Princess Aiko has soared in popularity since making her public debut in 2021. As the only child of Emperor Naruhito, she would have been next in line to ascend the Chrysanthemum Throne, as Japan's imperial seat is known, were it not for the country's constitution, which disqualifies her because she is a woman.
“Never allow”
"We want her as a future monarch," Mari Maechira, who came to the Peace Park in Nagasaki to catch a glimpse of the princess, told the AP.
She is not alone. Several surveys show that around 80 percent of the population wants the country to have a female line of succession. But that would require a constitutional amendment, something that the country's conservatives oppose.
Not least the country's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, the first woman in office, is against female succession to the throne.
"We must never allow a female emperor or an emperor from a female lineage," Takaichi said in an interview with Japan Today as recently as October this year.
Aging and shrinking
But it is not just the public opinion that makes the conservative line difficult to pursue.
Just as Japan's population ages and shrinks, the imperial family is in decline. In 30 years, it has almost halved to 16 members. Next in line to the throne are the emperor's brother Fumihito, 60, and his son Hisahito, 19, and unmarried.
"Who wants to marry him? If someone does, she will be under enormous pressure to give birth to a male heir to the throne while performing official duties with superhuman capacity," Nagoya University professor Hideya Kawanishi told the AP.
Male supremacy
The UN has said that Japan's current constitution is an obstacle to gender equality in general in the country, but the government has dismissed the criticism as "regrettable" and "inappropriate."
"Although it is not expressed directly, it is clear that the government advocates male supremacy. It is their ideal image of society," says Professor Kawanishi.
Visitors to the Peace Park in Nagasaki have a different idea about which path the country should take.
"I've always hoped that Princess Aiko would be crowned. I like everything about her, especially her smile; it's so comforting," visitor Setsuko Matsuo told the AP.
Japan is an island nation in East Asia and has around 123.9 million inhabitants.
The country is a constitutional monarchy with the emperor as head of state and has a parliament that is governed democratically.
The economy is the world's fourth largest and the country is a leader in the electronics and automotive industries, with strong development after World War II.
Japan has the world's oldest population, with around a third of residents aged 65 or older.
This poses major challenges for society as fewer people of working age will have to support a growing group of elderly people, which hinders economic growth and increases pressure on welfare.
Source: Swedish Institute of International Affairs, UN
