Tag - parenthood

 
 

PARENTHOOD

Newly hired central government workers listen to a video message by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during a training session in April.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 24, 2024
Japan weighs abolishing government workers' spousal allowance
A monthly spousal allowance of ¥6,500 ($42) is provided if the dependent's annual salary is below ¥1.3 million, and the child allowance is ¥10,000 per child.
Workers of Save the Children Japan make preparations on July 11 in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture, to deliver food to households facing financial difficulties.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 24, 2024
Japanese households worried about summer vacation food costs
A Save the Children Japan survey found that 89.4% of those applying for food aid said they lack enough money for adequate food due to rising prices.
A child gets a break from the heat thanks to a cooling mist machine at Sensoji temple in Tokyo.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 24, 2024
Whether it's the pool or the park, teach your kids how to be safe this summer vacation
Your children are likely to sneak out of the house for some fun while school is out. Make sure they know the importance of "squid sushi."
Covers for paper fans used for oshikatsu activities are sold at a Sanrio shop in Nagoya.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 22, 2024
60% of Japanese moms enjoy supporting their favorites through 'oshikatsu'
68.5% of mothers spend less than ¥50,000 a year on oshikatsu, with those who spend ¥50,000 or more and less than ¥300,000 accounting for 20.7%.
The Aichi Prefectural Police headquarters in Nagoya. Aichi Prefectural Police have arrested a 33-year-old woman and her common-law husband on suspicion of assaulting and causing the death of her 7-year-old daughter.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 19, 2024
Mother and partner arrested over 7-year-old girl’s death
The girl, who died in May from septic shock, had been temporarily taken into protective custody twice between 2022 and 2023.
The child care program under discussion is aimed at addressing the issue of isolation of parents raising young children and fostering their growth through interactions with other kids.
JAPAN
Jul 14, 2024
Japan discussing details of day care for all infants
Under the program, set to launch by fiscal 2025, day care services will be available for all children aged 6 months to 2 years.
Yusuke Goto (center) is taken to the Ebara Police Station in Tokyo's Shinagawa Ward on June 19.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 10, 2024
Tokyo man arrested on fresh charges of killing his three children
Yusuke Goto admitted to the allegations, telling police officers: "I did an atrocious act. I'm sorry."
A woman holds a baby wrapped in a blanket as displaced Palestinians leave an area in east Khan Younis after the Israeli army issued a new evacuation order for parts of the city on July 1.
WORLD
Jul 10, 2024
Gaza's pregnant women defy odds to give birth and protect their babies
For new mothers in Gaza, giving birth in a warzone is just the first step on a traumatic journey marked by constant fear and anxiety.
Ayaka Saito works on a lathe to make a part for a ship at Ena Seisakusho in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture. Saito, who has a 1-year-old child, takes comfort in the fact that her employer allows time off for workers for parenting duties.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Jul 8, 2024
Special skills allow Fukushima mother to shine in full-time job
Her employer also lets her take time off to care for her child, a rare policy seen as pivotal in getting more women back to the workforce.
Police investigate the site where a newborn baby was found abandoned in a trash bin in Tokyo's Nerima Ward on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 4, 2024
Tokyo woman arrested on suspicion of attempting to murder newborn baby
A baby boy was found abandoned in a trash bin in Nerima Ward. The suspect partially denied the charges, stating she did not intend to kill the baby.
People holds a banner saying "Protect children from joint custody after divorce" during a rally outside the parliament building in Tokyo in March.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Jun 25, 2024
Gender gap fuels disputes as Japan gets joint custody
The change has proved polarizing in a country where campaigners say sole custody acts as a bulwark against forms of domestic abuse.
Perhaps being seen in the company of your own children in the right places — playgrounds, schools, etc. — can make you seem more approachable and allow children to say exactly what’s on their mind.
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Jun 24, 2024
‘You’re a spy, then?’ The odd interactions of a non-Japanese father in Japan
Remember to keep your ears open whenever you’re near children and you’re guaranteed to hear something that’ll make you think.
The Supreme Court in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward
JAPAN / Society
Jun 21, 2024
Japan's Supreme Court recognizes transgender woman as parent
It was the first decision by the top court on whether to recognize a parent-child relationship in a case in which a biological father had a child after transitioning.
The total fertility rate dropped to 1.5 children per woman in 2022 from 3.3 in 1960 on average across OECD countries, a report from the organization has said.
WORLD / Science & Health
Jun 21, 2024
Birth rates halve in richer nations as costs weigh, OECD report says
Many in OECD member countries are now choosing to have children later in life or not at all, the report said.
While the government aims to supply all public elementary school pupils with an electronic device for learning in school, communication between parents and teachers is still largely paper-based.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 17, 2024
Parents need digital tools to cope with 'first-grade barrier'
More flexibility and efficiency would lighten the load put on the families of public elementary school children, where paper-based communication is still too prevalent.
Sunflowers are a popular gift for Father's Day in Japan.
JAPAN
Jun 16, 2024
Father's Day custom in Japan developed in own way
In Japan, the Father's Day Council was established in 1981, branching off from the Men's Fashion Unity, for the purpose of disseminating the custom of Father's Day.
Father's Day is said to have come to Japan around 1950, shortly after the establishment of Mother's Day.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Jun 15, 2024
The evolving nature of fatherhood in Japan
Meiji Era fathers were stern, those from Showa had to be productive for the nation. Heisei dads were told to get involved at home. What will the "Reiwa Dad" look like?
However non-Japanese fathers in Japan manage the vagaries of life abroad, many share a preference for forging ahead for the benefit of their children.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Jun 14, 2024
There’s no one-size-fits-all fatherhood for foreign-born dads in Japan
From Hokkaido to Okinawa, fathers in Japan talk getting married, raising kids and taking life as it comes.
Dads in Japan tend to fall in one of two categories: "amatō," a person fond of sweets, or "karatō," a person fond of alcohol.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 14, 2024
Dads like sweets, but some like sweet words even more
Looking for a gift for Father's Day? It's said that Japanese dads fall into one of two categories: They like sweets or they like sake.
The government is set to start discussing the idea of extending public health insurance coverage to include childbirth from fiscal 2026.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 2024
Japan to discuss public insurance coverage of childbirth
The average of childbirth costs across Japan stood at some ¥482,000 in fiscal 2022.

Longform

Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals