Big Win For LGBT Rights In Japan As Court Rules ‘Not Allowing Same-Sex Marriage Is Unconstitutional’

Last updated on May 31st, 2023 at 06:38 am

In a significant step towards marriage equality in the only G7 nation with no legal protection for same-sex unions, the Nagoya District Court in central Japan ruled on Tuesday that not allowing same-sex marriage was unconstitutional.

The ruling is the second out of four cases over the last two years to find a ban against same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. It is expected to offer additional momentum for efforts toward marriage equality.

Although a number of opinion polls in Japan show around 70% of the public is in favour of same-sex marriage, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) opposes it.

Covering roughly 65% of the population, same-sex couples are now allowed to enter partnership agreements in over 300 Japanese municipalities.

But the rights are limited in scope: partners can’t have parental rights to each other’s children and aren’t allowed to inherit each other’s assets as well. Hospital visits aren’t guaranteed.

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Kishida in February dismissed an aide who triggered major outrage by saying people would start fleeing Japan if same-sex marriages were made legal. But the prime minister still maintains caution around it and has called for careful discussions.

Japan – the world’s third-largest economy – is considered relatively liberal in general. But conservative attitudes have made the LGBT community there largely invisible. Taiwan made headlines in 2019 by legalising same-sex marriages – becoming the first place in Asia to do so.

Japan would need to pass a new law before same-sex marriages could actually become a reality. The country has been under increasing pressure lately to change, both from other G7 members but also from economic lobbies – with businesses stressing greater diversity is the key to international competitiveness.