Emperor hoping for simple abdication ceremony: agency

December 15, 2017

TOKYO- Japanese Emperor Akihito hopes for a simple abdication ceremony, Imperial Household Agency chief Shinichiro Yamamoto said Thursday.

The Emperor wishes for the ceremony "to be as simple as possible," Yamamoto said at a regular press conference.

It is the first time for an official of the agency to publicly mention the Emperor's thoughts about how the ceremony should be.

Shukan Shincho, a Japanese weekly magazine, reported in its Thursday edition that Emperor Akihito wishes to leave the Imperial Palace in a celebratory atmosphere with a parade and crowds of people gathering at the palace.

But Yamamoto said that the Emperor "does not wish for such things." The agency lodged a protest with the editorial department of the magazine, arguing that the article ran counter to the truth.

Emperor Akihito is set to step down on April 30, 2019, and Crown Prince Naruhito will be enthroned the following day.

While foreign guests may be invited to enthronement ceremonies for the Crown Prince, which will be held a few months after the abdication of his father, Emperor Akihito hopes that his abdication ceremony will be held in a calm atmosphere at the palace with no foreign guests invited, Yamamoto said. Yamamoto said that he has conveyed the Emperor's wish to the Cabinet Secretariat.

According to Yamamoto, the Emperor has indicated his desire for a simple ceremony since special legislation for his abdication was enacted in June this year.

He also said that the Emperor has often told agency officials that he has no plans to address the people like European royal families do on the balconies of their palaces.

Empress Michiko has the same thoughts as the Emperor, Yamamoto said. Jiji Press