For Linda Sieg's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
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. In the town, which was merged with the nearby city of Kurashiki in 2005 and is now called ...
Torrential rains unleashed floods and set off landslides in western Japan last week, killing at least 176 people, forcing millions to evacuate and leaving dozens missing in the country's worst weather disaster in 36 years. Below are some reasons for the high death toll: Extreme weather Remnants ...
First lady Akie Abe, once known mainly for embracing progressive causes that put her at odds with her conservative spouse, is now in the hot seat as doubts revive about the murky land sale to nationalist school operator Moritomo Gakuen to which she had ...
Economic talks between the United States and Japan, tackling topics from persimmons and potatoes to energy and infrastructure, have helped keep Tokyo clear of protectionist moves such as those that recently hit Chinese solar panels and South Korean washers. Japan hopes its "let's talk" approach ...
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. One key to achieving that ambitious goal, ...
A fast-growing challenge by Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s ruling bloc has highlighted the risk of his gamble on a snap poll.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has achieved much of his conservative security agenda since taking office in 2012, but unless he can revive his flagging popularity, his goal of revising the pacifist Constitution is likely to elude his grasp. Failure to achieve that goal by the ...
He's young, good-looking and the media call him "Japan's Macron," so it is little surprise that lawmakers say Shinjiro Koizumi may be offered a post when Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reshuffles his Cabinet next month in a bid to revive his public support, which ...
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's cherished goal of revising Japan's pacifist Constitution has become more difficult to achieve after a plunge in his popularity and the erosion of public trust, a ruling party lawmaker said on Wednesday. Support for Abe has plummeted to its lowest since ...
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. Some 4.5 million Japanese aged between 35 and 54 were living with their parents in 2016, ...
