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Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met with representatives of LGBTQ groups Friday and offered an apology over discriminatory remarks made by his former aide that sparked nationwide outrage and calls for the government to ensure equal rights.
Former Kishida aide Masayoshi Arai’s comments to reporters earlier this month that he wouldn’t want to live next to LGBTQ people and that citizens would flee Japan if same-sex marriages were allowed prompted renewed demands that the government adopt an anti-discrimination law.
Kishida said Arai’s remark was “deemed unjust discrimination and was extremely inappropriate” and offered an apology to LGBTQ activists in person: “I apologize sincerely for making all of you here and many other people feel uncomfortable.”
He also appointed former Justice Minister Masako Mori on Friday as his special aide in charge of promoting understanding for LGBTQ people and she joined the meeting.
Kishida quickly fired Arai, his former aide, after he made the remarks. But the prime minister’s own previous comments — including that allowing same-sex marriage would change society and family values and must be carefully considered — were also seen as an indication of his reluctance to promote equal rights for LGBTQ people despite his pledge to create an inclusive and diverse society.
