Japan’s long-reigning emperor signals intention to step down

TOKYO — Japan’s beloved Emperor Akihito said in a rare television address Monday that his time to go is approaching.

The 82-year-old monarch said declining health has made it difficult for him to continue in his official capacity.

Although he never used the word “abdicate,” Akihito made it clear that he will have to step down, ending nearly three decades as the head of the world’s longest-running hereditary monarchy.

“When I consider that my fitness level is gradually declining, I am worried that it may become difficult for me to carry out my duties as the symbol of the state with my whole being as I have done until now,” Akihito said during the 11-minute taped message.

Under Japan’s post-World War II constitution, the emperor is designated as “the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people” but has no governmental powers and is not permitted to engage in political activity.

Nonetheless, abdication is a sensitive issue.

No Japanese monarch has stepped down in nearly 200 years, and no law governs such cases. Akihito’s retirement could raise delicate questions about the ban on female succession, conservative efforts to rewrite Japan’s war-renouncing constitution and the imperial family’s place in society.

Much of Japan came to a brief halt midafternoon, as Akihito’s message was broadcast on national television.

“He (Akihito) is always thinking about the people of Japan. His sense of duty is very great. I hope he can have some rest,” Kiyokazu Tsuchida, 96, told Nippon Television after the speech.

Tsuchida is a former Imperial Navy sailor who fought on the island of Peleliu, in the Western Pacific, during World War II. Akihito and Empress Michiko visited Peleliu in 2015 and laid wreaths at separate memorials to American and Japanese soldiers who died in vicious fighting there in late 1944.

It was only the second time since acceding to the throne in 1989 that Akihito has appeared on television to address the nation — the first was in the weeks following the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan, when he offered a well-received message of sympathy and support.

Japanese national broadcaster NHK reported last month that Akihito had informed the Imperial Household Agency, which manages the emperor’s affairs, that he wished to abdicate “in a few years” because of declining health.

The government set up a special team shortly afterward and is now considering a law specifically permitting Akihito to step down, according to local media reports.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a staunch supporter of the imperial family, said he listened to the address and would give the issue serious thought.

"We have to thoroughly think what we can do to accommodate his concerns, taking into consideration the emperor's age and the current burden of official duties," Abe told reporters after the speech.

A Kyodo News agency poll last month found that 85% of Japanese favored allowing Akihito to step down.

Although Akihito says he is currently “in good health,” he was treated for prostate cancer in 2003 and underwent heart surgery in 2011.

In recent years, he has cut back on a schedule that included more than 1,000 meetings and public appearances a year, plus goodwill missions across Japan and the Asia-Pacific region.

Humble and soft-spoken, Akihito has received praise for efforts to heal the wounds of Japan’s wartime and colonial era. He appears to have taken pains to keep his distance from emperor-worshiping conservatives and historical revisionists who have contributed to difficult relations with neighboring China and South Korea, which suffered under Japan’s wartime and colonial policies.

Akihito and the empress are venerated by many Japanese, and the imperial family remains a popular institution among all age groups. The emperor’s birthday — Dec. 23 — is a national holiday, when tens of thousands of well-wishers gather outside the Imperial Palace to greet the royal couple.

The imperial family traces an unbroken male line back at least 1,500 years.

The government briefly discussed revising the law in 2005 to permit women to succeed to the throne, over concern about the lack of a male heir to Crown Prince Naruhito, 56, Akihito’s oldest son and presumed heir. Female succession was strongly opposed by conservatives, and the plan was dropped after the wife of Naruhito’s younger brother, Fumihito, gave birth to a son.