Sapporo on Thursday became the first major city in Japan to issue certificates recognizing same-sex partnerships

okyo, June 1 (IANS) Sapporo on Thursday became the first major Japanese city to recognise same-***** partnerships.

The municipal authorities of Sapporo, the fifth major city in Japan with a population of around 2.5 million, are expected to issue partnership certificates to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) couples from Thursday, Efe news reported.

After signing the partnership vow, the couple will receive a certificate, which will not confer legal rights or obligations, but will enable them to become beneficiaries in their partner's life insurance, and use family-member discounts for mobile phone and other services.

The initiative is another step towards legalisation of same ***** unions in Japan and comes after Shibuya and Setagaya districts in Tokyo became the first ones to recognise same-***** partnerships in 2015.

The cities of Iga (in the centre), Takarazuka (in the west) and Naha (in the south) also recognised same-***** partnerships in 2016.

Large Japanese corporations have also started adopting labour laws that ban discrimination in the workplace over sexual preference.

The measure also follows a historic verdict by the Taiwanese Supreme Court on May 28 invalidating a civil code provision that prohibited same-***** marriage, and fixed a two years time frame to amend the code to make Taiwan the first Asian country to legalise same-***** marriages.

The Japanese constitution does not recognise same ***** unions and says marriage should be based only on mutual consent between people of different sexes.

The Japanese civil law, too, does not recognise any right for same-***** partners.