In Tokyo, 10 mayors ask for more LGBTQIA rights

Ten mayors in Tokyo ask for more rights for same-sex couples

The request by ten mayors of the Tokyo metropolitan area was made in early December and asks for equal civil rights and privileges for same-sex couples.

Satoko Kishimoto (Mayor of Suginami Ward) to the Japan Times: “It is essential to establish same-sex marriage by law.

According to the mayors who signed the appeal to the Tokyo government, gay couples do not have equal opportunities in employment, housing and education. There is also a lack of health insurance for dependent family members. The ten mayors are calling for a law to be passed to put homosexual marriage on an equal footing with heterosexual marriage.

Despite the fact that 70% of the Japanese population is in favour of equal marriage, successive Tokyo governments have never approved it.

The Tokyo High Court’s ruling that the ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional has also increased pressure on the government, but the ruling conservative Liberal Democratic Party has always avoided addressing the issue.

2025 could be a turning point for civil rights for LGBTQIA citizens in Japan, thanks to new Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who has said he is in favour of recognising same-sex marriage.