According to foreign media reports, this morning, the Japanese emperor's niece Princess Mako and her civilian boyfriend Komuro registered their marriage, leaving the imperial family, and said that they would start a happy life in New York with their husbands.
Under Japanese law, female members of the imperial family lose their royal status after marrying commoners, but male members do not.
Princess Mako and her boyfriend Kei Komuro met at university, and the two were engaged in 2017 and planned to marry in November 2018, when the Japanese people did not oppose the union of the two, and even cheered for it. But in February 2018, Kei Komuro's mother was embroiled in a money scandal that ruined the reputation of Kei Komuro's family and forced the postponement of the expected wedding.
Since then, the Japanese people have been divided over the marriage, at least once in public protest. The Japanese media has also severely criticized the combination of Princess Mako and Komuro, which has been uninterrupted for four years. Just last month, when Mr. Komuro returned to Japan, he was also criticized for wearing a ponytail. This morning, when the two went to register their marriage, there were still people protesting their marriage in the park.
Analysts say the problem is that the Japanese imperial family is a perfect image in the minds of the people and cannot have any negative news on monetary or political issues.
Hidehide Kawanishi, an associate professor of history at Nagoya University, also said: "Although Princess Mako and Komuro will become ordinary citizens after marriage, Mako's younger brother will one day become emperor, so some people think that she should not marry anyone who has a stain." ”
In fact, years of media coverage of Makoto and her boyfriend Kei Komuro have caused the princess a lot of psychological trauma, and earlier this year, she was also diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
And she is not the first woman in the Japanese royal family to be affected by this.
About 20 years ago, her grandmother, Empress Michiko, was temporarily silenced by media criticism for not being suitable to be the emperor's wife. Her aunt, Empress Masako, suffered from depression after being accused of failing to produce a male heir.
Imperial women were forced to strictly adhere to certain expectations — they had to support their husbands, bear heirs, and become guardians of Japanese traditions. If they fail to meet their demands, they will be brutally criticized.
But even in the midst of a controversy and great trauma in her heart, Princess Mako resolutely married this irreplaceable son of heaven in her eyes.
At this morning's press conference, Princess Mako said: "I apologize for the inconvenience caused and I thank those who continue to support me. For me, Kei Komuro is irreplaceable and marriage is a necessary choice for us. ”
Kei Komuro also added that he loves Ms. Mako and wants to spend his life with her.
At around 10:00 a.m. local time, Princess Mako, dressed in a soft dress and a pearl necklace, said goodbye to her parents and 26-year-old sister Kako at the entrance to her Tokyo residence, bowing to her parents and other members of the royal family several times, and hugging her sister before leaving.
This successful registration of marriage may be a new beginning for her.
Wuhan Morning Post intern reporter Zhang Jiao