Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has fired a government aide who made disparaging remarks about LGBT couples.
Masayoshi Arai reportedly said he would not want to live around or look at people in same-sex relationships.
Mr. Arai also warned that allowing same-sex marriage in Japan would cause many people to leave the country.
Mr Kishida said the remarks were “outrageous” and “totally incompatible” with his government’s policies.
Japan – a country still largely bound by traditional gender roles and family values – is the only G7 country that does not recognize same-sex marriage.
However, recent polls show that most Japanese support same-sex marriage.
Several same-sex couples have also filed lawsuits across Japan in recent years, arguing that the same-sex marriage ban violates the country’s constitution.
Before Mr. Arai’s dismissal, Mr. Kishida spoke about same-sex marriage issues in parliament.
He said it needed to be carefully considered because of its potential impact on traditional family structures.
Mr. Arai later responded to the remarks, telling reporters that he “would not like to [ЛГБТ-пари] lived next door” and “doesn’t even want to look at them.”
He added that it would “change the way society lives” and “quite a lot of people will leave this country,” Kyodo News reported.
In response, Mr. Kishida said he fired Mr. Arai, adding: “We respected diversity and created an inclusive society.”
Mr. Arai later apologized, saying his remarks were inappropriate and did not reflect the Prime Minister’s views.
His resignation is another blow to Mr Kishida, whose government ratings have plummeted after several of his ministers resigned amid various scandals in recent months.
