Tag - eugenics

 
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July 05, 2025
 

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EUGENICS

Interest has grown worldwide in the genetic testing of embryos for couples trying to conceive through IVF.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 17, 2024
Testing for desirable embryos inconsistent and unreliable, new study says
In recent years, interest has grown worldwide in the genetic testing of embryos among couples trying to conceive through IVF.
A victim of forced sterilization (second from right) reacts Tuesday as the Upper House unanimously passed a bill into law to compensate victims of the practice.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 9, 2024
Informing forced sterilization victims of new law remains challenge
Some victims said that they did not want to remember the sterilizations, and others said that they had not told their families about their past.
A bill to grant compensation to victims of forced sterilization clears the Lower House on Monday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 8, 2024
Parliament clears bill to compensate all victims of forced sterilization
With the latest legislation, all victims — whether or not they are plaintiffs in related lawsuits — will be compensated, paving the way for resolution.
Ayuko Kato (center), state minister in charge of building an inclusive society, and government officials bow their heads in apology to victims of forced sterilization, at a meeting to sign a compensation agreement in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 13, 2024
Forced sterilization victims to receive ¥15 million in compensation
The agreement covers those involved in 13 ongoing lawsuits at courts across Japan.
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.
Justice Minister Ryuji Koizumi meets with victims of forced sterilization at the ministry in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 2, 2024
Victims of forced sterilization seek ¥15 million in compensation
Under a now-defunct eugenics law, the government allowed doctors to perform nonconsensual sterilization surgery and abortion on those with disabilities.
Forced sterilization plaintiff Sumiko Nishi at her home in Hino, western Tokyo, on Wednesday
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 31, 2024
First settlement reached for forced sterilization plaintiff in Japan
The state has agreed to pay ¥16.5 million — the same amount awarded to plaintiffs in a related Supreme Court case.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets with plaintiffs of damages lawsuits over forced sterilizations at the Prime Minister's Office on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 19, 2024
Full settlement likely for forced sterilization suits in Japan
A total of 39 people have so far sued the government at 12 district courts and branches for damages over forced sterilizations under the law.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida receives a petition from victims of forced sterilization on Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 17, 2024
Kishida apologizes to victims of forced sterilization
The apology from the prime minister follows a Supreme Court ruling earlier this month declaring that the now-defunct eugenics law was unconstitutional.
Plaintiffs in a series of lawsuits over forced sterilization and their lawyers hold banners that read "victory ruling," after the Supreme Court ruled in their favor in Tokyo on July 3.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 10, 2024
Amid discrimination, Japan's eugenics missteps could be repeated, expert warns
After a landmark ruling that finally declared Japan's defunct eugenics law unconstitutional, some may ask how Japanese society openly endorsed eugenics.
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.
Plaintiffs of a series of lawsuits on forced sterilization and their lawyers hold banners saying "victory ruling" after the Supreme Court ruled in their favor in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 3, 2024
Japan's top court orders compensation for forced sterilization victims
The landmark ruling was made on the basis that the now-defunct eugenics law was unconstitutional.
Hanako and Taro Nomura, who are suing the government over forced sterilization, show their late daughter's birth register issued by a temple, in their living room in a city in Osaka Prefecture. For years, the couple wondered why they could not conceive after the death of their firstborn.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 2, 2024
Seeking justice, deaf couple confronts issue of forced sterilization
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court will rule on lawsuits against the government filed by the Nomuras and others who were sterilized under a now-defunct eugenics law.
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 filing damages lawsuits over forced sterilization under the now-defunct eugenic protection law head to the Supreme Court on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 2, 2023
Grand Bench of top court to rule on forced sterilization damages
Five district courts have found the old law to be unconstitutional, but all rejected damages claims citing the statute of limitations.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 11, 2023
Japan tries to turn page on eugenics policies, but related ideas persist
A 1,400-page report by parliament on forced sterilizations of people with disabilities sets out Japan's grim history with eugenics, but experts say the matter is far from closed.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 26, 2022
Japanese government to face three new forced sterilization suits
The plaintiffs in the three cases are demanding that the government pay a total of u00a5158.7 million in damages.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jul 27, 2019
Tracing the fluctuations in moral standards
"More than 16,500 women and men were sterilized against their will," reads a newsletter published in 1997 by the Network on Ethics and Intellectual Disability.
EDITORIALS
Jul 3, 2019
The damage done to kin of Hansen's disease patients
The government needs to listen to what patients' relatives have gone through and explore what can be done to make up for the damage done.
EDITORIALS
May 30, 2019
Mixed ruling on eugenics victims
A Sendai court ruled that the constitutional rights of victims who were sterilized under the eugenics law were violated, but rejected their demand for redress because the statute of limitations had already expired.
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Magnitude 5.5 earthquake jars Tokara Islands amid flurry of seismic activity
A strong quake struck off the Tokara Islands on Thursday afternoon, with the island chain having recorded around 1,000 earthquakes since a burst of seismic activity first began on June 21.
Japan to require flight passengers to keep power banks within sight
The transport ministry has announced new regulations requiring flight passengers to keep power banks within sight to mitigate fire risks while on board planes.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Residents of Tokara Islands begin evacuation as seismic swarm continues
Details about evacuations from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, is seen written on a whiteboard in the city of Kagoshima on Thursday.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.

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