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© Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.LGBT groups want equality law in Japan before Tokyo Olympics
By MARI YAMAGUCHI TOKYO©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.
35 Comments
Paul14
Get married ?
Howaitosan
Then you haven't been paying attention. I am legally married in my home country (NZ) and my adopted country (Australia), but not in the country I am living in and that my husband is a citizen of - Japan.
As soon as I step through immigration, I am suddenly a single person.
I can't apply for a spousal Visa because my totally legal marriage, which is recognised in an increasing number of countries, is not recognised here.
Other Japanese citizens legally married (to opposite sex spouses) in other countries are allowed to apply for a spousal visa - why can't I? My marriage is legal in the country in which it occurred, as are theirs. The Japanese Government even formally approved of our marriage, as per Japanese law - yet the Government here refuses to acknowledge it once we are actually in the country.
As you see - the law does NOT apply equally to all persons.
What I would like to know is what are all those conservative who oppose Marriage Equality so afraid of?
Howaitosan
I know - we just have to wait for the conservatives to move on. But at 64 I've been fighting these battles (and hearing the same tired old arguments from the nay-sayers) for well over 40 years now.
I find it hard to comprehend that there are still people in countries like Japan who can't cope with this idea.
Howaitosan
Having to lie about who you love all the time is actually really tough. You are constantly having to change pronouns in conversation, and the fact that a person can be legally fired from their job or kicked out of their accommodation (yes - it happens) is unacceptable in any socially advanced society.
I remember when the law changed in Australia not that long ago; the difference was noticeable. It sends a message to the whole country - including those conservatives who won't change their minds no matter what - that any kind of discrimination is unacceptable.
I always ask those who want to know why the law should be changed to substitute the word "Jew" or "Black" for "Gay" and see if they still feel as comfortable saying those people shouldn't be allowed to marry.
Howaitosan
A LGBT person can't marry the person they love (who is not their relative, mentally unfit, or under 18) and want to spend the rest of their life with.
A heterosexual person can.
The law does NOT apply equally to all persons.
William77
Yeah good luck with that.
Japan will for sure make some pro laws for them just to in time for the Olympics to show to the world how civilized they suddenly became.
Then after the Olympics are over they will revert to their true inner core full of ultra conservatism with a good touch of bigotry.
Howaitosan
Can you think of a logical reason to deny them the right to do that? Or why people shouldn't be allowed to marry their pets?
This is rubbish and you know it.
All you are doing is trotting out the same tired, old arguments I have heard from frightened conservatives all my adult life; the "then end of the wedge" - which, not unsurprisingly, has NEVER happened in any country that has legalised Same-sex marriage in the two decades that have passed since The Netherlands legalised it.
The fact is that the world is changing and changing for the better when people are offered equality under the law.
You can either accept that, or try to fight it - but you can't stop it.
Nator
It is rubbish and you know it.
Equality doesn't mean 'no two people (or more) who love each other and request a marriage certificate should be denied that right.', it means the laws and opportunities should be applied equally to all.
Allowing women to have a driving license doesn't mean allowing blind people to have a driving license.
Even if it was as you say, I still don't get what your issue is. Allowing LGBT+ people to get married is surely a step closer to equality than the current situation. It's a step closer to your ideal of allowing fathers to marry their sons or whatever you are hoping for.
Michael Machida
"LGBT groups want equality law in Japan before Tokyo Olympics"
And I want a pot of gold before the Tokyo Olympics.
Howaitosan
Incest between heterosexuals has been shown to significantly increase the likelihood of genetic defects in their offspring.
That one is so obvious I wonder why you bothered to include it.
As you said - the law applies to those with mental health issues - such as unreasonable fear of people who don't cause society any harm.
On what grounds are you continuing to say that legal-age Japanese citizens should be denied the same rights to marry the person they love as most other legal-age Japanese citizens?
Howaitosan
If it's "exactly the same" as marriage, why not call it marriage?
Giving it a separate name diminishes its value as an acknowledgement of two peoples' commitment to one another. The word 'marriage' is the only word that encompasses everything that goes with such a commitment.
What negative consequences have their been in any country which has allowed LGBT couples to marry?
There is only ONE consequence - more people get married.
What could possibly be wrong with that?
