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July 04, 2025
 

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POLITICAL FUNDS

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 6, 2024
Ishiba says LDP will not endorse some 'slush fund' lawmakers in general election
The new leader hinted that "a fair number of non-endorsements is likely" as the party looks to rebuild public trust that has eroded following the scandal.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers his inaugural policy address to parliament in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 5, 2024
LDP to endorse 'slush fund' lawmakers in general election
Opposition parties are turning up the heat on Ishiba, who had earlier signaled his intention to take action against those implicated in the scandal.
The former treasurer of the Liberal Democratic Party's former largest faction has been found guilty in a case tied to a major political funds scandal that the party has been mired in since late last year.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 30, 2024
Former Abe faction treasurer given suspended three-year prison term
Junichiro Matsumoto underreported political funds totaling ¥670 million between 2018 and 2022.
Former environment minister Shinjiro Koizumi, a candidate for ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s presidential election, speaks during a debate in Tokyo on Sept. 14.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 23, 2024
Does Shinjiro Koizumi have what it takes to lead Japan?
The 43-year-old is determined to put his past missteps behind him, promising to be a leader who can steer the country through rough waters.
Shigeru Ishiba speaks at a supporters meeting in Tokyo on Aug. 30.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 5, 2024
Taxes and political reform in focus in upcoming LDP campaign
The candidates’ recipes to put the economy back on track after decades of low growth are varied, with some emphasizing redistribution and others promising no tax hikes.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi announces his candidacy in the Liberal Democratic Party presidential election in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 3, 2024
Yoshimasa Hayashi announces candidacy in LDP leadership race
The chief cabinet secretary has proposed a new independent agency to regulate the financing of electoral campaigns.
Manabu Horii in December, when he was a Lower House member
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 30, 2024
Ex-LDP lawmaker Manabu Horii indicted over two money cases
Horii allegedly distributed a total of ¥380,000 in condolence money and other funeral offerings worth ¥230,000 to 52 voters.
Lower House member Manabu Horii
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 28, 2024
Scandal-hit former LDP member Manabu Horii announces resignation as lawmaker
"I've ended up trampling on the trust placed on me by each vote, entirely due to my lack of law-abiding spirit. So I decided to quit," he said.
Shigeru Ishiba
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 25, 2024
Ishiba adjusts remark about scandal-hit LDP lawmakers
Ishiba said that the LDP Election Strategy Committee should deliberate on whether lawmakers linked to the scandal deserve to be the party's official candidates.
Nobuyuki Baba (left), the leader of Nippon Ishin no Kai, faces Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during a parliamentary debate among party leaders in June.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 15, 2024
Japan's allowance disclosure reform for lawmakers stalled
Efforts have slowed as an agreement between two key parties on the issue lacks a specific deadline.
Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 9, 2024
Kishida Cabinet members resume holding fundraising parties
"I will continue to carry out (fundraising through parties) in a restrained manner," said Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki.
Prosecutors leave Upper House lawmaker Megumi Hirose's home in Tokyo on Tuesday after searching it as part of an investigation into alleged fraud.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 31, 2024
Resignation of LDP lawmaker over pay scandal adds to party's woes
Megumi Hirose has left the party over allegations she pocketed public money to pay the salary of a secretary who didn’t actually work.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi (right) during a meeting in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 24, 2024
Why Japan's mysterious stash of classified funds escapes scrutiny
The funds can be used by the chief cabinet secretary with no explanation needed, fueling speculation of widespread misappropriation.
Officials of the Tokyo Public Prosecutor's Office raid the office of Lower House member Manabu Horii in Noboribetsu, Hokkaido, on Thursday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 22, 2024
Lawmaker Horii knew funeral money handouts were illegal: sources
Prosecutors raided Horii's offices in Tokyo and Hokkaido as well as his home, on suspicion of violating the public offices election law.
Tokyo prosecutors raid the Noboribetsu, Hokkaido office of Lower House member Manabu Horii on Thursday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 21, 2024
Lawmaker Horii may have used kickbacks to pay funeral money
Politicians are prohibited from giving donations to voters in their districts except as consolation at funerals that they themselves attend.
House of Representatives lawmaker Manabu Horii, 52, quit the Liberal Democratic Party on Thursday after his offices were raided by prosecutors. He said last month that he will not run in the next Lower House election.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 18, 2024
Prosecutors raid offices of LDP lawmaker Manabu Horii
He is being investigated over allegations that he gave funeral money to voters in his constituency in Hokkaido.
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike meets with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the Prime Minister's Office on Tuesday following her victory in Sunday's gubernatorial election.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 11, 2024
Sense of crisis remains in LDP over next general election
The LDP suffered a major defeat in Sunday’s Tokyo metropolitan assembly by-elections, adding to their string of recent national and local losses.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is struggling to stay in office amid low public approval ratings and discontent from within his party. However, it is extremely rare for a sitting LDP president running for reelection to be dethroned.
EDITORIALS
Jul 5, 2024
Kishida fights for his political life
Despite low public approval ratings and discontent in the LDP, all is not lost for Prime Minister Kishida if the summer is kind to him and he plays his cards right.
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan lawmaker Jun Azumi (center) submits a no-confidence motion against the Cabinet of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to Lower House Speaker Fukushiro Nukaga (second from left) on Thursday in the parliament.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 20, 2024
Lower House votes down no-confidence motion against Kishida’s government
The motion was voted down by the LDP and its junior coalition partner Komeito, which together hold a supermajority in the chamber.
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Kenta Izumi (left) faces off against Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in a debate in parliament on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 19, 2024
CDP's Izumi challenges Kishida to dissolve Lower House
Izumi said Kishida ought to seek a fresh mandate from the public due to his party's handling of its slush funds scandal.
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.
Onosato's yokozuna promotion causes rare quirk in new sumo rankings
Newly promoted yokozuna Onosato holds a copy of the latest banzuke ranking in Anjo, Aichi Prefecture, on Monday.
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. 
Over 900 earthquakes strike Tokara islands in space of two weeks
A screenshot shows many quakes occurring in the Tokara islands over the past 30 days, in this image taken from the U.S. Geological Survey website.
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."
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.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

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

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

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