经济学人下载:日本离同性婚姻合法化还有多远(2)

The plaintiffs say they will appeal against the refusal of compensation. In the meantime, campaigners plan to use the lower court’s finding to bolster suits in other cities. More favourable rulings could increase pressure on parliament to act. 

原告表示，他们将对拒绝赔偿提出上诉。与此同时，活动人士计划利用此次下级法院的判决来支持其他城市的诉讼。更多的有利裁决可能会给议会带来更大压力，迫使其采取行动。

Most voters would welcome that. A poll in 2018 found that nearly 80% of people aged between 20 and 59 approved of same-sex marriage; the share rose to nearly 90% among those in their 20s. Since two wards in Tokyo became the first local authorities to issue same-sex partnership certificates in 2015, 72 more have followed, home to a third of the population. 

大多数选民对此表示欢迎。2018年的一项民意调查发现，在20岁至59岁之间的人群中有近80%的人赞成同性婚姻；在20多岁的群体中，赞成比例上升到近90%。自2015年东京的两个区当局首次发布同性伴侣关系证明以来，又有72个区紧随其后，涵盖日本三分之一人口的家园。

Many business leaders see gay marriage as an economic as well as moral issue. As the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan noted last year, given the shrinking labour force, “Japanese companies cannot afford to lose in the global competition for the brightest talent.” Nearly 150 companies belong to a “Business for Marriage Equality” campaign, among them blue-chip firms such as Fujitsu and Panasonic. 

许多商界领袖将同性婚姻视为经济和道德问题。正如美国商会去年在日本指出的那样，考虑到劳动人口的萎缩，“在全球最优秀人才的竞争中，日本企业输不起”。近150家日企参加了“婚姻平权企业”运动，其中包括富士通和松下等蓝筹股企业。

But the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) remains opposed to gay marriage. Its old-fashioned views on matters of sexual equality extend to married couples, whom it continues to bar from retaining separate surnames. Just 9% of LDP candidates for the upper house of parliament in 2019 backed gay marriage. Last month the prime minister, Suga Yoshihide, defended the government for supporting “the foundations of the family in this country”. But banning people from forming families is a peculiar form of support. 

但执政的自由民主党(LDP)仍然反对同性婚姻。它不仅在两性平权问题上观念陈腐，还延伸到了已婚夫妇，自由民主党继续禁止已婚伴侣保留各自姓氏。2019年，只有9%的自民党日本参议院候选人支持同性婚姻。上个月，首相菅义伟为其政府支持“日本组建家庭的基础”进行了辩护。但禁止人们组建家庭是一种奇特的支持形式。