AFP
Japan's Emperor Akihito has strongly indicated
he wants to step down, saying he fears his age will make it difficult to fulfil
his duties.
The revered
82-year-old emperor's comments came in only his second-ever televised address
to the public.
Emperor Akihito did
not explicitly say he wanted to abdicate as he is barred from making political
statements.
PM Shinzo Abe said the
government would take the remarks "seriously" and discuss what could
be done.
"Upon reflecting
how he handles his official duty and so on, his age and the current situation
of how he works, I do respect the heavy responsibility the emperor must be
feeling and I believe we need to think hard about what we can do," he
said.
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know about the emperor
Emperor Akihito's speech in full
Japan watches the emperor's speech
In pictures: Akihito's reign
Akihito, who has had
heart surgery and was treated for prostate cancer, has been on the throne in
Japan since the death of his father, Hirohito, in 1989.
In his 10-minute
pre-recorded message, he said he had "started to reflect" on his
years as as emperor, and contemplate his position in the years to come.
Why can't
the emperor abdicate? Abdication
is not mentioned under Japan's existing laws, so they would need to be changed
for the emperor to be able to stand down. The changes would also have to be
approved by parliament.
What do
the public think? Most support the
emperor's desire to step down - a recent survey by the Kyodo news agency found
more than 85% saying abdication should be legalised. But the move is opposed by
some more conservative sections of Japanese society.
Is this
the first time a revision of the law has been discussed? A debate about whether or not a woman would be
able to ascend the throne was triggered in 2006 when the emperor had no
grandsons, but was postponed after a boy was born to the imperial family.
What does
the emperor do? The emperor has no
political powers but has several official duties, such as greeting foreign
dignitaries. Japan's monarchy is entwined in the Shinto religion and the
emperor still performs religious ceremonies. He also plants and harvests a
small rice paddy inside the palace while the empress raises silkworms.
If he were to
abdicate, it would be the first time a Japanese emperor has stepped down since
Emperor Kokaku in 1817.
The BBC's Rupert
Wingfield-Hayes in Tokyo says right wing nationalists who support Mr Abe's
government do not want any change to the current law, which insists emperors
must serve until they die.
Emperor Akihito said
he hoped the duties of the emperor as a symbol of the state could continue
steadily without any breaks.
REUTERS
He said
one possibility when an emperor could not fulfil his duties because of age or
illness was that a regency could be established.
But he suggested this
was not the ideal outcome, saying: "I think it is not possible to continue
reducing perpetually the emperor's acts in matters of state and his duties as
the symbol of the state."
Akihito's eldest son,
56-year-old Crown Prince Naruhito is first in line to the Chrysanthemum throne,
followed by his younger brother Prince Akishino.
Women are not allowed
to inherit the throne and so Princess Aiko, the daughter of Crown Prince
Naruhito, cannot succeed her father.
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