The Japanese government said Monday it has set up a panel of external experts to discuss the issue of imperial succession, apparently to consider the feasibility of allowing a woman to ascend the throne.

The 10-member private advisory panel to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is expected to hold its first meeting in January and compile a report in the fall of next year, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said in a press conference.

The possibility of female succession has been a hot topic recently as the existing law allows only male heirs to ascend the throne but no male heir has been born into the imperial family for almost 40 years.

Panelists include Keio University professor emeritus Sumiko Iwao, former UN High Commissioner for Refugees Sadako Ogata, who now heads the Japan International Cooperation Agency, and Japan Business Federation Chairman Hiroshi Okuda.

The government expects the panel to consider broad matters from the viewpoint of maintaining the stability of imperial succession,Hosoda, the top government spokesman, said.

It will leave it to the panelists to select their chairperson and topics for discussion at their inaugural meeting next month as the panel is intended to be a forum for free discussion, Hosoda said.

Hosoda declined to comment if the government plans to submit a bill to amend the Imperial House Law to the ordinary parliament session in 2006, after the panel releases its report.

Koizumi has voiced willingness to support female ascension, saying he believes the public would support it.

Discussions regarding a female successor to the throne emerged around spring 2001, but then subsided as the matter was considered a long-term issue.

The issue came up again this year as many members of the House of Representatives Research Commission on the Constitution expressed support for the idea.

Source: Xinhua