Discriminatory remarks by a close aide of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida have revived discussions about LGBT rights in Japan, the only G7 nation without legislation prohibiting discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation. Masayoshi Arai, who served as Kishida’s executive secretary focusing on economics, said earlier this month that he’d “hate to live next door” to an LGBT couple and would “hate to look at them.” Kishida, sacking Arai, said the comments by his aide were “completely out of line with the Cabinet’s approach to respecting diversity and creating an inclusive society” and don’t reflect the official stance of his administration on the issue.
