The Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, dismissed one of his secretaries on Saturday, January 4, over homophobic comments that the premier had tagged ‘outrageous’.
“I just decided to relieve him of his position as the secretary,” Kishida had informed news reporters.
This is coming after Arai on Friday, February 4 had said that he ‘wouldn’t like it if they lived next door’, citing that people would ‘flee the country if we permit same-sex marriage’.
The 55-year-old had later apologized, saying that his remarks were not appropriate, even if they were his personal opinion.
The dismissal is a very big blow to Kishida’s government, which has been facing bad approval ratings since 2022.
Recall that Japan is the only nation in the ‘Group of Seven industrialized countries to not recognize same-sex marriage, even though media polls reveal a majority support for such unions.
