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Ami Miyazaki
For Ami Miyazaki's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 6, 2021
School's out for the Tokyo Olympics as parents and teachers reconsider trips
Many schools have pulled out of a program intended to let hundreds of thousands of children see the world's best athletes compete.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2021
JOC executive Kaori Yamaguchi says Tokyo Games should be held without spectators
Yamaguchi said the government was 'confusing' the public by asking them to stay at home and imposing curbs while putting on the global sports showpiece.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 1, 2020
Peeling back the hospital curtain: One Japanese hospital's fight against COVID-19
As the country emerges from a state of emergency, hospitals like one in Yokohama face the prospect of operating in the shadow of a virus with no treatment or cure.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 18, 2019
Path to the Diet still strewn with high hurdles for Japan's women
When anti-nuclear activist Junko Isogai ran for office in Niigata, her campaign had an awkward dimension: not just speeches and chats with constituents, but efforts to entertain potential backers.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Mar 20, 2019
Vietnamese blue-collar workers in Japan seen facing risks as labor system opens up
When a young Vietnamese woman found out late last year that she was pregnant after arriving in Japan on a technical trainee visa, she was given a stark choice: "Have an abortion or go back to Vietnam."
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 26, 2018
Shrinking applicant pool: Japan's Self Defense Forces struggling to recruit amid population crisis
As a Self-Defense Forces recruiter sat patiently at a booth outside a supermarket in Tokyo one recent weekend, she welcomed a rare visitor, high school student Kazuaki Matsumura.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 16, 2018
In Mabicho, delays, lack of awareness raised death toll from floods
When Isao Akutagawa moved to the sleepy riverside community of Mabicho in Okayama Prefecture 45 years ago, it seemed like the perfect suburb to raise his children.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 14, 2017
Edano's David goes after Abe's 'arrogant' Goliath in Diet
The leader of the small Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, which exceeded expectations in October's snap poll, now hopes that by offering clear policy alternatives he can oust Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling coalition in the next election.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 18, 2017
Japan's oldest village by age sees LDP leadership as key for survival
Chikara Imai, 73, is quick to dismiss the new parties in Sunday's national election, saying old ties with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Liberal Democratic Party is what the country's most elderly village needs for survival.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 5, 2017
Heavy reliance on coal is likely to stymie Japan's climate agreement goals
Japan may not achieve its carbon emissions target if an ambitious plan to build more coal-fired power plants moves ahead, the environment minister said, underlining Tokyo's struggle to meet globally agreed goals to halt climate change.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Apr 20, 2017
Japan's middle-aged 'parasite singles' face uncertain future
Their youth long gone, members of Japan's generation of "parasite singles" face a precarious future, wondering how to survive once the parents many depended on for years pass away.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Nov 24, 2016
Japan leaves unapproved asylum seekers and kids born in-country with dire choices
Visa please fall on deaf ears as justice ministry insists on executing deportation orders.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 24, 2016
Japan needs ¥10 trillion in fiscal stimulus in each of next two years, says Abe adviser
Japan should spend ¥10 trillion ($99.83 billion) on fiscal stimulus both in fiscal 2017 and 2018 to offset the economy's lack of demand and eliminate the risk of deflation, an adviser to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Aug 9, 2016
Refugee reluctance clashes with labor realities as asylum seekers, banned from working, build Japan's roads
Mazlum Balibay paves Japan's roads, digs its sewers and lays its water pipes — all for a country that doesn't want him.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 22, 2016
Abe's maglev decision reflects political calculus over economics
Few doubt Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's decision to invest public funds in a $90 billion high-tech maglev railway makes political sense. Whether it makes equally good economic sense is less clear.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Mar 9, 2016
Japan detention center deaths cast doubt on 'appropriate medical steps'
Niculas Fernando died at a Tokyo immigration detention center sometime between 9:33 a.m. and 10:44 a.m. on Nov. 22, 2014, according to the coroner.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 26, 2016
Dolphin activist Ric O'Barry says he's a political prisoner of Japan
A U.S. activist opposing the dolphin hunt in Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, now in detention near Narita International Airport said Tuesday he is a political prisoner for his efforts to save dolphins.

Longform

Historically, kabuki was considered the entertainment of the merchant and peasant classes, a far cry from how it is regarded today.
For Japan's oldest kabuki theater, the show must go on