(Dan Tri) – Japan’s Crown Prince criticized the media for reporting false information about the married life of his daughter, former Princess Mako.
Crown Prince Akishino and his daughter Mako placed flowers at the Hiroshima peace memorial in 2016 (Photo: Japan Times).
`If you read the tabloids – I’m not sure how exactly to say this – but there’s a lot of stuff in there that’s made up, although there are some opinions that we should listen to,`
The comments of Crown Prince Akishino, the Emperor’s younger brother, were made at a press conference to celebrate his 56th birthday on November 30.
Former Princess Mako, 30 years old, and her boyfriend Kei Komuro held their wedding on October 26.
Crown Prince Akishino and his wife watched as former princess Mako hugged her sister, before Mako left the royal residence in Tokyo on the wedding day on October 26 (Photo: Reuters).
The Japanese initially supported former Princess Mako to marry Komuro – a lawyer in the US, but information about a financial scandal involving Komuro’s mother turned many people away and the couple faced fierce criticism.
Komuro then went to America to study law and his and Mako’s wedding was therefore delayed for 4 years.
The controversy was recently resolved, before Komuro and his wife left Tokyo to settle in the United States after the wedding.
`As for the online articles, there are also a lot of comments… and among them there are really terrible things. There are people who are deeply hurt by this slander,` Crown Prince Akishino shared.
Mako decided to give up her royal title to marry her commoner boyfriend after many ups and downs.
During the four years the wedding was delayed, Mako was under a lot of pressure, to the point that she was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Some Japanese royal watchers said public outrage over the marriage of former Princess Mako could have `cooled down` if the Imperial Household Agency (IHA) had handled it more tactfully.