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September 05, 2025
 

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Discussions on greater rights for same-sex couples have not deepened at the national level despite recent court rulings saying that said Japan's same-sex marriage ban is unconstitutional.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 28, 2024

Tokyo ward mayors call for greater rights for same-sex couples

Among the wards, Setagaya and Nakano launched initiatives in November to register the relationships of same-sex couples in the same way as for common-law couples.
A recently enacted ordinance aimed at respecting individual differences in Sapporo has not been without controversy.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Apr 28, 2025

Sapporo enacts ordinance to foster diversity and inclusion

The number of foreign residents in Sapporo has doubled over the past decade, despite an overall population decline in the city.
Sanseito supporters applaud Saya, Sanseito candidate for the Upper House election from Tokyo, and Manabu Matsuda, a candidate from proportional representation, at a public rally at Tsukiji Market on June 28.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 1, 2025

Sanseito touts 'Japanese First' rhetoric to gain support

Some observers say conservative voters who left the Democratic Party for the People are turning to the fledgling opposition party by default.
Gigi Chao, vice chair of Cheuk Nang Holdings, in Hong Kong on July 19
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 31, 2023

More LGBTQ rights could help Asian financial hubs draw global talent

In Japan, the only Group of Seven nation without legal protection for same-sex unions, corporations are seen as a key driver for change.
Labyrinth organizer Russell Moench sparked controversy with transphobic tweets, leading booked artists to pull out of the highly regarded electronic music festival’s 2023 edition.
CULTURE / Music
Oct 20, 2023

Art and politics clash at Labyrinth 2023

A controversy surrounding the prestige electronic music festival sparks an old debate over separating art and the artist.
A lesbian couple, consisting of a 35-year-old woman (left) and 40-year-old woman, cover their faces with bouquets as they pose for wedding photos in Yokohama on Nov. 1.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 14, 2024

Amid same-sex marriage ban, LGBTQ couples opt for 'photo weddings'

These carefully choreographed images are often kept hidden in conservative Japan.
An 81-year-old man using the pseudonym Saburo Kita speaks during a hearing of plaintiffs in lawsuits over forced sterilizations, held by a cross-party group of lawmakers in the parliament building on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 10, 2024

Japanese lawmaker group hears from forced sterilization victims

Three people, including two plaintiffs who underwent forced sterilizations, attended the hearing by the cross-party group.
Kyoko Watanabe made a home for herself in Ishinomaki after moving there to participate in disaster relief efforts following 3/11, and now operates a business focused on the creative reuse of <i>akiya</i> (abandoned houses).
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Mar 17, 2025

From abandoned houses to ‘creative communities’: An Ishinomaki entrepreneur's vision for rural Japan

Kyoko Watanabe moved to Miyagi Prefecture to help with disaster relief efforts following 3/11. She ended up building a company and a vision for revitalizing rural Japan.
Plaintiffs celebrate the Tokyo High Court's ruling in a same-sex marriage lawsuit in Tokyo on Oct. 30.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 2, 2025

Signs of change emerge in constitutional interpretation of same-sex marriage

In a country often seen as a laggard on the rights of sexual minorities, five high courts all ruled against the ongoing ban on same-sex marriage just in the last year.
Following the Nagoya High Court ruling on the same-sex marriage lawsuit, lawyers and others raise banners and boards that read "unconstitutional" and similar statements on Friday in Naka Ward, Nagoya.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 7, 2025

Nagoya High Court rules not recognizing same-sex marriage unconstitutional

It is the fourth high court ruling in Japan on same-sex marriage, following decisions in Sapporo, Tokyo and Fukuoka.
Since 2017, Kotomi Li has won some of Japan’s top literary awards and built a formidable career in the face of persistent online harassment. “Authors are tenacious creatures to begin with,” she says.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
May 5, 2025

Kotomi Li: 'I refuse to choose death'

The Taiwanese writer reflects on the importance of queer community, her ascent in Japan’s literary world and her ongoing battles against online harassment.
People listen to stump speeches earlier this month in Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture, ahead of the Upper House election.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 11, 2025

