Society Municipalities register same-sex couples as unregistered spouses

[thomas]

Japanese municipalities are calling out the ministerial bureaucracy's legalistic BS:

An increasing number of Japanese municipalities have resorted to registering same-sex couples as unregistered husbands or wives, openly defying the Internal Affairs Ministry's objections to residence certificates of same-sex couples. The city government in Omura, Nagasaki, dismissed the ministry's objection to a residence certificate of a same-sex couple, asserting that it stood by the use of the term "unregistered husband" in the document. At a news conference at city hall on 9 July, Omura Mayor Hiroshi Sonoda said, "It is within the scope of our self-governing affairs, and we have taken action that is in line with the residents." On 2 May, Omura City issued the certificate, allowing Keita Matsuura, 39, and Yutaro Fujiyama, 39, to list their same-sex relationship in the same way as those in a de facto marriage. However, the ministry was upset by the use of the term "unregistered husband" instead of "wife" or "husband." The city revealed that it had exchanged nine communications with the ministry on 9 July.

Photo credit: Kengo Hiyoshi via Asahi​

Omura officials explained the thinking behind the entry, saying the city made "practical use" of the basic resident registers law to meet the wishes of its residents. They said that if they did wrong, the ministry should explain the reason based on the law. However, the ministry did not explain it, according to the city. The ministry sent a letter to the city that arrived on 8 July, citing a "problem" with the city's practical use of the basic resident registers law. A ministry official said the city can decide based on its views, but the central government strongly wants Omura to consider its "advice" on the issue. Matsuura said about the ministry's response that the government was pressuring the city to cancel the certificate without saying so. However, Mayor Sonoda noted, "The city will not revise the information on the resident registration card at this time."

City says it won’t change residence certificate of same-sex couple | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis

 

[dracuella]

How much of a traditionalist do you have to be to get upset about someone being referred to as 'unregistered husband' because it doesn't fit into your worldview/bureaucratic box/whatever? Is the current government really that conservative? Is it a need to keep everything 'as it was' or are they afraid that granting something as simple as this will make them lose control?

Ike, ike, Omura~

 

[thomas]

How much of a traditionalist do you have to be to get upset about someone being referred to as 'unregistered husband' because it doesn't fit into your worldview/bureaucratic box/whatever? Is the current government really that conservative? Is it a need to keep everything 'as it was' or are they afraid that granting something as simple as this will make them lose control?

Yes, it must be precisely that! The ministry is afraid that the situation on the ground, right in the municipalities that have to deal with these issues on a daily basis, will trickle up and interfere with policies the bureaucracy deems carved in stone. Bureaucrats are the principal detractors of societal progress, hiding behind legalism:

A senior vice minister of internal affairs on 29 May raised the issue at the Lower House Committee on Judicial Affairs. "The term 'unregistered husband' applies to a common-law husband of a couple that has not turned in a marriage certificate," the vice minister said. "So, if the term is used differently, problems would arise." Takeaki Matsumoto, the internal affairs minister, said after a Cabinet meeting on 9 July, "There are issues to be addressed about 'practical use' of the law.'"