Making a rare return to the public eye since being diagnosed as suffering from a stress disorder, Princess Masako of Japan attended the funeral earlier in the week of her in-law, 92-year-old Princess Takamatsu.
Elegant but slimmer than usual in deepest black and a veil, Masako accompanied her husband Crown Prince Naruhito to the service. And it looks as though the princess is likely to make a full return to official duties in the New Year as it was reported Friday that she is expected to appear on the palace balcony along with other royals on Sunday.
Traditionally the family joins the Emperor and Empress on the balcony of the hall of lasting peace on January 2 for the deliver a brief New Year message. It will be Masako’s first official duty since she withdrew from public life in December 2003.
While, according to custom, her relatives return seven times to the balcony, Masako will appear only once. However, the princess seems determined to fully resume her royal role as soon as possible, as indicated in her 41st birthday address on December 9. "It may take some more time to resume full-fledged duties but I would like to make efforts to recover and show my cheerful self," she said at the time.
The last 12 months have been turbulent ones for the normally sedate Imperial household. With the crown princess – a Harvard-educated former diplomat - coming under intense pressure to produce a male heir, Naruhito took the unprecedented step of voicing his concern over elements he said were stifling his wife. It was an admission one royal watcher likened to the declaration in 1946 by then Emperor Hirohito that he was not divine.
The crown prince’s remarks have prompted a series of responses by several members of the Imperial family, including his mother and the emperor himself.
While Naruhito and Masako have a daughter – three-year-old Crown Princess Aiko – current royal succession rules do not allow a female ascend the Chrysanthemum Throne. A meeting is due to be held in January, however, to discuss whether to permit a female monarch.
Masako, who has rarely been seen over the last 12 months, attended the family funeral with her husband Naruhito. The crown prince has been consistely supportive of his former diplomat wife, who he says has been stifled within her royal role
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