Dual surnames for married couples in focus ahead of Japan poll

The U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has urged the Japanese government to introduce the system four times.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida apologizes during a meeting with victims of forced sterilization, on July 17, following a Supreme Court ruling that recognized the now-defunct eugenic protection law unconstitutional.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 5, 2024

Forced sterilization settlement deal imminent

The government will agree to pay up to ¥15 million per plaintiff and ¥2 million per spouse in consolation money to bring an end to the lawsuits.
Akimasa Nihongi, who spoke about his experience as a victim of sexual assault by Johnny Kitagawa, the late founder of the eponymous talent agency, said in a video message that victims who report their abuses are often subject to slander and harassment.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 27, 2024

Ex-member of Johnny's calls for victim protection at U.N. panel

Akimasa Nihongi said measures ought to be put in place to protect victims from slander and harassment after they go public with abuses.
“Extremely Inappropriate!” centers on Ichiro Ogawa (played by Sadao Abe), a crude high school teacher who is chain-smoking his way through 1986. He accidentally ends up on a bus that turns out to be a time machine, which drives him to 2024.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / Wide Angle
Apr 5, 2024

‘Extremely Inappropriate!’ took a big swing. TV is better for it.

The drama — which features a fish-out-of-water protagonist and satirizes social issues — is the most divisive Japanese TV show of the year so far.
Japan is the only country in the world that still enforces a same-surname rule for married couples, according to Keidanren research.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 10, 2024

Japan should let married women keep names, main business lobby says

Keidanren said in a proposal that the government should quickly present legislation allowing for surname choice to parliament.
Sumiteru Taniguchi, a former co-chair of Nihon Hidankyo (right), explains about hibakusha to then U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in August 2010 in front of a photo of himself suffering from severe burns as a child in Nagasaki.
JAPAN
Dec 10, 2024

Hidankyo carries on hopes of late hibakusha in Nobel win

Now-deceased hibakusha spearheaded antinuclear activities while grappling with severe injuries, illnesses and the loss of their families.
Hyappu Ishikawa (left) attends to children at the "Karafuru" Japanese language school in Nishio, Aichi Prefecture, in April.
JAPAN
Jun 3, 2024

How one Japanese city supports foreign students through community education

In the city of Nishio, public and private sectors collaborate with schools to support foreign students in Japanese language education and raise their school enrollment rates.
Rie Usui has been working to help people with disabilities get jobs, and now runs a talent agency for disabled people.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 29, 2025

Tokyo woman working to help people with disabilities secure jobs

Rie Usui's talent agency represents about 40 models and television personalities who feature in advertisements and TV drama series.
Plaintiffs and lawyers march to the Supreme Court to attend a hearing on lawsuits against the government over forced sterilization carried out under a now-defunct eugenic law, on Wednesday in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 29, 2024

Victims of forced sterilization speak of their suffering at Supreme Court

They are seeking compensation from the government over their forced sterilization due to their disabilities under a now-defunct eugenic law.
Plaintiffs seeking the right for same-sex couples to marry react Wednesday to the Tokyo High Court's ruling that Japan's ban on such marriages is unconstitutional.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 30, 2024

Tokyo High Court rules same-sex marriage ban is unconstitutional

It is the second high-court ruling in Japan to describe the ban on same-sex marriage in those terms.
Australia had the chance to embrace reconciliation with its First Nations peoples in the Voice referendum. Voters chose division instead.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 17, 2023

Ignorance sank Australia’s Indigenous Voice referendum

Australia had the choice to embrace reconciliation with its First Nations peoples. Misinformation, dirty politics and apathy prevailed instead.
(From left) Nanami Fukuoka, Natsumi Matsunaga and Riana Tashima, students from Denshukan High School in Yanagawa, Fukuoka Prefecture, and Mutsumi Machitori, their teacher, show their research in late March.
JAPAN / History / Regional Voices: Kyushu
May 6, 2024

Students in Fukuoka learn of school's tragic past in World War II

After investigating a cenotaph at their school, pupils researched 17 alumni who died at a nearby munitions factory.
European Union member flags are hoisted in front of the European Parliament building in Luxembourg. The country hosts key EU institutions and has recently concluded a working holiday visa program with Japan.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Aug 22, 2024

