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Japan's same-sex marriage ban is not unconstitutional, court rules
Osaka court reaches different conclusion than in Sapporo,
but federal legislation not on horizon
CBC News ·
Posted: Jun 20, 2022 9:34 AM ET
Plaintiffs in the case are shown Monday heading to the Osaka District Court before the court ruling
on same-sex marriage, which left them disappointed. (Kyodo News/Reuters)
A Japanese court ruled on Monday that a ban on same-sex marriage was not unconstitutional, dealing a setback to LGBTQ rights activists in the only G7 nation that does not allow people of the same gender to marry.
The ruling dashes activists' hopes of raising pressure on the central government to address the issue, after a court in the city of Sapporo in March 2021 decided in favour of a claim that not allowing same-sex marriage was unconstitutional.
Three same-sex couples — two male, one female — had filed the case in a district court in Osaka, only the second to be heard on the issue in Japan.
In addition to rejecting their claim that being unable to marry was unconstitutional, the court threw out their demand for one million yen ($9,660 Cdn) in damages for each couple.
"I actually wonder if the legal system in this country is really working," said plaintiff Machi Sakata, who married her U.S.-citizen partner in the United States. The two are expecting a baby in August.
"I think there's the possibility this ruling may really corner us," Sakata said.
Japan's constitution defines marriage as being based on "the mutual consent of both sexes." But the introduction of partnership rights for same-sex couples in Tokyo last week, along with rising support in opinion polls, had raised the hopes of activists and lawyers for the Osaka case.
The Osaka court said that marriage was defined as being only between opposite genders and that not enough debate on same-sex marriage had taken place in Japanese society.
"We emphasized in this case that we wanted same-sex couples to have access to the same things as regular couples," said lawyer Akiyoshi Miwa, adding that they would appeal.
Some partner rights currently recognized
Japanese law is considered relatively liberal in some areas by Asian standards, but across the continent, only Taiwan has legalized same-sex marriage.
Under current rules in Japan, members of same-sex couples are not allowed to legally marry, cannot inherit each other's assets — such as a house they may have shared — and also have no parental rights over each other's children.
Though partnership certificates issued by some municipalities help same-sex couples rent property together and allow them hospital visitation rights, they do not give them the full legal rights enjoyed by heterosexual couples.
Last week, the Tokyo prefectural government passed a bill to recognize same-sex partnership agreements, meaning local governments covering more than half of Japan's population now offer such recognition.
While Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has said the issue needs to be carefully considered, his ruling Liberal Democratic Party has disclosed no plans to review the matter or propose legislation, though some senior party members favour reform.
Buzz Lightyear film featuring same-sex couple will not play in 14 countries
Film producer says Disney declined to make requested cuts to the movie
Thomson Reuters ·
Posted: Jun 14, 2022 9:48 AM ET
Buzz Lightyear, voiced by Chris Evans, in a scene from the animated film Lightyear, set to release on June 17. Walt Disney Co. has been unable to obtain permission to show Lightyear in 14 Middle Eastern and Asian countries over objections to a same-sex couple depicted in the movie, and the film might not open in China, either. (Disney/Pixar/The Associated Press)
Walt Disney Co. has been unable to obtain permission to show its new Pixar movie Lightyear in 14 Middle Eastern and Asian countries, a source said on Monday, and the animated film appeared unlikely to open in China, the world's largest movie market.
A Lightyear producer told Reuters that authorities in China had asked for cuts to the movie, which Disney declined to make, and she assumed the movie would not open there either. The animated film depicts a same-sex couple who share a brief kiss, which prompted the United Arab Emirates to ban the film.
The United Arab Emirates said the couple's relationship violated the country's media content standards. Homosexuality is considered criminal in many Middle Eastern countries.
Representatives of other countries, including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Indonesia, Malaysia and Lebanon, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on why they would not allow the film to be exhibited.
Disney refuses to cut same-sex kiss
Lightyear is a prequel to Pixar's acclaimed Toy Story franchise. Chris Evans voices the lead character, Buzz Lightyear, a legendary space ranger.
In the film, Buzz's close friend is a female space ranger who marries another woman. A scene showing milestones in the couple's relationship includes a brief kiss.
Disney has not received an answer from Chinese authorities on whether they would allow the film in cinemas, Lightyear producer Galyn Susman said. But she said filmmakers would not make changes to the movie.
China has rejected other on-screen depictions of homosexuality in the past.
"We're not going to cut out anything, especially something as important as the loving and inspirational relationship that shows Buzz what he's missing by the choices that he's making, so that's not getting cut," Susman told Reuters at the movie's red-carpet premiere in London.
Evans frustrated by LGBTQ-related objections
China is not a "make or break" market for Pixar, one theatre industry source said. It contributed a mere three percent to the global box office for Toy Story 4, which grossed more than $1 billion US in worldwide ticket sales in 2019, according to Comscore.
Any objections to Lightyear over LGBTQ issues were "frustrating," Evans said.
"It's great that we are a part of something that's making steps forward in the social inclusion capacity, but it's frustrating that there are still places that aren't where they should be," Evans said.
Lightyear is set to debut in theatres in the United States and Canada on Friday.
In May, Disney refused requests to cut same-sex references in Marvel movie Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. Saudi Arabia and a handful of other Middle Eastern countries did not show the film.
I would be very surprised if Russia allowed the movie to be shown there.
