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April 04, 2025
 

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Kanako Takahara

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Kanako Takahara
Kanako Takahara is a staff writer who has covered national politics, diplomacy, business and the economy at The Japan Times. A graduate of Sophia University, she is currently a national news editor.
JAPAN
Nov 2, 2022
Ex-Japan PM Aso and South Korea's Yoon pledge to work toward improved bilateral ties
Ruling party heavyweight Taro Aso held talks with South Korean leader Yoon Suk-yeol in Seoul amid a festering row over wartime labor compensation.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Nov 1, 2022
Despite uncertain future, Ukrainian children slowly adapt to Japanese schools
With the end of the war and the length of their time in Japan unclear, parents are facing a tough decision on how strongly to have their children embrace the study of Japanese.
JAPAN
Oct 25, 2022
Shigeyuki Goto tapped as Japan's new economic revitalization minister
Daishiro Yamagiwa stepped down from the post over his ties with the controversial Unification Church, and the prime minister will be hoping the change eases criticism over the issue.
JAPAN
Oct 24, 2022
Japan economy minister quits over Unification Church links
'I've caused trouble for the administration' by not being forthcoming over ties to the religious group, Daishiro Yamagiwa told reporters after tendering his resignation.
JAPAN
Oct 19, 2022
Rival parties work together to craft bills helping 'spiritual sales' victims
By reaching out to the opposition, Kishida could pass a bill faster while dampening the momentum of opposition members grilling him on the issue of the Unification Church.
PODCAST / deep dive
Oct 19, 2022
Japan reopens its borders. Are tourists ready to return?
Masks? Vaccinations? Yen? You're ready to come to Japan! News chief Kanako Takahara and reporter Will Fee join the podcast this week to discuss whether the country's grand reopening will help its beleaguered tourism sector.
JAPAN
Oct 17, 2022
Unification Church could be stripped of special status after Kishida probe
The group could lose its “religious corporation” status, which makes donations and other revenue made from religious activities exempt from taxation.
JAPAN
Oct 13, 2022
Japan updates advice on clinic visits for COVID patients amid 'twindemic' fears
People between the ages of 12 and 64 with a low risk of developing severe COVID-19 symptoms have been asked to refrain from going to so-called fever clinics.
JAPAN
Oct 12, 2022
Confusing mix of policies sours start of domestic travel discount campaign
Prefectures have chosen differing kickoff dates and COVID-19 protocols, resulting in a baffling array of eligibility requirements.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 5, 2022
The church, the economy and the funeral: CDP leader grills Kishida
The opposition took the prime minister to task over his party's ties to the Unification Church, the state funeral for ex-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and soaring inflation.
JAPAN
Oct 4, 2022
North Korea fires ballistic missile over Japan for first time since 2017
The missile, which was estimated to have traveled 4,600 km, prompted Tokyo to issue a rare alert calling for residents to take cover.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 3, 2022
Kishida tries to put focus on economy after Unification Church controversy
The prime minister used his speech at the opening of the new parliamentary session to emphasize economic measures, such as those on inflation and raising wages.
JAPAN
Sep 27, 2022
Japan bids farewell to former PM Shinzo Abe with controversial state funeral
Scores of foreign dignitaries, including U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, attended the ceremony, while rallies protesting the controversial funeral were also held.
JAPAN
Sep 23, 2022
Japan to reopen to independent travelers and lift daily arrival cap, Kishida says
The move marks a major policy shift after nearly 2u00bd years of strict COVID-19 restrictions.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Sep 22, 2022
Why Japan has been taking incremental steps to reopen its borders
The Group of Seven's strictest border rules have been eased in slow, incremental steps, much to the chagrin of foreign nationals waiting to enter.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Sep 21, 2022
Even as Japan’s border creaks open, unmarried couples still struggle to reunite
The categories of people allowed entry has been slowly expanded, but those in uncertified relationships have been left out, prompting some to tie the knot.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 12, 2022
Japan plans to reopen to independent travelers in major shift, report says
Tourists, who will need to have been vaccinated three times or submit a negative test result under the new policy, may be able to enter without a visa.
JAPAN
Sep 8, 2022
LDP survey shows 121 lawmakers had substantial ties with the Unification Church
The degree of ties varied, with some lawmakers having been interviewed in a publication linked to the religious group, while two were found to have received organizational election support.
JAPAN
Sep 7, 2022
Japan opens borders to foreign travelers on ‘self-guided tours’
The country also raised the daily arrival cap to 50,000 and dropped a requirement that visitors test negative for COVID-19 within 72 hours of departing for Japan.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 6, 2022
Japan to shorten COVID-19 isolation period to seven days
For asymptomatic people with the virus, the self-quarantine period will be shortened from seven days to five, so long as they get a negative result from an antigen test.
As ‘Buy Canadian’ grows, more U.S. firms say retailers turning away products
Empty shelves with "Buy Canadian Instead" signs are seen in the American Whiskey section of the BC Liquor in Vancouver, British Columbia, on March 10.
U.S. tourist arrested after bringing a handgun into Japan
Hyogo police believe the handgun a U.S. tourist inadvertently brought into Japan slipped through security procedures at Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture.
Trump unveils 10% global tariff, with Japan levy set at 24%
Trump tosses a MAGA hat to the crowd during an event in which he unveiled new tariffs in the White House on Wednesday.
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
Haruki Murakami TV adaptation revisits 30 years of watershed moments
Though Haruki Murakami's trademark whiff of offbeat existentialism is threaded throughout NHK's "After the Quake," the final episode — conceived as a sequel to the story "Super-Frog Saves Tokyo" — is the most stylized, featuring an anthropomorphic talking frog (voiced by Non) and his erstwhile associate Katagiri (Koichi Sato).
A new human trafficking trend emerges from Myanmar scam centers
Victims of scam centers who were tricked or trafficked into working in Myanmar gather at a compound inside KK Park, a fraud center on the country's border with Thailand, after a multinational crackdown in February.
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.

Podcast

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

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan
By Johan Brooks

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