Photo/Illutration Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks at the government’s committee for imperial ceremonies on March 18 at the prime minister’s office. (Takeshi Iwashita)

Banquets planned as part of a ceremony to formally declare Prince Fumihito’s elevation to the role of crown prince will be cut and the guest list drastically scaled down at the declaration ritual due to the spread of the new coronavirus.

The government’s committee for the imperial ceremonies on March 18 announced the change to prevent the further spread of the infectious disease.

The Rikkoshi-no-Rei series of ceremonies are scheduled to be held in April.

The committee decided to cancel the Kyuchu Kyoen-no-Gi, a stand-up style banquet, scheduled to be held twice at the Imperial Palace on April 21. 

“We have no choice but to cancel it from the standpoint of preventing the spread of infection,” said Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who heads the committee.

The committee discussed holding the banquet with less than half the guests in the initial plan. But some members opposed it, saying, “Taking any risk of allowing the virus to spread at the Imperial Palace is impermissible.”

The Rikkoshi Senmei-no-Gi ceremony, which declares Fumihito to be the first in line to the imperial throne, will be held as scheduled on April 19 in the Matsu-no-Ma state room within the Imperial Palace.

But the number of guests will be reduced to about 50, down from the original list of 350 or so.

The Choken-no-Gi ceremony, at which Fumihito will meet his brother, Emperor Naruhito, for the first time after the official declaration of his ascension to crown prince, will be held as scheduled on April 19.

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