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April 27, 2024
 

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Gabriele Ninivaggi
For Gabriele Ninivaggi's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
The first Lower House political reform committee meeting begins in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 26, 2024
Gaps between Japan's parties on political reform on show at committee
At the committee's first meeting, differing views were expressed on the legal responsibility of politicians as well as punishments for wrongdoing.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has repeatedly expressed his commitment to bring about a revision of the Political Funds Control Act during the current session of parliament, which is slated to end on June 23.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 23, 2024
LDP pledges tougher action on errant lawmakers in reform blueprint
The ruling party will seek to review legislation on the handling of political funds in the wake of a slush funds scandal involving its members.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks at a Lower House Budget Committee session in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 22, 2024
LDP to present political reform plan this week as pressure grows
The move will lay the groundwork for an amendment of the political funds control law in the current session of parliament slated to end June 23.
LDP Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi arrives for his faction meeting in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 18, 2024
Motegi faces bumpy road after faction dissolution
Motegi has never sought to conceal his aspirations for the top spot, but his prospects may now be dwindling.
People listen to a campaign speech in Tokyo's Koto Ward on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 16, 2024
Unpacking the chaotic by-election in a scandal-hit Tokyo district
The residents of Tokyo's No. 15 district — which corresponds to the city’s southeastern Koto Ward — will head to the polls for the third time in a year.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the White House in Washington on Wednesday
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 11, 2024
Biden and Kishida herald 'new era' for U.S.-Japan alliance
The leaders unveiled a historic upgrade of defense ties as they look to beef up Tokyo’s role in countering China’s growing assertiveness.
Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi (left) attends a disciplinary panel in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 4, 2024
LDP announces formal punishment for scandal-tainted lawmakers
An LDP disciplinary panel handed down the reprimands following weeks of debate among the leadership and several rounds of internal investigations.
Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi (left), Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (center), and Taro Aso, the party's vice president, meet in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 2, 2024
LDP’s formal punishment likely to spark discontent
Exempting Kishida and Nikai from any reprimands over the slush funds scandal will likely deepen rifts within the party, experts say.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has expressed his eagerness to revise the political funds law in the current session of parliament, slated to end on June 23.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Mar 29, 2024
Spotlight on political reform after budget clears Japan's parliament
Ruling and opposition parties are eager to outline a bolder plan for reform to raise their profile among voters amid growing political disenchantment.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attends an Upper House Budget Committee session on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 28, 2024
Ex-PM Yoshiro Mori may face LDP probe over kickback scheme
The target and scope of such an investigation has yet to be decided, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida says.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's powerful sister said Monday that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has requested a summit with her brother, hinting that any meeting was unlikely without a policy shift by Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 25, 2024
Japan reaching out to North Korea for Kim-Kishida summit
The sister of leader Kim Jong Un said any summit would hinge on whether Japan was willing to make a "political decision" — likely on the abductee issue.
Shun Otokita is the rarest of Nippon Ishin lawmakers: He was born and bred in Tokyo, where he got his start as a local politician.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Mar 18, 2024
Can Nippon Ishin no Kai make inroads in Tokyo?
The Kansai-based party is aiming to broaden its support across Japan — starting with Tokyo's No. 15 district election next month.
A concept model of the Global Combat Air Programme's fighter jet is displayed at the DSEI Japan defense show at Makuhari Messe in Chiba in March 2023.
JAPAN
Mar 15, 2024
Japan's ruling coalition approves export of future joint fighter jet
The step removes a potentially critical hurdle for the multinational Global Combat Aircraft Program involving the U.K. and Italy.
Hiroshige Seko, a former Upper House secretary-general of the LDP, told the Upper House ethics committee in Tokyo on Thursday that he was never directly involved in the handling of the Abe faction’s funds.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 14, 2024
Upper House Abe faction members deny involvement in slush fund scandal
Opposition lawmakers targeted the lack of clarity over the decision to continue a kickback scheme after Abe’s death in 2022.
