J/apan’s Princess Mako is the emperor Naruhito’s niece. After a turbulent engagement, she gave up her royal title to marry her college sweetheart and said she was determined for a happy marriage with her “warm as the sun” husband.
Mako and her commoner boyfriend Kei Komuro spoke out at a news conference marked by uncommon candor for Japan’s royal family. She said that her marriage to Komuro was inevitable despite the wide opposition.
Mako, now Mako Komuro, was diagnosed earlier this year with post-traumatic stress disorder. This diagnosis came after an engagement marred by a money scandal and intense media scrutiny. She also separated from her fiancé for three years.
“Kei is irreplaceable to me” Mako stated that marriage was a choice we had to make to live and cherish our hearts.
She stated that her husband’s “incorrect” reporting had caused her “great fear and stress.”
She said that the “flow of arbitrary criticisms of Kei’s actions, along with one-sided speculation which ignored my feelings, made falsehoods somehow appear like reality and turned into an unprovoked tale that spread,” she continued.
The Princess and Komuro Kei have officially married after the officials from the Imperial Household Agency, who look after the Imperial family, filed for marriage at the local registration office.
You’d imagine that royal weddings would be lavish and official celebrations. However, there were hardly any celebrations. On the other hand, small protests were going on in parks against marriage. The couple decided to forego any celebrations, and the princess also denied the lump sum amount offered to female royals when they left the Imperial Family.
During the press conference at the hotel where the princess will be staying before her departure to the US, Komuro stated the following:
“I love Mako. I want to spend the only life I have with the one I love.”
2017 marks the start of this whole ordeal. In May of 2017, the two announced their engagement, and the whole of Japan was happy that their princess finally found her love. The majority of Japanese people approved of them at the time and praised their smiles.
But soon, news about financial issues regarding Komuro’s mother’s ex-fiancé spread, and everyone’s approval of Komuro turned down. Tons of criticism flew towards the couple, especially Komuro since most people thought he was marrying just for the money. Such controversies led the couple to postpone their marriage back in 2018 indefinitely. However, Komuro had given a 24-page statement earlier this year about the situation and said he had offered a settlement.
Then Komuro left for New York to continue his studies in law and the two never met physically after that. That is, until last week when he came back to Japan for the wedding.
Mako left the royal household on Tuesday, saying goodbye to her father, mother, and sister. Her mother was almost about to cry, but she held back in front of the media. She bowed to her mother and father, and her sister Kako opened her arms to embrace her.
Princess’s parents acknowledged the other opposition the couple had faced, but they believed that their feelings never changed.
Source for images: Reuters
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