Pressure mounts for Japan to introduce LGBT+ rights

Pressure mounts for Japan to introduce the most basic of LGBT+ rights ahead of Olympics.

Japan should introduce a law to protect LGBT+ people from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity ahead of the 2020 Olympic games this summer, human rights organisations have said.

In a letter, 116 human rights and LGBT+ organisations asked prime minister Yoshihide Suga of Japan to introduce such legislation before this summer, when they Tokyo Olympics are set to take place.

Tokyo was set to host the 2020 Summer Olympics last year, but the International Olympic Committee and Japanese government postponed the games for a year due to the ongoing pandemic. They are now scheduled for 23 July to 8 August.

The Tokyo 2020 Games are advertised as bringing “positive reform to the world” by building on three core concepts: “striving for your personal best”, “accepting one another” and “passing on legacy for the future”.

The game’s tagline is even a call-out for inclusion and diversity: “Know differences, show differences.”

However, LGBT+ and humans rights activists have said Japan needs to enact a national anti-discrimination law to protect LGBT+ people and athletes which meets international standards.

Source: PinkNews