Former Olympics minister Seiko Hashimoto has announced her intention to appear before an Upper House political ethics committee scheduled to convene on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 12, 2024
Three members of Abe faction to attend Upper House ethics hearing
But other lawmakers embroiled in the LDP slush fund scandal have largely indicated that they don't intend to testify.
Former economy minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, who served as the Abe faction’s secretary-general for 10 months until August 2022, said the practice of returning portions of the income collected through fundraising parties to individual lawmakers was solely handled by the faction chairman and an administrative secretary.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 1, 2024
As ethics hearing unfolds, Diet falls into chaos over budget approval
The CDP sought to censure budget committee leader Itsunori Onodera over his decision to push through a final vote, and argued for more extensive debate.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks at a Lower House ethics committee hearing in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 29, 2024
Kishida apologizes over slush funds scandal at ethics committee meeting
In a rare appearance in front of the committee, the prime minister also vowed to implement political reforms in the wake of the scandal.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida tells reporters that he plans to attend a Lower House ethics committee hearing, in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 28, 2024
Kishida says he will attend ethics committee hearing on funds scandal
In addition to Kishida, five senior LDP members will face the committee in front of a fully-open session of the Lower House on Thursday and Friday.
In early February, the Finance Ministry announced that government debt at the end of last year had reached a record high of ¥1.2 quadrillion.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Feb 27, 2024
With downfall of Abe faction, some see a shift in Japan’s debt debate
The faction has long promoted fiscal stimulus, but its demise combined with wider economic conditions could open up space for a different approach.
Lower House Budget Committee executives discuss next week's schedule in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 22, 2024
Committee probing LDP funds scandal set to open next week
The committee will likely gather next Wednesday and Thursday to interrogate five senior LDP lawmakers over their involvement in a kickback scheme.
New JAL chief concerned about yen’s ‘excessive’ weakness
Mitsuko Tottori became Japan Airlines’ first female CEO on April 1, having risen through the ranks as a flight attendant and heading the flight attendant and customer experience divisions.
Town to block view of Mount Fuji in response to overtourism
The town government of Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, decided to set up a 2.5-meter-high screen to prevent tourists from taking pictures of Mount Fuji looming behind a convenience store.
Yen inches closer to intervention point as BOJ meeting starts
The rate of the yen against the U.S. dollar is displayed in the trading room at foreign exchange brokerage Gaitame.com in Tokyo on Thursday.
Princess Aiko makes debut at imperial garden party
Princess Aiko attends an imperial garden party in Tokyo on Tuesday.
'So hot you can't breathe': Extreme heat hits the Philippines
A pedestrian cools himself with a folding hand fan as he waits for a ride along a road in Manila on Wednesday, as extreme heat hit the Philippines.
Tokyo's Koto Ward by-election a race unlike any other
Natsumi Sakai, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan’s candidate and one of four female candidates running in the by-election, touts her experience as a cancer survivor and midwife as having prepared her to tackle issues that women currently face.
Town to block view of Mount Fuji in response to overtourism
The town government of Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, decided to set up a 2.5-meter-high screen to prevent tourists from taking pictures of Mount Fuji looming behind a convenience store.
Top U.S. and China diplomats talk tough amid warnings of new ‘downward spiral’
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on Friday
Kyotographie's strong 12th edition shines light into the margins
Yassine Alaoui Ismaili, who goes by Yoriyas, turned to photography, shooting motion while in motion himself, after an injury forced him to give up his career as a professional breakdancer.
For amateur sumo, a fresh start offers hope against time-wasting and gamesmanship
Wrestlers prepare for the start of a bout at the 2023 Sumo World Championships in Tokyo. Starting this month, placing one hand on the clay first is no longer allowed.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Later this month, author Shogo Imamura will open Honmaru, a bookstore that allows other businesses to rent its shelves. It's part of a wave of ideas Japanese booksellers are trying to compete with online spaces.
The story isn't over for Japan's bookstores
By Alex K.T. Martin

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