Junichiro Koizumi, the Prime Minister of Japan wants to repeat the history once again, by introducing a law that will bring female successors to the Chrysanthemum Throne. By the phrase ‘repeating history’, I would like to tell you that prior to the complete rooting out of Female succession in 1889 by the 1889 Meiji constitution, Japan did had eight empresses. But this happened only if there was no viable male to take the throne.



Once again Koizumi has pledged to bring back the old rules, but this time with a variation. The legal and constitutional experts recommended that, regardless of gender, the eldest child of the reigning monarch should succeed.

And this way the recommendations are that Princess Aiko, granddaughter of the 72-year-old Emperor Akihito, should become first in line to succeed her father but that for the first time in more than 15 centuries Imperial succession could pass through the female line. This means the country is all set to see the ‘woman power’... Indeed a moment of great proud for women.



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