Ryuta Watanabe: Unraveling Japan's Polygamous Lifestyle and Legal Controversy

2024-01-22 17:16:16

Ryuta Watanabe, 35 years old and living in Sapporo, Hokkaido, has left the audience perplexed by revealing details about his unusual lifestyle in a recent interview. In a December episode of the entertainment program “Abema Prime,” He shared that he shares his life with four “wives” and two girlfriends, and that his goal is to surpass the surprising historical record of the shogun Tokugawa Ienari, known for having approximately 53 children with a harem of 27 concubines. during his reign in the Edo period between 1787 and 1837.

Watanabe, who has chosen to be a “househusband” for the last decade, financing his life through the salaries of his wives and girlfriends, detailed how he handles living with his multiple partners. He revealed that each of his three wives has their own room, and he follows a schedule to sleep in the corresponding room each night. Although he lives with his wives, Watanabe said his fourth wife, 24, resides separately from the group.

The polygamous man openly expressed his desire to have 54 children, thus surpassing the feat of Tokugawa Ienari. “I want my name to remain in history“He stated during the interview. Surprisingly, Watanabe is still searching for a new wife to join his peculiar family.

Watanabe’s legal status has also generated interest, as polygamous unions are illegal in Japan. He explained an alleged legal “trick” that involves marrying one of his wives, getting divorced, and then marrying the next. However, the viability of this legal solution in your circumstances remains uncertain.

Internet users have compared these extraordinary events with the plot of the franchise “Kanojo mo Kanojo (Girlfriend, Girlfriend)”, where the character Naoya Mukai decides to date simultaneously with two girls who know and accept the situation, the curious convergence between real life and fiction stands out. Although the fictional story has comic and eccentric elements, Watanabe’s reality raises questions about the limits of relationships and the various surprises that contemporary society can offer.

The online reaction continues to be one of astonishment, with many users expressing disbelief at Watanabe’s ability to maintain such a polygamous lifestyle and the audacity to share it publicly:

«Our friend is on a solo mission to solve Japan’s birth crisis.».
«I seem to remember that a few years ago an article was published on the BBC News website about the investigations being carried out on him, which talked about human trafficking due to his frequent flights through East Asia and the great number of women (and children) traveling with him. I don’t think it would come to anything».
«This seems more like a case of grooming than harem anime. She is about 30 years old and most of her colleagues are in their twenties. The one on the top left is 22 and has two children. In the best case scenario (apart from twins), she, at the age of 20, immediately fell in love with a 33-year-old man who already had several partners, and immediately gave birth to 2 children following her. In the worst case, a man in his 30s approached a barely legal, or perhaps not yet legal, girl and groomed her to become his wife for a few years.».
«Ironically, Shinzo Abe’s strongest soldier, may he rest in peace».
«This is what Shinzo Abe wanted Japan to be».
«Huh…well…I hope the guy has a good job. Because harems are so expensive… just for appearance. Especially if he has children».
«He is a stay-at-home dad who takes care of household chores. The truth is that this situation seems a little strange at first glance, but if he contributes to the household and makes sure that the women in his life have a happy home to return to after a day of work, who are we to judge him».
«I imagine it’s a long-term play for him too, since the women seem to be paying only for the upkeep of the house and he probably has zero savings. By having more and more children, in Japanese society where children are expected to help take care of parents, he will divide the burden of caring for him in the future among dozens of children, which generally decreases the cost of each son. If he really has 50 children, each of them will be able to give him 100 dollars a month and he will have a great retirement».
«I don’t know. I feel like she is going to have relationship problems later. If the number of handcuffs continues to increase, that will be unmanageable. And so many kids means that most of them probably won’t have a good relationship with him when they’re old enough to understand what’s going on. Imagine being one of the 54 children. Also imagine the potential bullying when other children find out».
«I think there’s probably something more nefarious here than the media realizes, this reeks of creepy».
«Would polygamy really solve the Japanese birth rate?».