Japan’s Upper House passed the special bill on Friday, paving the way for Emperor Akihito to step down and pass the throne to his eldest son, Crown Prince Naruhito, a week after the bill was passed by the lower house. Once regarded divine power, the oldest monarchy of Japan will undergo another major change with the passage of the Special ...

Once regarded divine power, the oldest monarchy of Japan will undergo another major change with the passage of a bill by the government to let the current aged Emperor Akihito to abdicate the throne for his Oxford-educated son and Crown Prince Naruhito. After the defeat in World War II, Japan’s then Emperor Hirohito denounced “the false conception that the emperor ...