Learn the details about the Abdication of the Emperor
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Hello, and welcome to the Culture Class: News and Current Events in Japan, Season 1 - Lesson 3, Abdication of the Emperor. |
| In August 2016, Emperor Akihito announced his intention to abdicate. In this lesson, we'll learn about this news story. |
Lesson focus |
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| In the Constitution of Japan, the Emperor’s role is defined as the figurehead of Japan and the Japanese people and states that he does not participate in government affairs. |
| The imperial throne is hereditary, and the line of succession is prescribed based on the Imperial Household Law. |
| The imperial throne has been in place for approximately 1,500 years, and is inherited by members of the imperial family. |
| The imperial family is believed to be descended from God and to be symbols of the national faith. |
| Therefore, it was once believed that the family could never be regarded as a target to be defeated while the dynasties which rose on the other continents have been defeated in history. |
| This resulted in continuous, repeated successions of the throne by the same family, which has not been seen anywhere else in the world. |
| However, after the Second World War, a new constitution was enacted, and in a great historic transformation, the Emperor’s role shifted from the position of head of state, which holds sovereignty, to the position of figurehead. |
| In other words, unlike his predecessor Emperor Showa, the current Emperor has been a symbolic emperor since the time of his coronation. |
| This position is unprecedented in the history of the imperial family and is one which the current Emperor has had to explore and define himself. |
| In August 2016, the Emperor announced his intention to abdicate. |
| These words, also known as the “Emperor’s speech in the Heisei era,” impressed a great number of people, and demonstrated once again the responsibilities of a symbolic emperor and how he must respect the Constitution of Japan. |
| It seems that most people are generally supportive of an abdication, however in reality this will not be so easy to achieve. |
| This is because abdication has not been prescribed in the Imperial Household Law as a means for succession of the throne. |
| The Emperor, in his announcement, encouraged the amendment of the law, and this has been interpreted as the Emperor getting involved in national politics. |
| Although many people are sympathetic towards the Emperor, this is something that the current Cabinet cannot ignore. |
| Although a meeting of experts has taken place, opinion is split as to whether to make this a permanent amendment to the Imperial Household Law or to prescribe it temporarily under a special measures law. |
| There are many legal inconsistencies and challenges that must be overcome. |
Outro |
| Those are the key facts about the abdication of the Emperor. |
| If you want to find the related Japanese keywords, make sure to check out the lesson notes. |
| Okay, that’s all for this lesson. Thank you for listening everyone, and keep listening for more of the most talked about news stories in Japan! |
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