Upper House to Pass Bill Revising Imperial House Law on Fri.

Tokyo, July 16 (Jiji Press)--The government-sponsored bill to revise the Imperial House Law cleared a special committee of the House of Councillors on Thursday and is set to be approved at a plenary meeting of the Upper House on Friday.

In the committee vote, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party-Japan Innovation Party coalition and three opposition parties--the Democratic Party for the People, Komeito and Sanseito backed the bill, while the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan opposed it, along with the Japanese Communist Party and Reiwa Shinsengumi.

The bill is designed to secure a sufficient number of Imperial Family members by allowing the Imperial Family to adopt male, paternal-line descendants of the 11 former Imperial Family branches and by retaining female Imperial Family members within the Imperial institution after marriage.

The CDP proposed deleting the bill's clause on adoptees and identifying the status of the husbands and children of female Imperial Family members as future issues, but this proposal was voted down.

Meanwhile, the special committee adopted a supplementary resolution calling for considering changes in the environment surrounding the Imperial Family when the revised law is reviewed in the future.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]