Lazarus Knows
Why not apply this to heterosexual couples, too? Just abolish marriage, and make it all a civil partnership. That's fair, isn't it?
Howaitosan
Perhaps if people took the issue of discrimination and Human Rights seriously we wouldn't have to make so much noise about it.
Toasted Heretic
It's not like they have to attend any of the weddings.
It's down to fear that they'll "catch the gay" if they're seen supporting equality, or down to religious beliefs and/or the environment they were raised in.
Sad.
Yotomaya
The comment sections under these articles clearly show that the fight for equality of the LGBT+ community is far from over.
Let's see if there is at least one positive thing Japan's obsession it's outward image ahead of the Olympics can bring.
girl_in_tokyo
Bandit Today 06:10 pm JST
So what?
The Avenger
Human rights" is a meaningless concept. Only individual rights can exist or be violated.
Robert Cikki
Activists submitted a petition with over 106,000 signatures to Japan's ruling party Thursday, calling for an LGBT equality law to be enacted before the Tokyo Games
I can imagine the old chaps at the ruling party having a good laugh, several sexist remarks, maybe some "enlightened one" saying like ああああ、難しね. Then they will look into it and that'll be it.
Howaitosan
Bandit
Where did you hear that?
didou
@Howaitosan
Relax. It is like smoking pot, legal in some countries, prohibited in others like here. Be patient, it is a question of time.
Bandit
Howaitosan:
From wikipedia. For example, in Netherlands
"The lesbian divorce rate is much higher than the divorce rate between men: in the same period on average 100 women and 45 men divorced per year (i.e., Lesbian divorce rate = 14%, Gay Male divorce rate = 7%).[15]
A study tracking married couples over a 10 year span found lesbian marriages were most likely to end in divorce. Of the 580 lesbian couples who were married in 2005, 30% were divorced ten years later compared to 18% for heterosexual couples and 15% for gay male couples"
Bandit
@Zahood
What's wrong with Canada's gender equality? Do you refer male [transgender] inmates in women's prisons? Or something even more ridiculous?
Bandit
I am against calling civil unions between LGBT partners as "marriage". If it were the same thing, how would you explain extremely high divorce rate between lesbians? For the lack of rational explanation, it is apples and oranges for me.
Zaphod
Gender discrimination is illegal already. Now if they are talking about protecting "gender identity", just look Canada to where that insanity leads. I hope Japan is sane enough not to go down that road.
snowymountainhell
Really? @BurningBush 6:49am. This is early to ‘start a fire’? If we may paraphrase the LGBTQIA ‘gatekeepers’:
Gaijinjland
Law is just a piece of paper really. It really is meaningless and won’t stop discrimination. I’m an LGBT supporter but enacting a law isn’t going to stop bigotry against these people. And really, the Lesbians, Gays, bisexuals don’t face that much discrimination anyway. It’s the Trans community who are targeted, assaulted, killed most because they stick out the most.
Thomas Tank
The requirement for transgenders to get their reproductive organs removed is flawed because it lends validity to the idea that one can change their sex.
Thomas Tank
What's fair is giving the same privileges. We don't have to call them the same thing. By giving non-heterosexual couples a different naming, everybody can avoid awkward situations where someone assumes someone else's situation. By having a separate name we can distinguish, understand and coexist. Non-heterosexual people want the same RIGHTS, correct? What else is it about our marriage that you find so attractive??
Shinichi Hamada
Perhaps if the LGBTQ crowd would stop blowing their horn every two seconds about "rights" people might take them seriously.
Thomas Tank
Pressure forces them to hide their identity. Yet they want protection from being "outed". Sounds like they want their identity secret. Problem is that no two people are alike, straight or otherwise. This leads people thinking they are some kind of "other" gender when in reality, it's just their personality. And that's fine. Love who you want. But don't expect me to approve of what you do. I don't have to like it. I don't have to like you. I don't even have to accept you. I regularly exclude people from my life based on how I feel about them. And unless they were hiding their sexuality very well, I have blocked way more straight people out of my life than non-straight. It seems non-straight people feel entitled to being accepted and liked by all. Sorry (not sorry) but you're not and we don't have to.
Funny thing is I think the vast majority of non-straight people keep to themselves and don't make a fuss. It's a small group of angry individuals who just want to cause problems.