The following is from the June 26 issue of the monthly magazine Hanada.
It is a must-read not only for Japanese citizens but also for people around the world.
As you know, since June 2011, this column has been under the relentless crime of search obstruction by a man whom our readers are well aware of.
From May 30 to the early morning of June 14, access results on Goo were close to the original state of this column.
The original state of this column was about 30,000 PVs and 3,000 visitors daily.
For the above two weeks, the number of PVs was less than 20,000, and the number of visitors was around 1,500 daily.
Since July 2010, this column, which has been posted daily, often in 100 languages, has been read worldwide.
Naturally, the graph in the access chart shows a splendid band, which continues uninterruptedly.
It was back in that state for about two weeks above.
The criminal in question probably was on an overseas trip, etc., and the crime of falsifying access results and tables had stopped.
I was disgusted by the severity of the criminal activity, which started again in the early morning of 6/14.
First, on 6/16, Ohtani hit two spectacular home runs to lead his team to victory.
My disgust was considerably lifted.
I realized how much Otani's success had lifted the spirits of not only Japanese people but also people all over the world.
Then, in the evening, news came in that made my disillusionment dissipate.
Kishida had decided not to dissolve the House of Representatives and call a general election.
I shouted with joy.
I was happy because Mr. Naoki Hyakuta and Ms. Kaori Arimoto could start a new party with more time to spare.
In the upcoming general election for the House of Representatives, their new party will receive massive votes.
It is because their action is the biggest epoch-making event in postwar Japan.
Besides, they are the right people in every sense of the word.
Mr. Naoki Hyakuta and Ms. Kaori Arimoto, "Declaration of the Establishment of a New Conservative Party"
Once in a hundred years, a bad law
Hyakuta
Future generations of historians will mark June 16, 2023, as "the beginning of the end of Japan.
The once-in-a-century evil law, the Law for the Promotion of LGBT Understanding (hereafter, the LGBT Bill), has been passed and enacted by the House of Councillors.
Seeing the LDP forcefully push through this evil law that will destroy Japan from the bottom up, I have lost my patience.
The LDP no longer has the ability to cleanse itself.
I have decided to launch a new, genuinely conservative party.
For a long time, I have been reluctant to support the LDP.
It is because there was no other party for me to support.
However, since the untimely death of former Prime Minister Abe last year, the LDP has been falling apart at the seams.
In fact, the LDP was never a conservative party in the first place.
This fact was exposed one after another.
Arimoto
In my column in the April issue of the monthly magazine "Hanada," I wrote, "Where will Japan go without Shinzo Abe?" I was disappointed and angry to see that this was the direction the LDP was heading.
Hyakuta
Until now, the LDP has been able to tighten its loose hoops because of the presence of a rare politician, Shinzo Abe.
But now that the great hoop of Mr. Abe has been removed, the true nature of the LDP as a liberal party has been laid bare.
They have reversed everything that Mr. Abe had tried to do, crushed everything that he had tried to protect, and even tried to promote things that he had thought he should not do.
Moreover, many of the "Abe faction" and "Abe sympathizers" who supported and adored Mr. Abe have betrayed him, lied with impunity, and have begun to do reckless things that will destroy Japan with impunity.
They all posed as "in the fire and in the water for Mr. Abe" when Mr. Abe was around.
All those things were lies.
It is nothing short of horrifying.
Arimoto
As far as I have heard, many members of the Diet have testified that this is unprecedented in the history of the LGBT bill process, which has stifled dissent and opposition within the party.
As Japan's security situation grows ever more severe, the government has left the anti-spying law and the security clearance bill behind, making excuses such as "the party is cautious about it" and "we will discuss it thoroughly" while forcing through the bill in a manner unprecedented in the vortex, which will cause confusion and division in Japan.
It is the LGBT bill.
It is too bad.
Hyakuta
This bill has not even received the consent of the LDP, let alone that of the public.
