Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio said on February 4 that he had fired a close aide because of his discriminatory statements about homosexuals and transgender people.
According to Nikkei, Masayoshi Arai, former Executive Secretary of Mr. Kishida, said yesterday (February 3) that he does not want to live next to lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender couples and that he even don’t even want to see them. The official is said to have even warned people to flee Japan if same-sex marriage is allowed.
Speaking to reporters this morning, Prime Minister Kishida Fumio said Mr Arai’s comments forced the cabinet to consider his future. “Executive Secretary Arai’s statement completely goes against the government’s policies and is inexcusable,” Mr Kishida said.
Mr. Arai said that if same-sex marriage was allowed in Japan, it would change the way society views and many people would leave the country. Mr Arai later apologized and retracted his words after his words were published by the media. The comments come after Mr Kishida expressed caution at a parliamentary session last week about legalizing same-sex marriage.
“We need to be extremely careful in considering this issue, because it affects the structure of family life in Japan,” Kishida said.
Many members of Kishida’s Liberal Democratic Party have opposed same-sex marriage, citing traditional Japanese values, such as the role of women in raising children.
Hoai Linh