Aki Takahashi, left, and Hiroko Masuhara, who were involved in creating Akashi city’s new partnership system for same-sex couples, attend a news conference on Dec. 10 in Hyogo Prefecture. (Takeshi Amano)
AKASHI, Hyogo Prefecture--Akashi city in January will become the first local government in Japan to introduce a partnership system that treats the children of same-sex couples as “family,” city officials said on Dec. 10.
The move is in response to calls from sexual minorities to recognize the family relationships between LGBT couples and their children.
While the planned system is not legally binding at the national level, it will allow same-sex couples in the city to change their relationships from “roommates” to “relatives” in their residence certificates, effectively recognizing them and their children as equivalent to a family, according to the city.