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Transgender athletes are banned by world swimming's
governing body FINA from competing against women
By MELISSA KOENIG FOR DAILYMAIL.COM and LIZZIE MAY FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 15:10 EDT, 19 June 2022
Lia Thomas, the transgender swimmer who smashed women's records this year, will be banned from competing against biological women in international events after the world swimming's governing body announced on Sunday that it is barring transgender athletes who went through male puberty.
FINA, the international federation sports federation for swimming, announced on Sunday that it is changing its policies so that transgender women can only compete in the organization's women's races if they have completed their transition by the age of 12.
They will then have to prove to the federation that they have continuously suppressed their testosterone levels since that time.
To accommodate the transgender athletes, though, FINA is setting up an 'open category' for transgender athletes to compete against one another at events including the World Aquatics Championships, World Swimming Championships, and Swimming World Cup.
A working group will spend the next six months to determine how the 'open category' would operate.
'We have to protect the rights of our athletes to compete, but we also have to protect competitive fairness at our events, especially the women's category at FINA competitions,' FINA President Husain Al-Musallam said in a statement.
But such a policy would prevent Thomas from competing in the international events that would raise her standing in international swimming and potentially land her a place at the Olympics - which she said in a recent interview she would like to compete at in the future.
Her quick rise to the top of the women's charts, though, has caused an uproar across the United States, with many arguing that she has an unfair physical advantage over her fellow competitors.
Elite swimming is the first sport to ban transgender athletes from women's races even if they went through male puberty, the international sports federation for swimming announced Sunday. Lia Thomas, a transgender swimmer, is pictured
Elite swimming is the first sport to ban transgender athletes from women's races even if they went through male puberty, the international sports federation for swimming announced Sunday. Lia Thomas, a transgender swimmer, is pictured
The decision to ban transgender athletes from FINA events was made during the federation's extraordinary general congress as the world championships take place in Budapest.
Members of the organization heard from a transgender task force comprising leading medical, legal and sports figures, which first convened to discuss the issue after the International Olympic Committee urged individual sports federations to create guidance on transgender athletes in November.
At the time, the IOC urged the federations to shift their focus from individual testosterone levels, and called for evidence to prove when a performance advantage existed.
The experts concluded in their policy that there needs to be eligibility standards based on biological sex, writing: 'Without eligibility standards based on biological sex or sex-linked traits, we are very unlikely to see biological females in finals, on podiums on in championship positions.'
As the scientists explained, biological males see their testosterone levels increase 20 fold during puberty, while the levels remain low in biological women during puberty - often around the age of 12.
'A biological female athlete cannot overcome that advantage through training or nutrition. Nor can they take additional testosterone to obtain the same advantage, because testosterone is a prohibited substance under the World Anti Doping Code.'
The policy was passed with a 71 percent majority after it was put to the members of 152 national federations with voting rights who had gathered for the congress at the Puskas Arena.
Around 15 percent voted no to the policy on eligibility in the men's and women's competition categories, while 13 percent abstained.
Husain Al-Musallam, president of FINA, then announced the news on Sunday afternoon.
'I do not want any athlete to be told they cannot compete at the highest level,' Al-Musallam told a congress of his organization today.
'I will set up a working group to set up an open category at our meets. We will be the first federation to do that.'
And following the news, Olympic swimmer Jessica Hardy Meichetry thanked the organization for its decision, while Ross Tucker, the co-host of the Science of Sports podcast tweeted: 'Thank you FINA for listening to women, your own swimmers and coaches, and to science in creating a policy that respects women’s sport.'
Yes, indeed. Well done!
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Number of Americans who believe in God dips to new low: Gallup
By Anugrah Kumar,
Christian Post Contributor
While 81% of American adults say they believe in God, the percentage has dropped 6 points since 2017 and is the lowest since the Gallup polling firm started asking the question more than seven decades ago.
Gallup says when it first asked the question in 1947 and twice in the 1950s and 1960s, a consistent 98% said they believed in God. In 2011, the percentage declined to 92%. In 2013, 2014 and 2017, it dipped to 87%.
“Belief in God has fallen the most in recent years among young adults and people on the left of the political spectrum (liberals and Democrats). These groups show drops of 10 or more percentage points comparing the 2022 figures to an average of the 2013-2017 polls,” the poll results say.
The poll notes that only 72% of Democrats, 62% of liberals and 68% of young people believe in God.
“Belief in God is highest among political conservatives (94%) and Republicans (92%), reflecting that religiosity is a major determinant of political divisions in the U.S., it adds.
Looking at belief in God region-wise, the poll found that the South has the highest number with 86%, but it is down from 93% in 2017. The region with the lowest number is the East, with 78%.
Gallup also asked whether God hears prayers and whether God intervenes when people pray.
About half of those who believe in God say God hears prayers and can intervene on a person’s behalf. But 28% say God hears prayers but cannot intervene, and 11% think God does neither.
The poll also found that nearly three-quarters of the most religious Americans — defined as those who attend religious services every week — say they believe God hears prayers and can intervene, as do slightly more than half of conservatives and Republicans, as well as 25% of liberals and 32% of Democrats.
Further, only 30% of young adults believe God hears prayers and can intervene.
In conclusion, the poll notes, “While belief in God has declined in recent years, Gallup has documented steeper drops in church attendance, church membership and confidence in organized religion, suggesting that the practice of religious faith may be changing more than basic faith in God.”
Last December, Gallup found that 49% of Americans said religion was “very important” in their life, with another 27% saying it was “fairly important” and 25% saying it’s “not very important.”
Gallup noted that when it first asked this question in 1965, 70% said religion was very important. That fell to 52% in a 1978 survey — though the percentage ticked up to near 60% between 1990 and 2005, before declining in the past 15 years.
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