Considering Wider Use of Maiden Name

Sanae Takaichi Cabinet approved 6th Basic Plan for Gender Equality on March 13th. The plan for the first time includes government’s consideration of “single description” of maiden name on official documents for convenience of married person in business or other opportunities. As rightwing lawmakers have been opposing dual surname system, Takaichi made one step forward to a flexible use of maiden name. 

With a momentum of International Women’s Year of 1975, Japan has promoted measures for gender equality by setting up a section for the issue in the government. It legislated a basic act for gender equality in 2000. To implement principles provided in the law, including respect for human rights of men and women or improvement of institution in the society, the Japanese government has issued policy packages for gender equality. It released the 6th plan in March 2026.

 

Along with measures for enhancing treatment for woman, who are in less preferable situation in working, the 6th plan refers to situation of using surname in Japanese society for the first time. “We are grappling with broadening use of maiden name, including legislation for enabling single description of maiden name,” says the plan, concerning inconvenience for the people who changed surname after marriage.

 

Article 750 of the Civil Code of Japan says that a married couple needs to have a surname of husband or wife. Article 6 of Family Registration Act that a family registration should be made by a married couple and their children with the same surname. Japan’s unique family registration system is based on a notion that members of a family would use single common surname.

 

Although there are demands to use the same surname before and after marriage, as women became taking opportunities of going out of home and working. Backed by conservative people who are afraid of collapse of family system in Japan by using maiden name in offices, Takaichi has been reluctant to introducing dual surname system. However, it is obviously inconvenient for the people who use maiden name in business to have a passport with a different name. Passport requires a surname in family registration after marriage.

 

Takaichi administration promotes economic growth with participation of women. Instead of introducing dual surname system, Takaichi decided to consider legally allowing a married people to officially use their maiden name. A holder of Japan’s passport can currently use both officially-registered surname and maiden name. It will be the key point whether people can choose one of the two names in their passport.

 

However, a passport of Japan is tightly connected with family registration. Takaichi is not willing to change current family registration system. It is still possible that passport will be left behind from broad use of maiden name, still requiring registered surname on the first page of it.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

LDP Kickoffs Presidential Election

The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)   kicked off  its presidential election campaign on September 22 and five lawmakers officially submitted their candidacy to the party. Having lost majority in both Houses of the Diet under the leadership of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, the presidential election should be about how to regain power through reform of the party. Nevertheless, the candidates do not talk much about the reform, rather focusing on economic policies for the people or maneuvers to attract the opposition parties.   Those five candidates are former Minister on Economic Security Takayuki Kobayashi, former LDP Secretary General Toshimitsu Motegi, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, former Minister on Economic Security Sanae Takaichi and Miniser of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Shinjiro Koizumi.   Kobayashi insists on temporary income tax cut with a fixed rate, which return is bigger for high-income taxpayers than them with low-income. Identifying h...
Read more

Defense Ministers Meet in Seoul

Minister of Defense Gen Nakatani visited Republic of Korea and had a meeting with ROK Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-back. It was the first time for Japanese defense minister to have a bilateral ministerial meeting in these ten years. Both ministers reconfirmed importance of trilateral security cooperation including the United States to deal with another trilateral cooperation by China, Russia and North Korea.   In the  press conference  after the meeting, Nakatani stressed importance of maintaining bilateral relationship between Japan and ROK, or Japan-ROK-U.S. relationship in a volatile security environment. Both ministers agreed on promoting discussion by both defense authorities and exchange of personnel. They also agreed on further cooperation in cutting edge technologies including artificial intelligence, unmanned system or the space. They will maintain joint exercise called “Freedom Edge,” in which multiple countries participate.   Their bilateral relati...
Read more

Contaminated Soil to Prime Minister’s Residence

Shigeru Ishiba Cabinet discussed how the radioactively contaminated soil in Fukushima prefecture would be treated and decided some of it should be used in Prime Minister’s Official Residence in Tokyo. Although the soil needs to be removed from Fukushima with legal requirement, the government of Japan has not found anywhere it should go. Ishiba administration hopes that the decision will pave the way for any local community to accept the soil.   Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant emitted a huge amount of radiation into the air, which contaminated the land surface around the site, in the severe accident in East Japan Great Earthquake in 2011. The contaminated soil in Fukushima prefecture was stocked in the intermediate stockyard built in the towns of Futaba and Okuma, where the power plant is located. The government promised the people in Fukushima to remove the soil out of Fukushima prefecture within thirty years, when it decided to build the stockyard in 2014.   The total a...
Read more