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April 26, 2025
 

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LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Local governments are stepping up support for single elderly people, to tackle the issue of unclaimed bodies.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 10, 2024
Japan's municipalities take action to tackle issue of unclaimed bodies
A spate of incidents involving unclaimed bodies has led to the formulation of measures to provide end-of-life support to single elderly people.
With a number of elderly people living alone increasing in Japan, the welfare ministry plans to conduct a survey of municipalities' responses to unclaimed bodies and remains.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 9, 2024
Japan to conduct first survey on unclaimed bodies
The number of unclaimed remains stored by municipalities stood at some 60,000 as of October 2021, according to an internal affairs ministry survey released in 2023.
Shizuoka Gov. Yasutomo Suzuki (left) meets with JR Central President Shunsuke Niwa in the city of Shizuoka on June 5.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 7, 2024
Kishida maintains 2037 target for Tokyo-Osaka maglev line
Prime minister pledges support of the central government in helping stakeholders meet the deadline.
A large sign against Halloween gatherings is displayed outside Shibuya Station in Tokyo on Oct. 28 last year.
JAPAN
Jun 6, 2024
Shibuya and Shinjuku crack down on street drinking
Both areas in Tokyo have been grappling with issues related to drinking in public following the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a bureaucratic blunder, a foreign resident was assigned the identity of a completely different person — who had the same name, same nationality and even the same birthday.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 4, 2024
It wasn't me: Similar strangers given same ID in Japan
The two individuals had the same name, same nationality and even the same birthday.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government is implementing a tax cut of ¥40,000 per person from June to ensure income growth that outpaces inflation.
BUSINESS
May 31, 2024
Kishida government's much-touted tax cut to start in June
The prime minister has stressed that the tax cut is designed to ensure income growth that outpaces inflation.
A bill to revise the local autonomy law clears the Lower House on Thursday.
JAPAN
May 30, 2024
Japan's Lower House passes bill for state power in emergencies
The revision is aimed at enabling swift responses for ensuring citizens' safety.
Shizuoka Prefecture will launch an online registration system for Mount Fuji climbers on June 10.
JAPAN
May 30, 2024
Shizuoka to launch registration system for Mount Fuji climbers in June
The use of the registration system will not be mandatory, but registration will require the viewing of a video on climbing rules and etiquette.
The office of former Lower House lawmaker Mito Kakizawa in Tokyo's Koto Ward
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 28, 2024
Ex-lawmaker's former secretary fined for election law violation
Shu Goto, a former secretary of former Lower House lawmaker Mito Kakizawa, was fined over cash offers made to Koto Ward assembly members during a mayoral election last year.
People gather to promote the same-sex marriage in Nagoya in May last year.
JAPAN / Society
May 28, 2024
Japanese city recognizes same-sex couple in rare step
Japan is the only Group of Seven nation that does not recognize same-sex unions, and local media said the move was unprecedented.
Yasutomo Suzuki (second from right) celebrates in the city of Shizuoka on Sunday after being elected governor of Shizuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Politics
May 27, 2024
Opposition-backed Yasutomo Suzuki wins Shizuoka gubernatorial vote
Suzuki’s victory could pave the way for restarting the maglev train line project that had been delayed due to opposition from his predecessor.
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike attends a news conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan in Tokyo in November 2020.
JAPAN / Politics
May 25, 2024
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike plans to seek third term
Koike, who was reelected in 2020 as an independent, could make an announcement as early as Wednesday, sources close to the matter said.
Makoto Nishimoto, who goes by the name "Super Crazy-kun," at a news conference in the city of Miyazaki in November 2022
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 24, 2024
Ex-Miyazaki city assembly member gets 4½ years over sexual assault
