Japanese Male Heir Averts Succession Crisis
Josephine Roque - All Headline News Staff Writer Tokyo, Japan (AHN) - Japan's Princess Kiko gave birth to a boy that averts the royal succession crisis. The ancient imperial throne has not had a male heir in more than 40 years. Kiko, 39, underwent Caesarean section operation to give birth Wednesday morning. He will be the third-in-line to the throne, after Crown Prince Naruhito and his father, Prince Akishino. Japan had been recently grappling with a 1947 succession law that allows only males to rule the throne. Up until now, there was no male heir to inherit the throne after Naruhito and Akishino as all children have been female. The boy was born at 8:27 a.m. and weighed 5.64 pounds, the Imperial Household Agency said. Kyodo News agency reported mother and child were in good condition. The gender of the baby had been kept secret by the palace although Japanese press has been guessing the child would be a boy. Kiko was hospitalized earlier due to symptoms of partial placenta previa. A condition in which part of the placenta becomes too low in the uterus. The succession issue had been subject of tense debates with proposals to revise the law to allow a female to assume the throne. The proposal was supported by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and most of the Japanese public.
Article © All Headline News - All Rights Reserved
|
