National Oct 14, 2020
Suga's deputy accused of blocking culture council nominees in 2016
The rejected candidates had voiced criticism of the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
National / Politics Jun 1, 2018
Breaking down the Kake Gakuen scandal: Who's lying, Abe or his political opponents?
by Reiji Yoshida
Opposition camp lawmakers roared in anger. Stenographers were ordered to stop transcribing. The prime minister accused an opposition leader of lying. This was the chaotic scene Monday at the Diet during an Upper House Budget Committee session. The scandal The issue in question was a familiar one: ...
National / Politics Mar 20, 2018
Education minister denies LDP lawmakers are pursuing Kake scandal whistleblower
Education Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi confirmed Tuesday that lawmakers from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party made enquiries to his ministry about a school lecture given by a former top bureaucrat who has accused Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of favoritism, but he denied that this amounted ...
National / Politics Mar 19, 2018
In an unusual move, a lawmaker from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party has made inquiries into a lecture at a junior high school given by the former vice education minister who accused Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of favoritism in connection with the state's approval ...
National / Politics Jul 10, 2017
Maekawa details Kake scandal allegations in special Diet hearing
by Tomohiro Osaki
A former top education ministry bureaucrat says again that top officials in the government must have manipulated key decision-making processes to help out a school run by a close confidant of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
National / Politics Jul 5, 2017
LDP, opposition agree to reopen Diet Monday to discuss Kake probe, question Maekawa
The ruling and opposition parties agree to briefly reopen both houses of the Diet for one-off committee deliberations, with plans to quiz a former top education ministry bureaucrat who alleged favoritism by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
National / Media | MEDIA MIX Jun 24, 2017
Sticky bonds of the media and government
by Philip Brasor
Last month, the United Nations Human Rights Council released a report critical of the Japanese government. The author, David Kaye, expressed concern over the way the media is pressured by the authorities to support their policies. The government objected to the report, saying it ...
National / Politics Jun 23, 2017
Probe Abe's ties with the media, Maekawa urges
by Reiji Yoshida
The former education ministry official vouching for the documents behind the Kake Gakuen scandal urges closer scrutiny of Prime Minister Abe’s media ties.
National / Media | MEDIA MIX Jun 17, 2017
Does Japan really need more veterinarians?
by Philip Brasor
The ongoing scandal involving the private educational corporation Kake Gakuen hinges on whether or not Prime Minister Shinzo Abe indirectly pushed the Cabinet to approve a new veterinary department for Okayama University of Science, a school run by Kake, whose chairman, Kotaro Kake, is ...
National / Politics Jun 13, 2017
DP files censure motion against regional revitalization minister over Kake favoritism allegations
The main opposition Democratic Party filed a censure motion Tuesday against regional revitalization minister Kozo Yamamoto, who is in charge of special deregulation zones, in connection with allegations that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe may have swayed the approval of a university project in one ...
National Jun 9, 2017
After intense media pressure, education ministry moves to reopen Kake Gakuen probe
by Reiji Yoshida
After weeks of denials and media pressure, the education minister announces that the investigation into alleged favoritism involving a friend of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will be reopened.