The Emperor Has Abdicated—Long Live the Emperor!

Back in 2016, now former Japanese Emperor, Akihito, announced his intent to abdicate from the Chrysanthemum Throne, after more than 30 years of reign, which began in 1989 after the death of Emperor Hirohito, Japan's Emperor during the Second World War, due to failing health and his own concern in fulfilling his duties as the symbol of the Japanese people and the state.

It was the first time that the Emperor of Japan stood down since the Meiji Restoration that began in 1868. In preparation for the abdication and the ascension of Akihito's eldest son, Naruhito, as the next Emperor of Japan, Japanese lawmakers revised laws to allow Akihito to step down as Japanese law forbids Emperors to abdicate and require to fulfill their duties until their time of death.

The Japanese government also drew up plans to replace the era name from Heisei, the era name associated with Akihito's reign, as per Japanese convention. Since the Meiji Restoration, it has been traditional for Japanese emperors to have era names associated with their reign. Soon, the new imperial era name was revealed to the public by Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihida Suga. From "Heisei," meaning "achieveing peace," the new era under Naruhito will be called "Reiwa," meaning "beautiful harmony." Came the 1st of May, and Akihito, now Emperor Emeritus, formally abdicated from the throne and Naruhito became the 126th Emperor to rule over the world's longest continuous monarchy in history and the only to have its monarch the title "Emperor."

As I watch and read the news about the enthronement of the new Japanese Emperor, I couldn’t help but experience mixed emotions not just about Emperor Naruhito, but also to the Japanese monarchy in general. As someone having a drop of Japanese blood, as well as having heritage in two former Japanese colonies (the Philippines and Taiwan), I tend to analyze and look at this event from both a historical and a political perspective.

The Heisei period was a time of prosperity and tragedy, the first imperial era in Japan’s post-war history. It was well-known for its prevailing pacifism, and a time when Japan showed its economic might to both Asia and the world, in spite of the calamities that struck the country during this period. Despite of this, however, the wounds of the Japanese atrocities committed during World War II across Asia has been felt, and these had been enflamed with the initially frequent visits of Japanese Prime Ministers to the Yasukuni Shrine, an action which countries such as South Korea and China interpreted as honoring war criminals.

Furthermore, despite the deep regret that the Japanese had expressed for their past actions during World War II, tensions still arose for the alleged whitewashing of Japanese war crimes in Japanese history textbooks, a proof of the struggle Japan faced and currently faces in dealing with its history. The Reiwa period also came in a time when Japan is undergoing considerable changes, from Womenomics to plans to revise Japan’s post-war pacifist charter. These issues, coupled with additional questions on the possibility of women being allowed to ascend the throne, could linger around in the months or even years to come. But with a new era, comes new possibilities and new changes, and Emperor Naruhito, like his father, should embody such progress.