Love Hina Creator Ken Akamatsu Eyes Japanese Parliament Seat 'to Protect Freedom of Expression'
Image via Amazon Prime Video Japan
Love Hina and UQ HOLDER! creator Ken Akamatsu has spent the better part of his manga creating career trying to support his fellow creators in copyright policing, codifying Japan's community creator scene and keeping manga's content free from government and foreign regulations. This all came to a head today when Akamatsu confirmed on Twitter that he intends to run in next summer's House of Councillors (upper house) election, if the Liberal Democratic Party chooses to run him.
一部報道にあるように、自民党本部で面談をさせて頂きました。
私は表現の自由を守るために、来夏の参院選への立候補の意志を固めています。
現在は選考過程の最中であり、党からの正式な発表がありましたら、改めて私の意思を皆様に伝えさせていただきたいと思います。赤松健
— 赤松 健 (@KenAkamatsu) December 16, 2021
Translation of the above Tweet:
"As reported in some media outlets, I did have an interview at LDP headquarters.
I am committed to running for the House of Councillors next summer in order to protect freedom of expression.
The party is currently in the midst of the selection process. Once an official announcement is made, I will convey my intentions to you all once again.
Ken Akamatsu"
The Liberal Democratic Party — Japan's current ruling party — falls on the conservative side of the political spectrum. Though due to the internal make-up of the party itself, and the way the Japanese government has worked since 1955, its factions system changes policy depending on which faction has the most power. The lower house has more power than the upper house, which is where the Prime Minister of Japan sits.
Akamatsu explained in the Tweet that he's currently in the running to be selected for a seat to run for, though doesn't mention whether or not it'll be from one of Japan's 45 districts or through an open nationwide list where members are elected through proportional voting.
The manga creator has previously advised the government on a multitude of issues, including being summoned to speak about the future of manga to the government. Akamatsu is also the head of the Japan Cartoonists Association and spearheaded the use of the "Doujin" mark on the front of manga volumes with UQ HOLDER! to denote that those series are okay used as the source for fan-made works.
Source: Oricon
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Daryl Harding is a Japan Correspondent for Crunchyroll News. He also runs a YouTube channel about Japan stuff called TheDoctorDazza, tweets at @DoctorDazza, and posts photos of his travels on Instagram
Source: Crunchyroll