Billy Ken Kid, the first masked-wrestler member of the Kawanishi city assembly in Hyogo Prefecture, attended a plenary session in his mask on the 9th, after the assembly allowed it on conditions including identity checks by the chair before he enters the chamber.
The 52-year-old belongs to Osaka Pro Wrestling. He moved to Kawanishi 16 years ago and has long worked to liven up the community, visiting care homes and kindergartens while wrestling. He topped the poll in the city assembly election last month.
Once elected, he faced a question the city had never settled: whether a mask could be worn in the chamber. The assembly had no rule covering a masked wrestler, so there was no clear answer.
Other municipalities with masked wrestler-lawmakers have handled it differently. In Oita, the city assembly does not allow masks in the chamber under its meeting rules.
Terms agreed with the assembly
Residents were divided, and on the 6th of this month the assembly agreed to allow the mask in the chamber under conditions. They are:
- Wear the same mask as on the election poster
- Undergo identity confirmation by the chair when attending the assembly
- Do not wear the mask at memorial services or funerals
- Follow the other party's wishes during administrative inspections
Assembly members are split too. One who accepts the arrangement said he should squarely accept that he won voters' support while wearing it. One who opposes it said he has worked both masked and unmasked, and as a public figure should be consistent.
On a TV program, comedian Daisuke Kosaka, a wrestling fan, backed the masked entrance, saying his build, voice and movements make him obvious as soon as he speaks.
Lawyer Toru Hashimoto, a former Osaka governor, said he understood the masked entrance. If the chamber allows a mask, he said, the lawmaker should show his real face to voters on a website and elsewhere so they can hold him to account.