Before the bill was submitted to the House of Representatives, the LDP's subcommittees were in the majority against it.
Yet, Keiji Furuya, Yoshitaka Shindo, Tomomi Inada, and others in the executive branch pushed it through.
They deserve all deaths.
Arimoto.
With a consistent arrogant attitude that said, "We are political professionals, and amateurs should keep quiet," they forced the bill into the Diet by silencing opposition and even cautious discussions within the party.
However, after receiving a general rebuke from the public, they completely embraced the revised proposal of the Japan Restoration Association and the Democratic Party of Japan in less than a day.
As the major ruling party, they should be ashamed of themselves.
Hyakuta
Moreover, Mr. Keiji Furuya, for example, proudly said on one network program, "This bill is something we have been discussing for eight years.
One would generally think that a bill that took eight years to produce would be perfect, but as soon as it was criticized, he responded to the opposition party's proposal, "That one is better. I'll go with that."
It is appalling.
Arimoto
"Mr. Abe was in favor of it. It's even in the LDP's campaign pledge."
Supporters say so but do not be fooled.
Indeed, in 2016, the LDP created a "Special Assignment Committee on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity."
At that time, Mr. Abe was the prime minister president, so if Mr. Abe said he did not want such a thing, it would not be created.
In other words, it is true that Mr. Abe also had an awareness of tackling the problem.
One example is in his campaign pledge: "We will realize the prompt enactment of a lawmakers' bill aimed at promoting a broad and correct understanding of sexual orientation and gender identity (LGBT)" (pledge for the 2019 Upper House election).
But it was just one of many campaign promises, and Abe was in favor of a lawmakers' bill that would go so far as to "call on the public at large to promote understanding."
So in 2016, the bipartisan "Diet Members Caucus for LGBT-related Issues," which includes the Liberal Democratic Party, put together a bill that was shelved for five years.
Hyakuta
Mr. Abe, who scrutinized the bill, said from that time, "If this goes through, there will be a lot of confusion in the educational field.
It also has negative effects on the imperial lineage."
Many testify that he was apprehensive about that.
Arimoto.
That's right.
However, a year after Mr. Abe stepped down as prime minister, there was a sudden surge of momentum within the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to propose legislation in anticipation of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, saying, "As the host country of the Olympics, we should be ashamed to the world if we do not do this.
A bipartisan group of Diet members agreed to amend the LGBT bill, and Inada, chair of the LGBT Special Mission Committee, incorporated the arguments of the opposition parties, including CDP.
Inada, who was chairman of the special task force on LGBT, adopted the opposition's arguments, rewriting "gender identity" as "gender self-identification," and then almost swallowing the bill as written, "discrimination will not be tolerated," and bringing it back to the LDP.
Inada says, "Mr. Furuya and Mr. Shindo both supported it."
Since the opposition party's proposal was swallowed whole, the LDP's General Affairs Committee was in such a state of confusion that angry shouts were exchanged.
Of course, Mr. Abe was very much against it.
So, in the end, the LDP General Affairs Committee killed it.
It was late May, and I happened to visit Mr. Abe's office on another matter.
When I sat down, Mr. Abe started talking excitedly, "Tomomi Inada came here, cried, and scolded me."
When I asked him "what it was about," he replied, "It's LGBT."
I will keep the details of this conversation, which I wrote about in detail in the April issue of "Hanada."
I could hardly talk about the original case because it was the story from beginning to end.
As I left the room, Councilor Shuichi Takashima came in to replace me. Mr. Takashima also testified that Mr. Abe told him the same story that day. In other words, Mr. Abe also clearly opposed the bill when the words "gender identity" and "no discrimination" were mentioned together.
Hyakuta
The LDP proponents say that Mr. Abe was in favor of this bill as if he was also in favor of the bill.
It is a very fraudulent and outrageous lie.
The LDP is hiding the problems with this LGBT bill, and many people are unaware of it.
