Olympic minister Tamayo Marukawa is known to tread warily on the subject of creating a system to allow separate surnames for each person in a married couple.
Though she is also the minister in charge of women's empowerment and minister of state for gender equality, she did not clarify her attitude even when repeatedly asked Wednesday about her approval or disapproval of the system, while Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi showed his approval.
Gender equality is also one of the principles of the Olympic Games.
While Marukawa was asked 10 times whether she was for or against the system during a House of Councillors Budget Committee meeting, she did not answer, citing her position in the Cabinet.
"I have my own ideas," was all she said, leading to frequent disruptions in the deliberations.
Koizumi, on the other hand, showed his positive attitude.
"It is very important to create a society where people have the ability to make choices," he said.
Although Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga had once expressed his understanding of the system, he also did not reveal his stance during the meeting.
"This is an issue that relates to the nature of the family, and there are stark contrasts in the pros and cons," Suga said. "We will proceed with the issue while taking into account the opinions of the people and the Diet."
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