National / Crime & Legal Oct 26, 2020
Continued surveillance sought for Aum-linked groups in Japan
Three groups, comprising some 1,650 members, are active across 15 of the country's 47 prefectures.
National / Crime & Legal Sep 18, 2020
Aum cult leader Asahara's daughter to get his remains, court rules
The move comes amid a row over who will take possession of Aum Shinrikyo founder Shoko Asahara's ashes.
Reference | FYI Mar 25, 2020
25 years after Tokyo subway attack, Aum is a shadow of its former self
by Eric Johnston
Doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo's sarin gas attack on Tokyo subway trains shocked Japan and the world, raising concerns over nonstate organizations obtaining weapons of mass destruction.
National / Crime & Legal Mar 23, 2020
In letter, executed former Aum member urged would-be terrorists to halt attacks
Tomomasa Nakagawa penned the letter in English and intended it for an American researcher.
National Mar 20, 2020
Japan marks 25 years since deadly Aum sarin attack on Tokyo subway
The cult’s founder Shoko Asahara and senior members were executed in 2018.
Books / Reviews | ESSENTIAL READING FOR JAPANOPHILES Mar 14, 2020
'Underground': The thematic keystone to Haruki Murakami's oeuvre
by Iain Maloney
In the 20 years that have passed since the publication of Haruki Murakami's nonfiction "Underground," it remains both an outlier and a springboard for the career that would follow.
National Dec 20, 2019
Report highlights risk of cyberattacks and terrorism during Tokyo Olympics
The Public Security Intelligence Agency has warned against cyberattacks in an annual report with the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics just around the corner. In the report released Thursday regarding the security situation in Japan and overseas, the agency said that cyberattacks may interfere with ...
National / Media | BIG IN JAPAN Dec 7, 2019
The long arm of the law can't be rushed in Japan
by Mark Schreiber
In Japan, 2019 will be remembered as a year that ended twice. In addition to the Western calendar year, which ends on Dec. 31, April 30 marked the final day of year 31 of the Heisei Era, thereby bringing an end to the reign ...
National Jul 7, 2019
A year after Chizuo Matsumoto, who headed the Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult, was hanged, his ashes remain at the Tokyo Detention House due to a family dispute.
National / Crime & Legal | FOCUS Jul 5, 2019
One year after 13 Aum Shinrikyo executions, scant debate over the death penalty in Japan
One year after the founder and 12 former senior members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult were executed for crimes including the deadly 1995 sarin gas attack in the Tokyo subway system, the debate over the death penalty remains a muted affair in Japan despite ...
National / Crime & Legal Apr 10, 2019
Tokyo court orders Aum Shinrikyo cult successor Aleph to pay ¥1 billion to victims of sarin attack
by Magdalena Osumi
Aleph, the main successor to the doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo, was ordered to pay more than ¥1 billion in damages to the victims of the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin gas attack.
National / Media | BIG IN JAPAN Apr 6, 2019
New era offers Japan an opportunity to reassess the future
by Michael Hoffman
What's in a name? What's in an era? What is an "era"? What's a "new era"? Are we entering one? To take the last question first: Not really, said 57 percent of respondents to a survey the Asahi Shimbun conducted in March versus 37 percent ...