The prospect that legislation addressing LGBTQ issues will be introduced before the Group of Seven summit is held in Japan later this month has dimmed due to division within the nation's ruling party.
Ever since his former close aide made discriminatory remarks about sexual minorities earlier this year, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has been under mounting pressure to pass a law to protect Japan's LGBTQ community, with the Asian country lagging behind other G7 members on the issue.
With the G7 summit set to get underway in Kishida's home constituency of Hiroshima in less than three weeks, his ruling Liberal Democratic Party has restarted a debate over a bill aimed at promoting understanding of the LGBTQ community.