Latest news with #Upper House election
Wall Street Journal
a day ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
JGBs Fall on Japan's Fiscal Worries Ahead of Upcoming Election
0010 GMT — JGBs fall in price terms in the morning Tokyo session on Japan's fiscal worries ahead of the Upper House election on July 20. Regardless of the election's results, JPMorgan sees two key takeaways emerging. First, uncertainty about the consumption tax cut debate will probably continue, two members of JPMorgan's Japan Fixed Income Strategy say in a note. Second, the risk balance is tilted toward larger fiscal spending, the members say. 'The true significance lies in the perception of unrestrained fiscal discipline,' the members add. The 10-year JGB yield rises 3bps to 1.530%. (
Japan Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
Dual surnames for married couples in focus ahead of Japan poll
One of the main topics in the July 20 Upper House election is the proposed introduction of a dual surname system for married couples. The Legislative Council, an advisory panel to the justice minister, proposed a bill to revise the Civil Code in 1996 that includes the introduction of a selective dual surname system. However, even more than 30 years after the proposal, the revision has not yet been realized. In May this year, bills related to the system were deliberated at the Lower House's Judicial Affairs Committee for the first time in 28 years, but the panel failed to hold a vote. The legislation is set to be discussed at an extraordinary parliamentary session, which is expected to be held this autumn. The U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has urged the Japanese government to introduce the system four times. Iori Warita, 30, a company worker in the town of Utazu, Kagawa Prefecture, emphasizes that his surname is an important part of his identity. When Warita decided to marry corporate worker Nanami Takei, 30, he realized that he did not want to change his surname. To avoid forcing his wife to do what he himself did not want to do, the two decided to register their marriage only after the realization of a selective dual surname system. But they have faced problems as a couple that is not legally married. For example, they could not use their companies' special leave for marriage or receive the local government's subsidies for newlyweds. "I feel like society is telling us, 'You two aren't married.' And I think de facto marriage may have other pitfalls," Warita said. According to a March survey conducted by nongovernmental organization Asuniwa, which covered 530 people in de facto marriages, some 30% said that they chose not to register their marriage because they or their partners did not want to change their surname. Also, nearly half of respondents said that they would marry legally if a dual surname system were introduced. Some conservative lawmakers say that a dual surname system will damage families' sense of unity. Warita disagrees, saying, "The feeling of being a family doesn't change even if surnames are different." He is skeptical of opposing opinions, feeling that they do not justify blocking the introduction of the system. Takei said that a selective dual surname system affects people's psychological well-being. "Having more choices will make life easier for more people, so I hope for the early introduction" of dual surnames, she said.
