan’s capital, Tokyo, plans to recognise same-sex partnerships from April 2022, after opinion surveys outlined the public is largely supportive of equal marriage rights. Legalising same-sex marriage isn’t on the cards for Japan right now, “the long-ruling and conservative Democrat party has shown little enthusiasm for change,” according to TIME, but simple recognition is a significant move in the right direction.
Japan is the only country in the G7 to not legalize same-sex unions in any form. As we’ve seen in many other countries, recognizing same-sex couples on a basic level increases gay/lesbian representation, reduces stigma, and often leads to equal marriage rights.
Removing the fear-of-the-unknown surrounding homosexuality is possible within the upcoming legal framework. “From the point of view of advancing understanding of sexual diversity, as well as reducing the problems faced by those involved, we will lay out basic principles for introducing a same-sex partnership system in the next fiscal year,” Governor Yuriko Koike recently said in an assembly meeting.
There is hope that the change will put pressure on the national government to recognize the need for full marriage equality in Japan. “The lack of full marriage equality is seen by several international corporations as hampering efforts to attract talent to Japan,” according to TIME. “Same-sex partners from overseas can face difficulty in obtaining visas and renting accommodation.”
“This is a significant milestone for Japan,” said Masa Yanagisawa, who is head of Prime Services Japan at Goldman Sachs and on the board for Marriage For All. “Hopefully, this will have some sort of domino effect on other local governments.”
Yanagisawa has pointed out, however, that while it’s a step in the right direction, this isn’t equality. Basic partnership recognition still disregards inheritance issues and same-sex couples’ access to government services. National coverage about the planned change has been inconsistent across the country, which Yanagisawa believes is deliberate and unfair.
Marriage afforded to heterosexual Japanese couples is outlined in Article 24 of the Japanese Constitution. It states: “marriage shall be based only on the mutual consent of both sexes and it shall be maintained through mutual cooperation with the equal rights of husband and wife as a basis.”
The heterosexual-only interpretation of the Article has been the basis for viewing same-sex marriage as permanently impossible. “Marriage shall be based only on the mutual consent of both sexes,” has been used as a “key point of contention in lawsuits filed by same-sex couples arguing that the current system barring from from officially tying the not is unconstitutional,” according to Japan’s National Daily, The Mainichi.
Despite the new move not affording complete equal rights to same-sex couples, it means half the population of Tokyo will live in areas where same-sex partnerships are recognized.
