A petition with over 106,000 signatures has been sent to Japan’s ruling party to call for LGBTQ+ equality before the Tokyo Olympics. According to The Independent, the petition was created by four national LGBTQ+ advocacy groups which argued the government should adhere to Olympic policies of equality for all regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.
The petition was sent off when the Olympic torch relay began in Fukushima to count down to the games which commence in July. Yuri Igarashi, director of the Japan Alliance for LGBT Legislation, explained why the petition was set up, saying: “Many LGBTQ+ people in Japan are still discriminated against…We need legislation to guarantee human rights and equality of LGBTQ+ people.” They.