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Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito after the Hyogo Prefectural Assembly passed a no-confidence motion against him on Sept. 19

JAPAN / Politics

Sep 26, 2024

Hyogo governor to seek reelection after automatically losing his seat next week

Motohiko Saito, who has been at the center of a series of controversies, announced his decision at a news conference Thursday afternoon.

The Justice Ministry said there are now over 250,000 specified skilled foreign workers.

JAPAN

Sep 24, 2024

Number of specified skilled visa holders in Japan surpasses 250,000

The government is aiming to attract 820,000 foreign workers under the specified skilled worker program over a five-year period through April 2029.

The Japanese Embassy in Beijing on Thursday. The embassy and other organizations have urged swift and resolute actions to protect Japanese citizens in China.

JAPAN

Sep 20, 2024

China works to avoid rift with Japan over killing of schoolchild

Beijing is characterizing the murder as a lone act and downplaying the political implications.

Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito speaks during a prefectural assembly session on Thursday in Kobe. A motion of no confidence against Saito, who is accused of workplace bullying, was submitted to the prefectural assembly on Thursday.

JAPAN / Politics

Sep 19, 2024

Hyogo assembly passes no-confidence motion against embattled governor

The extremely rare move forces Gov. Motohiko Saito, who is accused of workplace bullying, to either step down or dissolve the assembly within 10 days.

The street where a 10-year-old boy is said to have been stabbed with a knife, on Thursday in Shenzhen in southern China.

JAPAN / Crime & Legal

Sep 19, 2024

Japanese school student stabbed in Shenzhen dies

The assault echoes an earlier incident of violence in June, when a man attacked a bus used by a Japanese school in Suzhou, China.

Nippon Steel argues that its acquisition of U.S. Steel would be a win-win.

BUSINESS / Companies

Sep 12, 2024

Quiet assurances mooted as U.S. Steel deal shakes global order

Analysts and informed observers have been gaming out the possible outcomes and adding up the potential damage.

Signs expressing opposition to the University of Tokyo's proposed tuition hikes are displayed at the university's Komaba campus in Tokyo in July.

JAPAN / Society

Sep 11, 2024

University of Tokyo plans to raise tuition fees by 20% in 2025

The university expects to make the proposal official by the end of September, barring unforeseen issues.

Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito, accused of workplace bullying, testifies to an investigative panel in Kobe on Friday.

JAPAN / Politics

Sep 9, 2024

Nippon Ishin calls on Hyogo governor to resign over bullying claims

Nippon Ishin’s move is expected to be a politically fatal blow for Motohiko Saito, as he had the party’s support when he was elected as an independent.

Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito attends a session of a panel investigating allegations of workplace harassment against him, in Kobe on Friday.

JAPAN

Sep 6, 2024

Hyogo governor disputes legal protections for harassment whistleblower

Motohiko Saito said that he didn’t believe it was a problem to allow an investigation into the creator of a document making allegations against him.

The future of 133-year-old remains, which lay buried beneath Kitakyushu for a century, is unclear amid the city's redevelopment plans.

JAPAN

Sep 4, 2024

Global conservation body calls on Kitakyushu to halt redevelopment plans

The city said the project will proceed as planned as there are no alternative sites and further delays could threaten the provision of public services.

People at the Sensoji temple in Tokyo in July. The three months between June and August were 1.76 degrees Celsius hotter than average in Japan.

JAPAN / Boiling Point

Sep 2, 2024

Japan sees joint hottest summer on record

The three months between June and August were 1.76 degrees Celsius hotter than average, matching the record set only last year.

Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito (center) attends a session before a prefectural assembly investigative panel on Friday in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture.

JAPAN / Politics

Aug 30, 2024

Hyogo governor sidesteps accusations of workplace bullying

In the wake of the deaths of two prefectural officials, Gov. Motohiko Saito told an investigative panel that he may have been a "strict boss."

Although Truvada has been used globally as an HIV prevention drug for years, the movement toward expanding its use as preexposure prophylaxis in Japan has been slow.

JAPAN / Science & Health

Aug 29, 2024

Health ministry approves Truvada as HIV prevention drug

Truvada is the first drug approved in Japan for both the treatment and prevention of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

The Todoroki Falls in Amakusa, Kumamoto Prefecture, on Saturday. Seven high school students who had played in a river nearby experienced vomiting and diarrhea.

JAPAN / Society

Aug 28, 2024

Over 100 people fall sick in Kumamoto with river eyed as potential source

The city has set up signs near the river due to the suspected norovirus cases, calling on visitors to refrain from playing in the water.

Remnants of the first Moji station complex are located near the current Mojiko Station in the city of Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture.

JAPAN / Society

Aug 27, 2024

Kitakyushu clashes with academics over Meiji Era remains

The city wants to proceed with plans to build a five-story complex to house several aging public facilities on the site of the original Moji railway station.

An electronic signboard at Tokyo Station displays information about a megaquake alert last Saturday. The government lifted the alert on Thursday but urged continued vigilance.

JAPAN / Society

Aug 15, 2024

Japan lifts megaquake alert after no major seismic activity detected

Authorities note that although the alert is lifted, a large-scale earthquake remains a possibility.

A train in Nimi, Okayama Prefecture, on West Japan Railway's Geibi Line in September 2023. The line is among those that have seen rail tracks warped by this summer's extreme heat.

JAPAN / Boiling Point

Aug 15, 2024

Japan’s searing summer heat is warping railway tracks more often

West Japan Railway, Kyushu Railway and Shikoku Railway have all been affected.

Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.

JAPAN / Explainer

Aug 9, 2024

Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?

How serious is the situation, and what should people do in the days to come? Here’s what you need to know.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks to reporters at the Prime Minister's Office on Thursday following a major earthquake in the Kyushu region.

JAPAN

Aug 9, 2024

Kyushu escapes major damage from magnitude 7.1 earthquake

The quake led to at least 13 injuries, with three residential buildings suffering damage.

Naoshi Hirata, chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Thursday evening.

JAPAN

Aug 8, 2024

Japan issues first-ever alert over risk of Nankai Trough megaquake

It is believed that the chance of a major earthquake occurring in the Nankai Trough is relatively higher than usual, the weather agency said.

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

Tsukuba massif granite, one of the world’s few heritage stones

Tsukuba massif granite, one of the world’s few heritage stones

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