Monday, August 01, 2005

Empress of Japan?

I've always had a bit of a soft spot for Japanese culture and it's heartening to hear that the rules may be changed to allow women to ascend to the throne after 26 centuries of it being forbidden.

Of course, nothing has been decided yet and there are thjose who would prefer to see the number of royal families increased from the current three to ensure that a male heir takes over. The worry is that by allowing now 3-year old Princess Aiko to become Empress, the line of succession will be transferred from the male line for the first time ever.

There seems to be a lot of public support for the idea of a female rule and I personally don't see the distinction between male and female lines of descent. Arguing that a male line is preferred is like saying that male DNA is somehow superior.

A final decision is expected by November.

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