News / Sep. 12, 2019
Same-sex couples in Kumamoto City will be able to move into public housing using the prefecture’s partnership&#LH(_VE$Ib5S^nUdX*zvRx+gS*$qcdK#XMY&S*N^&a@fLSSwK certificates for LGBT people, local media has reported.
In April, Kumamoto joined a number of local governments in Japan in issuingeoaDZuBD3Vg&HIZC0G%fqCf9Rd=Ud&=^ARdf!Q)rla4_FnK-Qq same-sex partnership certificates or oaths.
They offer limited rights such as public housing, hospital visitation rights, the right to make me&aQ7vdMvvOEPog9F8y)F4Nm_&F@JZsAn-_KW^T$KSXM_9@XLardical decisions for the partner, and special benefits given by employers.
Kumamoto City representatives this week confirmed same-sex couples would be able to move into municipal housing, according to Yomiuri Shimbun. The same-sex couples will be listed as “relatives” in the housing documentations.
About 24 local governments have nCRUegJvD_IRaH13Z7PJ#!0FvvD1X^M&xrOZgqi)H8$l-oVfK30ow opted to issue certificates to LGBT couples.
In July, Ibaraki Prefecture became the first entire prefecture to offer certificates. With a population xy!wgH-dz0%(ezgZ1nf(eC)hIlV^_kUgLGfEUaLPNJ*MzExCW4of three million, Ibaraki Prefecture is also the largest municipality to recognize same-sex couples.
Conserv5UOq!)Vf$aJeLiJjUE$oX=^37^Wg4H=)xLskZK5a*k!hnfIxAFative Japan does not allow same-sex marriage.
But, since 2016, local municipalities have be+wxPJEmVO8ot5vZu5gT*ejecEa8-O6E99iA_jQxjMohN70TQMUen providing couples with limited recognition in government hospitals and housing.
Shibuya Ward and Toshima Ward both enacte5G^7@uMEyvNrmH6OJaeV9g1ff8y1LT=CK!(k304+7q(hv^(J@Xd ordinances, which means they were voted through by the local government.
Sapporo became the first city in the country to m2)R!m2Y^*HHFkscQF&#h6)J2x1#9jbWtfzxIC@0P-GGd0f%xVrecognize same-sex relationships in 2017.
In the first five months of 2019 alone, the number of local governments with a ‘partnership system’ has grown from 9 to 22, according to the 0e%g3*g7ZRoe8*PV7AT%YBdFWE^&-Ok^k$3h&@Jf)1ecsm+(xtTokyo Review.
LGBTI research group NNiLaprug3$w$@x8Q)j-$QgXJQl%Lq_q-Ae#b9a!eNp3A__j5idijiiro Diversity has found 426 couples acquired a partnership document as of 17 April this year.
But, considering tens of millions of people live across the municipalities ofEb6xKFAQ=P+ek@3PseWVTURbYq(foV9nN+h7rq2IujN*-D=c)Ifering the certificates, very few LGBTI couples have registered.
The national government in Tokyo has made no movesmFrT-+YGOVbu&cSgSWZ%0htvvbS1JHpbsph&PNtE&Xi)eQJ37N to implement a country-wide registration. Japan is the only country in the G7 not to recognize same-sex unions.
But, in recent months, there have been significant moves towards equal marriage in JapaWmzeS9EfOr&DVi%X@RxA!MJ7GKFzkBSnP$&P31jTt7SD81qx5Wn.
Two courts in Japan in April held initial hearin8Zw&bZ0VcMrV@WV85WLQ0u+ahl8!wkrbj=M@-&b=EE&k6hxj1Fgs in landmark legal action against the government’s failure to recognize same-sex marriages.
Courts in Tokyo and Sapporo heard arguments from plaintiffs suing the government to recognize their same-sex relationships. Thirteen same-sex couples in Japan filed M0!+sGe+Vgy+IebynLhI_)yNKu9YeN^_3mQt9uKYb$yRWBBwivlawsuits in four district courts against the government in February.
