Japan to Resume Imperial Family Plan Talks Jan. 31

Tokyo, Jan. 23 (Jiji Press)--The two chambers of Japan's parliament plan to resume talks Jan. 31 on measures to secure a sufficient number of Imperial Family members.

The country's ruling and opposition parties have generally agreed in discussions so far that female members should be allowed to remain in the Imperial Family after marriage. The focus is now on whether they can find more common ground in the run-up to this summer's election for the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of parliament.

The Upper House and the House of Representatives, the lower chamber, began the discussions last May, also with an eye on coming up with ways to help ensure stable Imperial succession.

In September, they drew up an interim report stating that parties generally reached a common understanding about allowing married female members to stay in the Imperial Family. This was one of the two main options that were considered, with the other being making it possible for male members in the paternal line of former Imperial Family branches to restore their status through adoption.

After the discussions were suspended following the launch of the administration of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in October, Lower House Speaker Fukushiro Nukaga of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and Vice Speaker Koichiro Genba of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan agreed on Dec. 27 to accelerate the consolidation of opinions among the ruling and opposition blocs.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]