Makoto Nishimoto, who goes by the name "Super Crazy-kun," was sentenced for sexually assaulting a female acquaintance in September 2023.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attends a gathering of a Liberal Democratic Party faction led by LDP Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi (left) in Tokyo in 2022.
JAPAN / Politics
May 23, 2024
LDP loss in Shizuoka election could increase pressure for snap poll
Shizuoka's gubernatorial election is a close race between candidates backed by the ruling party and the main opposition.
Toyama Gov. Hachiro Nitta speaks during an interview in Beijing last week.
JAPAN
May 21, 2024
Amid chilled national ties, regional Japan and China exchanges continue
According to a Japanese source based in China, about 60 governors and mayors from Japan visited China in the previous fiscal year, which ended in March.
Volunteers move furniture out of a house damaged by the Noto Peninsula earthquake in Anamizu, Ishikawa Prefecture, in April.
JAPAN
May 21, 2024
Ishikawa Prefecture unveils Noto quake reconstruction plan
Covering the nine years through fiscal 2032, Ishikawa Prefecture's plan features efforts to create disaster-resistant communities.
Akitakata Mayor Shinji Ishimaru speaks during a news conference in this screenshot taken from the city's YouTube channel.
JAPAN / Politics
May 16, 2024
Mayor in Hiroshima Prefecture city to run in Tokyo governor race
"I want to change Japan through changing Tokyo," said Shinji Ishimaru, mayor of the city of Akitakata in Hiroshima Prefecture.
Work is underway to restore water supply pipes in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture, in February.
JAPAN / FOCUS
May 16, 2024
Japan centralizes water supply and sewage administration
The infrastructure ministry aims to advance integrated initiatives covering both water supply and sewage systems in addressing aging infrastructure.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visits a child care support facility in Hiezu, Tottori Prefecture, in July.
JAPAN / Society
May 12, 2024
Government plans nationwide database to enhance child care support
Child care support measures and ways to apply for them differ according to each municipality.
Genkai Mayor Shintaro Wakiyama speaks during a news conference on Friday in the town of Genkai in Saga Prefecture.
JAPAN
May 10, 2024
Genkai Mayor decides to accept nuclear waste site survey
The mayor announced the decision at a news conference after a closed-door meeting of the town's assembly.
Naked man’s rampage in Saitama linked to one fatality and 10 injured
Police believe Daisuke Nishimura may have been involved in roughly 20 incidents in the 90 minutes leading up to his arrest, including a fatal hit-and-run and multiple assaults.
Japan set to fine cyclists on the spot for rule violations from 2026
Under new rules, those who use smartphones while riding a bicycle would be subject to the maximum fine of ¥12,000.
Japan brings forward deadline for electronic travel authorization system
Japan is planning to implement by March 2029 a new online screening system in which foreign visitors who don’t need a visa apply for a certification before entering the country.
Built in a flash, Osaka Expo pavilions wrestle with sustainability
Kengo Kuma & Associates oversaw the construction of the Malaysia pavilion, which is encased in interwoven rows of bamboo that appear to ripple.
Social media helps fuel growing 'sex tourism' in Japan
People walk down a street in the red-light entertainment area of Kabukicho in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo on March 31.
Amid uncertain tariffs, is now the time to buy a new iPhone?
An Apple store in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward in September. Prices for the newest iPhone models start at around ¥100,000 ($700) in Japan.
Built in a flash, Osaka Expo pavilions wrestle with sustainability
Kengo Kuma & Associates oversaw the construction of the Malaysia pavilion, which is encased in interwoven rows of bamboo that appear to ripple.
Japan weighs using U.S. rice imports as tariff negotiation tool with Trump
A restaurant owner pours California-grown Calrose rice into a rice cooker at his restaurant in Tokyo
Is Japan’s parliament ready to welcome more youth to its ranks?
Lower House lawmaker Kai Odake in his Tokyo office on Wednesday
Crow meat, goat tartare: Mauvaise Herbe raises its game
Crow meat, shaped into a ball and attached to a foot of the bird, is one of the peculiar offerings of game at Mauvaise Herbe.

Podcast

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

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.
By Tomoko Otake

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