New Delhi: More and more young people in Japan are choosing not to get married. Amid this reducing percentage, a new relationship trend ‘friendship marriage’ is gaining ground in the country. According to a South China Morning Post (SCMP) report, increasing numbers of young people in Japan are opting for a new type of marital relationship which is free from love or sex. The report named the trend as ‘friendship marriage’.
According to the report, the relationship trend is based on shared values and interests and people are viewing it as an alternative to traditional marriages.
The report has defined friendship marriage as “a cohabitating relationship based on shared interests and values.” As per the trend, people do not marry the person whom they love or share a romantic bond with.
As per the trend, partners can enter a legal marriage and can live together as husband and wife. People in a friendship marriage are also allowed to have relationships with other people based on mutual agreement. Moreover, they can also decide to have children through artificial insemination.
“Friendship marriage is like finding a roommate with similar interests,” SCMP quoted a person who was in a friendship marriage for three years.Another person in a similar relationship shared her experience of a friendship marriage and said that she ‘can be a good friend’ if not ‘suited as someone’s girlfriend’. She also said she wants to be with a person with similar interests and tastes.
The SCMP report highlighted that the trend is more popular among asexual individuals and homosexuals. The report also underlined the relevance of friendship marriage for homosexuals who can take this alternative route in the country as same-sex marriage is not legal in Japan. A friendship marriage can be an escape for people who are not willing to marry but are doing so to present a “stable and mature” image in front of society or to please their parents, highlighted SCMP news report. It also said that more than 70% of partners in friendship marriages chose the relationship to have children as it is still difficult for a single woman to embrace motherhood in Japan.
