Tomohiro Osaki - The Japan Times

Today's print edition

Subscribe for more access

Tomohiro Osaki

Meta

Tomohiro Osaki

Tomohiro Osaki is a staff writer in the Domestic News Division. A graduate of Sophia University in Tokyo, he likes to explore under-reported realities of Japanese youth, with a tendency toward the taboo.

JAPAN

Mar 10, 2015

Asylum seekers in Japan soared to record level in 2014

The number of people seeking asylum in Japan jumped 53 percent in 2014 to a record 5,000, but only 11 were officially recognized.

JAPAN / 3/11 STILL BEING FELT

Mar 10, 2015

Survivors speak of grief, guilt and life after the tsunami

Every afternoon, elderly residents at a temporary housing complex in the city of Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, sit around a table for a few hours of lighthearted chitchat. They update each other on how they feel, talk about TV shows they saw the night before and laugh at each other's jokes.

Japan Times

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Mar 9, 2015

Four Syrian asylum seekers to sue for refugee status

Four asylum seekers from conflict-ridden Syria will soon initiate a lawsuit against the central government to seek official refugee status, the first from their nation to do so.

JAPAN

Mar 9, 2015

Fuji TV removes blackface segment after outcry

Anti-racist campaigners are celebrating a decision by Fuji TV to remove from a weekly music show a segment that purportedly showed performers sporting blackface makeup.

Japan Times

JAPAN / EXPLAINER

Mar 9, 2015

Tohoku pins rebound hopes to atom smasher

As the disaster-hit Tohoku region struggles to recover from the deadly tsunami four years ago, many residents have hopes for what is considered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to galvanize the area's resurrection.

JAPAN

Mar 6, 2015

Foreign nurses, caregivers to get special visa status

The Cabinet approves the creation of a new visa category for foreign nurses and caregivers to help reduce the labor shortage in the industry.

JAPAN / Society

Feb 27, 2015

Most Tokyo wards less keen on recognizing same-sex unions

Most of Tokyo's wards are hesitant to propose or consider certificates that would declare same-sex unions as equivalent to marriage, The Japan Times finds.

Japan Times

JAPAN

Feb 22, 2015

Nonprofit's manga raises awareness of teen sexual exploitation in Japan

A Tokyo-based nonprofit organization is publishing manga booklets Monday that aim to safeguard juveniles from what it calls the increasingly serious reality of teen sexual exploitation in Japan.

JAPAN

Feb 20, 2015

Outrage grows over Sono 'apartheid' column

Public outrage over what is widely seen as a pro-apartheid column penned by conservative author Ayako Sono shows no sign of abating more than a week after its publication.

JAPAN

Feb 18, 2015

Discount chain Don Quijote to accept payment in foreign currencies

The service represents the retailer's latest attempt to cater to foreign tourists, which it says are becoming an increasingly important part of its customer base.

JAPAN

Feb 16, 2015

Second Tokyo ward speaks of action on same-sex unions

The mayor of Setagaya has suggested his ward may seek to recognize same-sex unions, days after neighboring Shibuya district announced it would vote on the issue.

Japan Times

JAPAN / NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT

Feb 15, 2015

Mainstream Japanese society slowly working to accommodate sexual minorities

When she was in her teens, Yumiko Higuchi was suicidal.

JAPAN

Feb 13, 2015

'No Game' campaign misfires in Hokkaido

A 'No Game' campaign led by educators in Hokkaido backfires after being taken as an attempt to label video games as harmful.

JAPAN

Feb 12, 2015

Author Sono calls for racial segregation in op-ed piece

A prominent author and former government adviser calls for Japan to adopt a system to force immigrants to live separately from Japanese in zones based on race.

JAPAN

Feb 12, 2015

Shibuya Ward plans vote on same-sex marriage

One of the capital's 23 wards proposes issuing certificates that would declare same-sex relationships 'equivalent to marriage.'

Japan Times

JAPAN

Feb 6, 2015

Immigration detention centers like prisons, U.K. inspectors say

When British incarceration inspection expert Hindpal Singh Bhui last month paid his first visit to a Japanese immigration detention center, his overriding initial impression was that it looked like a prison.

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Feb 5, 2015

Film festival gives a lesson on the world of night school

The world of night school in Japan is so detached from mainstream society that many people are clueless as to the role it plays.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Feb 4, 2015

Hacker who framed computer users with cyberthreats jailed for eight years

Yusuke Katayama, a former information technology professional, used his expertise to make online threats 'while dodging arrest himself,' the presiding judge said.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Feb 2, 2015

Death sentence upheld for Akihabara rampage killer

The Supreme Court finalizes the death penalty of Tomohiro Kato for the vehicular homicide and stabbing spree that left seven people dead and 10 injured on the streets of Tokyo's Akihabara neighborhood in 2008.

Japan Times

JAPAN

Feb 1, 2015

Conflict-zone scribes fear fallout from intrepid journalist's death

The tragic death of Kenji Goto highlights a dilemma that the journalism community in Japan has long struggled with: how much of a risk reporters should take on when working in dangerous conflict zones.

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.

Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.

By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after

Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER

international-reports