They say, "Huh? It's a bill to end discrimination, right? It's fine."
The overwhelming majority of the public has this level of awareness.
It is incredibly frightening.
There are so many sentences and phrases in the bill whose meaning is unclear or whose definitions are ambiguous.
For example, the bill changes the expression of gender identity from "gender identity" in the ruling party's proposal to "gender identity," which is the crux of the bill. Still, the meaning of this "gender identity" is entirely unclear.
How on earth should it be translated or defined?
It is hard to believe that most of the public understands the meaning of this word.
Such a word is being used in a vital part of the bill.
Arimoto.
How do LDP members respond when asked to explain this word?
Probably no politician could explain it beyond saying, "This is also used overseas."
As a pretext for "unfair discrimination."
Hyakuta
I am a novelist, so I imagine what would happen in society after this law is passed.
For example, self-identified transgender women will start entering women's restrooms, bathrooms, and locker rooms one after another.
Proponents of the bill would say, "That's a hoax. We can still catch them under the current law, just as we have."
Is this really true?
On June 10, a 54-year-old man was arrested in Tsu City, Mie Prefecture, on suspicion of trespassing in a women's bathhouse while dressed as a woman.
I asked attorney Haruo Kitamura if this incident, for example, could be dealt with similarly after the bill was enacted.
Mr. Kitamura replied that police officers would probably hesitate to make an arrest.
Arimoto.
There is a possibility that they will say, "I am a woman, and this is a wrongful arrest."
Hyakuta
That is right.
In fact, this man denies the charge, saying, "I am a woman."
Attorney Kitamura believes that the police officer may be reprimanded for wrongful arrest.
Furthermore, if the arrest is still made and the case is sent to the prosecutor for prosecution, the prosecutor will be unsure whether to prosecute or not, he said.
Prosecutors are also legal professionals. In light of the current LGBT bill, it is somewhat likely that they will lose the case, whether or not they can prosecute and convict, Kitamura points out.
Arimoto.
The conviction rate in Japanese criminal trials is exceptionally high at 99.9%, and this is because they only prosecute cases that are certain to result in a conviction.
If the prosecution loses the case, the person in charge will severely damage their career.
Therefore, if there is even a slight chance of losing, they often do not prosecute.
Hyakuta
But let's say that a determined prosecutor does prosecute the case.
When the case next goes to trial, it is doubtful that the judge will convict.
There will undoubtedly be more trials of such cases than there are now, and if even a single issue of "wrongful arrest" is decided, that precedent will be given a lot of power.
Arimoto.
If it is a ruling by the Supreme Court, it is even more significant.
It has a tremendous impact.
Hyakuta
In a way, if you call yourself a transgender woman, you have an absolute endorsement that you can freely enter women's restrooms and women's locker rooms.
How can you say, "This is not possible?"
Furthermore, there is a strong possibility that transgender women who are excluded from women's bathrooms and changing rooms will file a lawsuit for damages against the management of hotels, inns, and hot spring facilities, claiming they have suffered emotional distress. It is also possible that the facility could lose and be ordered to pay compensation.
If even one such judgment is issued, the facility will not be able to exclude self-proclaimed transgender women in the future.
If the facility loses the lawsuit and is ordered to pay compensation, it would be a massive blow to its business.
Would the facility take such a risk to eliminate them?
Arimoto
Some lawmakers pushing for the LGBT bill say that the Public Bathhouse Law is in place to prevent this and that the Guidelines for Hygiene Management in Public Bathhouses stipulate that men and women should be separated in the bathrooms and changing rooms, but this is so lame.
It is obvious that the LGBT bill will be used as an excuse to claim "unfair discrimination" under the banner of the bill.
There will be a lot of chaos on site.
I wonder if the Diet members who voted in favor of the bill are thinking about that.
The reality of "promotion of understanding
Hyakuta
Since discrimination is not defined, there is room for the law to be interpreted endlessly.
Moreover, no one can determine whether someone is really transgender or not.
