TOKYO, April 29, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – When the 85-year-old Japanese Emperor
Akihito steps down on April 30, it will be the latest in a string of historic
abdications that have included the pope and several monarchs.
As medical technology improves and lifespans grow, the concept of a
lifetime of duty is gradually being eroded and abdications are becoming
increasingly acceptable and frequent.
Here are some other recent abdications.
– Non habemus papam –
On February 11, 2013, Pope Benedict XVI stunned the world with an
announcement that he was stepping down due to ill health, the first pontiff
to abdicate for medical reasons in 700 years.
In a speech in Latin at the Vatican, the 85-year-old German-born Benedict
told cardinals that “due to an advanced age” his strength was “no longer
suited to an adequate exercise” of his post.
Benedict, who suffered from arthritis and had a stroke while he was still
a cardinal, eventually stepped aside on February 28, sparking an outpouring
of emotion from the world’s 1.2 billion Roman Catholics.
The only previous pope to step down because he considered himself unable
to continue was Celestine V, a simple hermit elected against his will in
1294.
His decision to back out sparked derision and Italian poet Dante Alighieri
famously condemned him in “The Divine Comedy” to spend eternity in hell’s
antechamber for his “cowardice” in making “the great refusal”.
– King of the Belgians –
In July 2013, the “King of the Belgians” Albert II announced to his
divided country that he would be stepping down, saying he felt too ill and
frail to continue.
“I am at an age never attained by predecessors. My age and my health do
not allow me to exercise my duties as I would like,” said the then 79-year-
old, after 20 years on the throne of the small European country.
It was the first voluntary abdication in the history of Belgium, which
gained independence from the Netherlands in 1831.
The Belgian monarch plays a crucial role in fostering national unity in a
country which is sharply divided between French-speaking Wallonia and
Flemish-speaking Flanders.
– ‘Trix’: Queen of the Dutch’ –
Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands also stepped down in the abdication-heavy
year of 2013, but the energetic and popular monarch did not abdicate due to
ill health but rather because she wanted to pass the torch to her son Willem
Alexander.
The then 74-year-old told the nation: “I’m not standing down because
public service is too heavy for me, but because of the belief that
responsibility for our country should be in the hands of a new generation.”
Thousands of Dutch party-goers wearing orange suits, wigs and sunglasses,
flooded the streets of Amsterdam to celebrate the handover of power to their
first king in more than 120 years.
– Carlos’s reign in Spain –
In June 2014, King Juan Carlos of Spain stepped down in favour of his son,
bringing to a close a 39-year reign that won praise for guiding the country
to democracy after the death of dictator General Francisco Franco in 1975 but
also had its share of scandals.
Carlos walked with a cane after several hip operations but, like Queen
Beatrix, justified his abdication by saying that “a younger generation
deserves to step into the front line”.
His reign was marred by a corruption scandal implicating the king’s
youngest daughter Cristina and her husband, and he outraged Spaniards in 2012
by going on a luxurious African elephant-hunting safari during a recession.
– A rare Arab abdication in Qatar –
Also in 2013, the emir of gas-rich Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-
Thani, abdicated after 18 years on the throne — a rarity in the Arab world.
The emir, then 61, suffered from kidney problems but officials insisted
his motivation for stepping down was not health-related but rather a
determination to bring a younger leadership to the fore.
His son Sheikh Tamim, then 33, took over.