In the rare video message, Akihito said old age and illness may make it hard for him to fulfill his public duties. Image copyright AP Image caption This man bowed towards the Imperial Palace whilst listening to Emperor Akihito’s speech.
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A couple looks at television screens showing a speech to the nation by Japanese Emperor Akihito.
Japan’s Emperor Akihito took to the airwaves Monday in his second ever public address to the nation to announce that he can no longer fully perform his duties as emperor, hinting at the possibility of stepping down as emperor of Japan.
Abdication is not mentioned under existing laws, so they would need to be changed for the emperor to be able to stand down.
Emperor Akihito, 82, said in the 10-minute pre-recorded message he feared his age and failing health could impact his ability to fulfill his duties as a symbol of the state.
The emperor is constitutionally not allowed to make any political statements, and the desire to abdicate could be seen as being political.
It can then begin creating the legal mechanism which now does not exist.
“In light of the Emperor’s age and the current state of the burden of duties on him, we would like to give profound consideration to his anxieties and have full discussions about what can be done”, Abe told a press conference in Nagasaki.
According to a nationwide telephone survey by Kyodo News agency this month, almost 90 percent of the respondents said Akihito is given too much work, while more than 85 percent said an abdication should be legalized as an option to Akihito and his successors.
“Changing that will reflect the reality of Japanese society first of all, the way that nearly all people here feel about working and life and career building”, said Robert Campbell, a University of Tokyo professor and expert on Japanese history and culture. “That’s why he can’t ask directly”. The last time an emperor abdicated the throne in Japan was 1817.
A survey by the Asahi Shimbun daily published Monday showed that 84 percent of people surveyed backed the idea.
However, Akihito did appear to address the issue indirectly, commenting on his poor health (he has had cancer and heart surgery in recent years) as a possible segue to a discussion of what might be possible if the emperor can not perform his duties.
Public reaction to the speech was sympathetic. Naruhito, 56, is first in line to the Chrysanthemum throne, followed by his younger brother, Prince Akishino, 50, whose 9-year-old son is ranked third.
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The only other time he spoke to the nation this way was after the 2011 natural disaster and tsunami.
