A Mother, But Not a Haha

Former TV personality Mukai Aki (39) is the proud mother of baby twin boys. But she may not be recognized as such under Japanese law. Mukai and her husband, former pro wrestler Takada Nobuhiko (41) last weekend announced the names of their boys, Banri and Yuta, born to a surrogate mother in the US (named simply as Cindy) last November. The family recently returned from the US and must register the births at their local city office. The US birth certificates name Mukai as the mother but the new parents said at a press conference that they were unsure how the local bureaucracy would deal with the issue of surrogate birth, not legally recognized in Japan. Having been born in the US, the children are also entitled to American citizenship, a right they might not be granted in Japan.