Even if a person is a man, no one can deny or judge them if they insist, "I am a woman."
It makes it impossible to prevent fake transgender women from wanting to enter women's bathrooms and women's locker rooms.
Some of them may be genuine perverts or mischievous revelers.
It is easy to imagine the chaos it would cause in society if the law were pushed through without any definition of what a transgender woman is.
Of course, perverts and malicious revelers are only part of society.
However, society is slowly disintegrating even with the appearance of the I percent of undesirables.
Even if one were to say, "A pervert with male genitalia hanging in a women's bath at a hot spring facility may enter, but that is only 1 percent of the total," most women would be too afraid to go to such a facility.
Arimoto.
Strange things have happened in Iwate Prefecture even before this law was enacted.
For example, when a transgender woman enters the women's restroom or women's locker room, the "Iwate Prefectural Citizens Plan (2019-2028)," a guideline for employees, blatantly states that the person who feels uncomfortable should be more understanding.
Hyakuta
A woman who shouted, "Oh my God, don't come into our locker room! You're doing it wrong!" to a woman who called, "Oh my God!
It is precisely the case causing problems in California and other states in the United States.
Arimoto
The woman who shouts "Crikey!" is told that she does not understand enough and should be told off.
It is called promoting understanding.
It is already happening in Japan.
So often, proponents of the bill make plausible excuses such as "radical measures are already being taken by local governments nationwide, and the law is needed to put a stop to them," but the exact opposite is true. This bill will encourage such radical measures.
How dare they say that it will "curb" such radical trends?
A social experiment that should not be conducted.
Hyakuta
There are many other concerns as well.
For example, there is room for a "public money choo-choo scheme.
NPOs and general incorporated associations that dispatch lecturers to conduct education and training at workplaces, schools, and various organizations can turn up similar things by stating that "we must promote understanding" in the law.
Most of them will be run by liberal activists.
Our tax money goes to those activists.
What is more problematic is education.
Children of tender years will be given a distorted sex education.
The concept of LGBT is thoroughly taught to them, an idea that is not backed up by any scientific evidence but is concocted in the minds of modern people.
It will not be known until 10, 15, or 20 years later what kind of harm this will cause and what kind of negative effects it will have.
How will these children reach adolescence and adulthood?
We do not know how these children will reach adolescence and become adults or how they will affect their egos and personality development.
It is a very frightening thing.
Japan will become a country that will be watched by researchers and organizations worldwide interested in LGBT issues.
It will become a grand testing ground, so to speak.
We are about to conduct a social experiment that we should not do.
Moreover, it will change the very foundation of the country of Japan.
Above all, there is a concern that it could also lead to a breakdown of the imperial lineage.
Japan is the oldest nation in the world, having had a patrilineal (male lineage) system for more than 1,000 years since Emperor Jinmu.
Under the new law, what would happen if His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince declared himself a transgender man, saying, "I am a man?
Could we dismiss it with a resounding, "That's not acceptable.
What would be his response if it were to be refuted, "Why, isn't it strange that you don't recognize me as a man?"
There is a risk that it will become a trend to recognize him as the successor to the imperial throne without fail.
Who can say that this will not happen?
Arimoto
Some criticize, "Since the Constitution of Japan and the Imperial Household Law stipulate that the successor to the throne shall be a male member of the imperial lineage, there is no way such a thing would happen."
But then, why is the "Female-line Empero" debate so frequent?
Like the earlier story about "the current law prevents women from entering women's baths," when it comes to this LGBT bill, for some reason, only easy assertions that "such a thing will not happen" are rampant, and all concerns are dismissed as "falsehoods."
Hyakuta
Some people criticize this as a "hoax," but there is even a theory that the LGBT bill may be intended to end the imperial lineage that has existed for more than 1,000 years.
In other words, we don't know what will happen.
After the bill is enacted, things will happen that we cannot even imagine.
This article continues.
