- Julio M. Shiling
Japanese Court Rules Same-Sex Marriage Ban is Constitutional - Here’s Why That Matters.
Japan’s constitution, drafted by American military legal staff under the supervision of General Douglas MacArthur, defined marriage concretely. The U.S. Constitution does not.
Same-sex marriage continues to be an issue of contention. Proponents and opponents, both, base their respective judgments on morality, religion, constitutionality, justice, and natural or human rights (among others). On Monday, June 20, a Japanese court concluded that the country’s ban on marriages of persons of the same sex is constitutionally protected. The plaintiff’s underlying premise was that Japan’s prohibition is, in effect, an unequal application of the law. What has occurred in the Nipponese nation could establish a precedent for other countries to follow, considering how divided societies are on the matter.
What Does Japan’s Constitution Say?
The Osaka District Court ruling overrode a lower court’s decision in Sapporo which claimed that Japan’s proscription of gay marriage violated the Constitution. The constitutional safeguard of the institution of marriage explicitly refers to this legal union as one between a man and a woman. Article 24 of the 1947 Japanese Magna Carta states that “Marriage shall be based only on the mutual consent of both sexes, and it shall be maintained through mutual cooperation with the equal rights of husband and wife as a basis.”
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