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Japanese prince says wife needs more recovery time

Japan's crown prince, who turned 48 yesterday, said his wife needs more time to recover from an stress-induced illness before she can return to official duties.

Naruhito, heir to the world's oldest monarchy, said Crown Princess Masako was making progress, but not quite ready to fully resume her duties and public appearances.

Masako, 44, withdrew from most imperial functions at the end of 2003 after developing a condition her palace doctors call "adjustment disorder."

"Masako, with her conditions, still has ups and downs, [but she] is making efforts to expand her activities, both publicly and privately," the crown prince said at a news conference, a transcript of which was released yesterday.

"I would like to ask for your continued patience and understanding," Naruhito said. "Masako is helping me in many ways and I want to continue giving her firm support," he said.

Masako, a former diplomat educated at Harvard and Oxford, came under immediate pressure to produce a male heir for the monarchy after her marriage to Naruhito in 1993, but suffered a miscarriage six years later.

She gave birth to a daughter, Aiko, in 2001, but females are prohibited from taking the throne.

Naruhito visited his parents' palace later yesterday to mark his birthday.

Naruhito promised he would visit his parents more after a senior palace official rebuked him for not spending enough time with them.

The head of Japan's Imperial Household Agency Shingo Haketa earlier this month in a rare public signal said that Naruhito should visit Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko more frequently.

The emperor, 74, complained in 2006 that he and his wife didn't have enough opportunities to meet Naruhito's only child, Princess Aiko, now six.

But at a press conference before his birthday Naruhito said: "I would like to commit as much as I can to visiting the Imperial Palace" where Akihito and Michiko live.

He didn't elaborate, saying that it was "a private family matter."

According to the Kyodo News agency on Feb. 13, the imperial official said: "I think the emperor and empress are concerned as the number of visits [by the crown prince's family] to the Imperial Palace has not increased."

He added that he had given advice to Naruhito on several occasions, to which he said the Crown Prince responded: "I'd like to make an effort."

The prince has recently come under fire in tabloid magazines for shunning official duties while dining with friends and family.
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