TOKYO Kyodo Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida said on Saturday he had sacked a close aide after discriminatory remarks he recently made against sexual minorities came to light.
Masayoshi Arai, a top bureaucrat who served as executive secretary to Kishida, said on Friday he would not want to live next door to an LGBT couple and that he does not want to look at them. Arai later in the day retracted the comments, made off-the- record to reporters, after they were made public by the media.
Kishida, who has recently struck a cautious note about recognizing same-sex marriage, told reporters earlier Saturday that Arai's comments can't force the Cabinet to consider his future.
Kishida said executive secretary Arai's remarks completely contradict the government's policy and are inexcusable.
Arai said that if same-sex marriage is introduced in Japan, it would change the way society is and that there are quite a few people who would abandon this country. Arai later apologized and withdrew comments after Japanese media made them public. He said the remarks did not reflect Kishida's thinking. The remarks came after Kishida expressed caution about the legality of same-sex marriage at a parliamentary session last week.
Kishida said that we need to be very careful in considering the matter, as it could affect the structure of family life in Japan. Many lawsuits have been filed across the nation by same-sex couples.
Many members of the conservative Democratic Party led by Kishida oppose same-sex marriage, citing what they say are the country's traditional values such as the role of women in raising children.
Arai's comments will likely prompt the left-leaning opposition bloc to grill Kishida over his fundamental views on the family in Japan during the current Diet session, which began January 23, according to political experts.
Late last year, the LGBT issue attracted renewed attention when LDP - lawmaker Mio Sugita, the then parliamentary vice minister for internal affairs and communications, was forced to retract past remarks against sexual minority couples.
Japan is the only nation in the Group of Seven that does not recognize same-sex marriage or civil unions.