Luxembourg opens door for Japanese working holiday visitors

The working holiday program is available to Japanese nationals between the ages of 18 and 30.
Public awareness and support for people with dementia has significantly improved in Japan over the years, but the long-term sustainability of such support systems is a concern, experts say.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Sep 20, 2024

Dementia advocates worry public attitudes preventing diagnosis

Eighty percent of the public thinks dementia is a normal part of aging, meaning the need for correct diagnosis and care is possibly being neglected.
Election campaign staff rally support for their respective candidates, waving their hands from the open windows of campaign vehicles.
JAPAN / Politics / Regional Voices: Tohoku
Nov 4, 2024

‘Bush warbler ladies’ name bows out from Japan’s election campaigns

Workers who rally support for candidates using loudspeakers on vehicles are increasingly being referred to by a gender-neutral term.
Tomoko Tamura, chairperson of the Japanese Communist Party, attends a debate with other party leaders in Tokyo in October. Her party urges voters to end the LDP’s business-centered politics and U.S. dependence by supporting its social, economic and foreign-policy reforms.
COMMENTARY / Japan / From Party Leaders
Jul 16, 2025

JCP vows fairer taxes, stronger social safety net and a commitment to peaceful diplomacy

Tamura says LDP’s politics are now in a terminal and critical state with the party unable to respond to domestic and international issues or the wishes of the people.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 27, 2023

Supreme Court may adjust requirements for gender status change

If the court deems the surgery requirement for a gender change to be unconstitutional, it is expected to pave the way for an amendment of the law.
Tokyo Rainbow Pride is wrapping up for the year, but a slew of events in cities all over the country, from Hokkaido to Kyushu, lies in store in the second half of 2025.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Jun 12, 2025

The persistence of Pride: LGBTQ+ events in Tokyo and beyond

Pride isn’t just a one-off weekend — a slate of activities and programs in support of the queer community continues in full force, from Hokkaido to Kyushu.
Sofia Coppola (right), Bill Murray (center) and Scarlett Johansson attend the Venice Film Festival to present their movie “Lost in Translation” in August 2003.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 13, 2023

The complex legacy of ‘Lost in Translation,’ 20 years on

Sofia Coppola's acclaimed film relaunched Tokyo's global fame, but along the way it forgot to show its Japanese characters some love.
Surrounded by Chinese bases, a tiny Philippine island stands firm
A Philippine Navy sailor looks at a China Coast Guard vessel just off the coast of Pag-asa Island in the disputed South China Sea last month.
Anger in Japan after Instagrammer drinks burial site offering
Foreign tourists visit a park near the Imperial Palace in Tokyo in August.
Tamagotchi hatches 100 million shipments worldwide thanks to ’90s nostalgia
The latest version of Tamagotchi, called Tamagotchi Paradise, is awarded the best digital toy at Tokyo Toy Show on Aug. 28.
Tropical Storm Peipah forms off southwestern Japan
Tropical Storm Peipah, which formed off southeastern Japan, is expected to travel east off the Tokai area and the Kanto region.
What we know about the supplements scandal linked to Suntory’s ex-CEO
Takeshi Niinami, the former chairman and CEO of Suntory Holdings, at a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday
London’s calling and sumo’s top division — along with Hello Kitty — are ready to answer
Yokozuna Hoshoryu and Hello Kitty, an ambassador for sumo's upcoming tour to London, at Tokyo's Kokugikan on Tuesday
Resonac creates 27-member consortium to pursue advanced chip developments
Representatives from member companies of JOINT3, a consortium working together on semiconductor-related developments announced by Resonac, pose for a photo in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Haru Nemuri’s radical new album refuses easy listening
Musician Haruna Kimishima, better known as Haru Nemuri, confronts Japan’s politics, nationalism and censorship on her recent output.
Overseas sluggers step up to bat in small-town Hokkaido
The Betsukai Pilot Spirits welcomed new players (left to right) Yuta Yamanaka, Roman Guthrie, Scott Bellina and Leo Jiminian this year, pictured here with Yassir Lachkar of the Ishikari Red Phoenix.
Xi — joined by Kim and Putin — delivers stark warning at military parade
Chinese leader Xi Jinping walks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un before a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II, in Beijing on Wednesday.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past
By Alex K.T. Martin

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