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Karin Kaneko

Workers remove debris from a damaged house in the city of Miyazaki on Thursday following a major earthquake.

JAPAN / Society

Aug 9, 2024

Nankai Trough megaquake concerns become 'real' among locals

Some Kyushu residents are starting to worry about their safety and are taking extra precautions.

A tsunami advisory, shown in yellow, was issued following an earthquake in Kyushu on Tuesday afternoon.

JAPAN

Aug 8, 2024

Tsunami advisory lifted after strong quake jolts Kyushu

The 7.1 magnitude quake, measuring a weak 7 on Japan's intensity scale, triggered small tsunami waves in some areas.

The Nagasaki Municipal Government, which is hosting the city's annual peace ceremony, said it did not extend an invitation to the Israeli ambassador due to security concerns.

JAPAN

Aug 8, 2024

Nagasaki peace ceremony overshadowed by diplomatic wrangling

Ambassadors of Group of Seven countries are set to skip Friday’s ceremony after the city’s decision not to invite the Israeli envoy to Japan.

In recent years, the number of ambulance dispatches has been on the rise, amid concerns that those who need urgent care may not be receiving it.

JAPAN / Society

Aug 7, 2024

Japan municipalities take tougher stance on nonurgent ambulance calls

The proliferation of nonurgent calls and related requests for ambulances have been giving local municipalities a headache.

Justice Minister Ryuji Koizumi meets with victims of forced sterilization at the ministry in Tokyo on Friday.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Aug 2, 2024

Victims of forced sterilization seek ¥15 million in compensation

Under a now-defunct eugenics law, the government allowed doctors to perform nonconsensual sterilization surgery and abortion on those with disabilities.

Forced sterilization plaintiff Sumiko Nishi at her home in Hino, western Tokyo, on Wednesday

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Jul 31, 2024

First settlement reached for forced sterilization plaintiff in Japan

The state has agreed to pay ¥16.5 million — the same amount awarded to plaintiffs in a related Supreme Court case.

Upper House lawmaker Megumi Hirose enters her house in Tokyo after it was raided on Tuesday.

JAPAN / Politics

Jul 30, 2024

Tokyo prosecutors raid LDP lawmaker's home on suspicion of salary fraud

Megumi Hirose, 58, is suspected of providing one of her secretaries with a state-paid salary even though they reportedly did no real work.

Amazon has launched an online service enabling customers in Japan to purchase prescription medications without having to visit physical pharmacies.

BUSINESS / Companies

Jul 24, 2024

Amazon Pharmacy goes live in Japan

Through the new service, Japanese consumers will be able to obtain medications without having to visit physical pharmacies.

Fireworks during Irumagawa Tanabata Festival in Sayama, Saitama Prefecture in July 2023

JAPAN / Society

Jul 22, 2024

Many summer fireworks festivals in Japan canceled due to complaints

Property damage caused by debris, and littering and trespassing by those looking for a better view are among the reasons for the cancellations.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida receives a petition from victims of forced sterilization on Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.

JAPAN / Society

Jul 17, 2024

Kishida apologizes to victims of forced sterilization

The apology from the prime minister follows a Supreme Court ruling earlier this month declaring that the now-defunct eugenics law was unconstitutional.

The plaintiff, who is in her 50s, is suing the government, contending that the gender dysphoria law is unconstitutional because it violates Article 13 of the Constitution, which protects an individual's right to pursue happiness.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Jul 16, 2024

Trans woman challenges marital status condition for legal gender change

The plaintiff, who has been married since 2015, argues that the legal requirement for one to be unmarried in order to change one's gender is unconstitutional.

The Kadena Air Base in Okinawa Prefecture. Brennon Washington, a 25-year-old U.S. Air Force serviceman based at Kadena, on Friday pleaded not guilty to kidnapping and sexually assaulting a minor.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Jul 12, 2024

U.S. serviceman in Okinawa pleads not guilty to sexual assault

Brennon Washington, who is stationed at the Kadena Air Base, said he did not kidnap or assault an underage girl in December.

A woman is rescued by a helicopter on Wednesday off the coast of Chiba Prefecture after drifting at sea for 36 hours.

JAPAN

Jul 11, 2024

Woman rescued off Chiba 36 hours after going missing in Shizuoka

The woman, who is a Chinese national in her 20s, was dehydrated but conscious and did not require hospitalization.

A Japanese high court decision on Wednesday touched on the contentious issue of whether transgender people need to undergo surgery in order to have their gender changed in official records.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Jul 10, 2024

Japan high court backs gender status change without surgery

The development is likely to put more pressure on the government to revise the contentious 2003 law on gender dysphoria.

On Monday, a heatstroke alert was issued in 27 of the nation’s 47 prefectures, including seven in the Kanto region.

JAPAN

Jul 8, 2024

Unseasonal heat in Japan raises prospect of top-level heatstroke alert

The alert is issued when the wet-bulb globe temperature is expected to hit at least 35 degrees Celsius at all monitoring points in a prefecture.

A nursing home in Ishikawa Prefecture. Wage increases in other industries have made the nursing care sector less attractive.

JAPAN / Society

Jul 4, 2024

Over 80 nursing homes in Japan went bankrupt in first half

Rising costs and a severe manpower shortage are the main reasons driving care providers out of business.

Plaintiffs of a series of lawsuits on forced sterilization and their lawyers hold banners saying "victory ruling" after the Supreme Court ruled in their favor in Tokyo on Wednesday.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Jul 3, 2024

Japan's top court orders compensation for forced sterilization victims

The landmark ruling was made on the basis that the now-defunct eugenics law was unconstitutional.

Hanako and Taro Nomura, who are suing the government over forced sterilization, show their late daughter's birth register issued by a temple, in their living room in a city in Osaka Prefecture. For years, the couple wondered why they could not conceive after the death of their firstborn.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Jul 2, 2024

Seeking justice, deaf couple confronts issue of forced sterilization

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court will rule on lawsuits against the government filed by the Nomuras and others who were sterilized under a now-defunct eugenics law.

Tsuguhiko Kadokawa (center) and his lawyers head to the Tokyo District Court on Thursday to file the lawsuit against the state.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Jun 27, 2024

Ex-Kadokawa chairman files lawsuit over 'hostage justice' system

Tsuguhiko Kadokawa, 80, is seeking ¥220 million in damages in the civil lawsuit after he was detained for 226 days before being released in April 2023.

Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki speaks to reporters on Tuesday at the prefectural government office.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Jun 26, 2024

Foreign Ministry delayed telling Okinawa about U.S. airman's alleged sex crime

The delay in informing the prefectural government could further strain the relationship between Okinawa and Tokyo.

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

Fujitsu crafts sustainable innovation for itself, society

Fujitsu crafts sustainable innovation for itself, society

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