TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s beloved Princess Aiko is often as happy as a pop star.
During a visit to Nagasaki with Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, the sound of her name being shouted by well-wishers in the streets cheered for her parents.
As he turns 24 on Monday, his supporters want to change Japan’s male-only succession law that prevents Aiko, the emperor’s only child, from becoming king.
Along with the frustration that discussion of succession rules has stalled, there is a sense of urgency. Japan’s shrinking monarchy is on the verge of extinction. Naruhito’s teenage nephew is the only worthy heir from the younger generation.
Experts say the ban on women should be lifted before the royal family dies, but conservative lawmakers, including Prime Minister Sane Takaichi, oppose the change.
Aiko’s popularity increases the demand for a male king
Aiko has gained fans since her debut as an adult royal in 2021, when she impressed the public as intelligent, friendly, caring and funny.
Support for Aiko as the future king grew after his first solo official foreign trip to Laos in November, representing the emperor. During the six-day visit, he met with high officials of Laotia, visited cultural and historical places and met with locals.
Earlier this year, Aiko went to Nagasaki and Okinawa with her parents. She follows the example set by her father, who places great importance on passing on the tragedy of WWII to the younger generation.
“I’ve always wanted to crown Princess Aiko,” said Setsuko Matsuo, an 82-year-old atomic bombing survivor who arrived at Nagasaki’s Peace Park hours before Aiko and her parents were scheduled to arrive in the region. “I love everything about her, especially her smile … so comforting,” she told The Associated Press at the time.
Mari Mahira, a 58-year-old office worker waiting to cheer Aiko on in Nagasaki, said she had seen Aiko grow up and “now we want to see her become the future king.”
The princess’s popularity has prompted some legislators to push for a change in the law.
Cartoonist Yoshinori Kobayashi has written comic books that push for legal changes to allow Aiko to become king, which supporters continue to send to lawmakers to raise awareness and garner support for the cause.
Others have set up YouTube channels and distributed pamphlets to draw public attention to the issue.
62-year-old Ikuko Yamazaki has been using social media to advocate for the succession of the emperor’s first child. She says that Ai’s insistence on having no heir and a male-only king will lead to the end of the monarchy.
“The succession system reflects the Japanese mindset on gender issues,” Yamazaki said. “I hope that having a female monarch will dramatically improve the status of women in Japan.”
Aiko’s upbringing
The popular princess was born on December 1, 2001.
Soon after giving birth to Aiko, his mother, Masako, a Harvard-educated former diplomat, developed a stress-induced mental condition, apparently due to criticism for not producing a male heir, from which she is still recovering.
Aiko was known as a bright child who, as a sumo fan, memorized the wrestlers’ full names.
However, she also faced difficulties: as an elementary school girl, she missed classes for a short time due to bullying. As a teenager, she looked extremely thin and missed classes for a month.
In 2024, Aiko graduated from Gakushuin University, where her father and many other royals studied. While also working for the Red Cross Society, she attended to her official duties and court rituals. On weekends, she enjoys walking with her parents and playing volleyball, tennis and badminton with the palace officials.
Japan’s monarchy ‘in a fragile state’
The 1947 Imperial House Law allows only male-line succession and forces female royals to lose their royal status.
The rapidly declining imperial family has 16 members, down from 30 three decades ago. All are adults.
Naruhito has only two potential younger male heirs, his 60-year-old younger brother, Crown Prince Akishino, and Akishino’s 19-year-old son, Prince Hisahito. Prince Hitachi, younger brother of former Emperor Akihito and third in line to the throne, is 90 years old.
Akishino acknowledged the aging and shrinking imperial population, “but nothing can be done in the current system.”
“I think all we can do now is measure up to our official duties,” he told reporters ahead of his 60th birthday on Sunday.
Last year, the Crown Prince noted that royals are “human beings” whose lives are affected by the discussion, a subtle but rare comment. He has not seen any changes, although palace officials have taken his comments seriously, Akishino said Sunday.
Aiko has previously said she is aware of the declining royal population, but could not comment on the system. “Under the circumstances, I sincerely hope to fulfill every official duty and assist the Emperor and Empress, as well as other members of the Royal Family.”
The lack of a male heir is a serious concern for the monarchy, which some historians say lasted as long as 1,500 years. It is also a reflection of Japan’s wider problem of a rapidly aging and shrinking population.
“I think the situation is already critical,” said Hideya Kawanishi, a professor at Nagoya University and an expert on the monarchy. Its future depends entirely on the ability of Hisahito and his potential wife to produce male offspring. “Who would want to marry her? If anyone does, she will bear great pressure to produce a male heir while performing official duties in a supernatural capacity.”
Hisahito must shoulder the burden and fortune of the imperial family himself, Shingo Haketa, former head of the Imperial Household Agency, said in an article in the Yomiuri newspaper. “The fundamental question is not whether to allow a male or female line of succession but how to preserve the monarchy.”
Japan’s male-only inheritance system is relatively new
Japan has traditionally had male emperors, but there have also been eight female emperors. The last was Gosakuramachi, who ruled from 1762 to 1770.
The male-only succession rule became law in 1889 and was carried over to the Imperial House Law after 1947.
Experts say the system previously only worked with the help of concubines who, until about 100 years ago, produced half of the emperors of the past.
The government proposed allowing a female monarch in 2005, but Hisahito’s birth allowed nationalists to scrap the proposal.
A fruitless search for a male heir
In 2022, a large conservative expert panel called on the government to maintain its male-line succession and allow female members of the family to retain their royal status after marriage and continue their official duties. Conservatives also proposed adopting male descendants from extinct distant branches of the royal family to continue the male line, an idea seen as unrealistic.
Last year, the United Nations Committee on Women’s Rights in Geneva urged the Japanese government to allow a female emperor, saying that failure to do so would hinder gender equality in Japan.
Japan dismissed the report as “regrettable” and “inappropriate” and said the royal succession was a matter of fundamental national identity.
“Although it is not spelled out, what they are saying is clearly in favor of male superiority. This is their ideal society,” Professor Kawanishi said.
