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April 07, 2025
 

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Eric Johnston

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Eric Johnston
JAPAN / Politics / Decision 2017
Oct 12, 2017
Koike's Kibo no To takes a hit as popular Aichi Gov. Hideaki Omura cuts support
Aichi Gov. Hideaki Omura has withdrawn his support for Kibo no To in a blow to Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike, who is also the fledgling party's chief. This setback comes less than two weeks after Omura agreed to cooperate with Koike and Osaka Gov. Ichiro Matsui, who serves as Nippon Ishin no Kai's co-leader....
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 6, 2017
Kibo no To and Osaka's Nippon Ishin in cautious collaboration with wide policy overlap
The basic platform of Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike's new Kibo no To (Party of Hope), with promises of freezing the scheduled income tax hike to reducing the salaries and number of Diet members, has a familiar ring for many members of the Osaka-centered Nippon Ishin no Kai, which has agreed to cooperate with...
JAPAN
Oct 5, 2017
'Comfort women' row threatens Osaka-San Francisco sister city relationship
The debate over statues memorializing “comfort women” is threatening to upend six-decade sister city ties between Osaka and San Francisco.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 30, 2017
Kibo no To and Nippon Ishin no Kai agree not to directly challenge each other in Tokyo and Osaka city districts
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike and Osaka Gov. Ichiro Matsui agreed Saturday that her new Kibo no To (Party of Hope) and his Nippon Ishin no Kai will not challenge each other in single-seat districts in their respective cities in the upcoming snap election.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Sep 28, 2017
Lawyerless Turk challenges Osaka car dealer's snub of non-Japanese patrons, wins redress
In a highly unusual case that has surprised Japanese legal experts, a Turkish national based in Osaka sued a local second-hand car dealer for discrimination and won, all without the services of a lawyer.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 27, 2017
Osaka court rules tattoo artist's work violated medical law, was not art or expression
An Osaka tattoo artist was found guilty Wednesday of violating the Medical Practitioners' Law in a case that drew international attention to Japan's tattoo culture.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 25, 2017
Osaka's leaders complain about San Francisco 'comfort women' statue to U.S. Ambassador Hagerty
In a meeting with U.S. Ambassador to Japan William Hagerty on Monday, Osaka's leaders expressed solidarity with America over North Korea but concern that San Francisco, Osaka's sister city, erected a monument to the wartime "comfort women" who were forced into Japanese military brothels before and during...
JAPAN / Politics / KANSAI PERSPECTIVE
Sep 24, 2017
Local, national agendas shade parties' prospects in expected snap poll
As Japan gears up for an anticipated snap election at the end of October, Kansai politicians and parties are staking out their positions on issues of national interest but with their eyes very much on local political needs.
Japan Times
JAPAN / KANSAI PERSPECTIVE
Sep 24, 2017
Kyoto's pricey lodging tax plan spurs fierce debate over necessity, tourism impact
A necessity for improving Kyoto's tourism infrastructure or a bad decision that might convince tourists to go elsewhere?
JAPAN / View from Osaka
Sep 16, 2017
Osaka, Okawa at the forefront of demographic changes altering power structures
On the surface, former Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto and Kazuhito Wada, the head of Okawa village, Kochi Prefecture, have little in common. Hashimoto is brash, confrontational and more interested these days in getting rich as a private citizen than in being a politician. Wada is quieter, a team player who...
JAPAN
Sep 12, 2017
Depopulated Kochi village suspends idea of direct democracy
Just three months after the village of Okawa, Kochi Prefecture, drew national attention by announcing it might abolish its elected council due to a lack of qualified candidates and introduce direct democracy, the head of the sparsely populated municipality said Monday that talks on the issue would be...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 30, 2017
Theresa May arrives in Japan to allay Brexit fears and show solidarity against North nuclear threat
Formal talks between May and Prime Minister Abe are to begin Thursday and are expected to focus on issues surrounding Brexit, bilateral economic cooperation and increased defense ties.
JAPAN / KANSAI PERSPECTIVE
Aug 27, 2017
Competition to host Japan's first casino resort heats up
As the Diet prepares to debate the structure of integrated casino resorts this autumn, competition in Osaka and neighboring Wakayama to win the rights to host one of the first legal gambling complexes in the country is heating up.
Japan Times
JAPAN / KANSAI PERSPECTIVE
Aug 27, 2017
Shiga tops in volunteerism; Osaka finishes in last place: leisure survey
If you're the kind of person who prioritizes volunteer work, enjoys playing badminton and has an interest in studying, Shiga Prefecture might be your ideal home in Kansai.
JAPAN
Aug 26, 2017
Japan, South Korea, China agree to jointly promote Asian culture during next three Olympic events
The culture chiefs of Japan, China and South Korea agree to use the next three Olympic events in the region to jointly promote East Asia's culture to the world.
JAPAN
Aug 24, 2017
Student trip to Guam canceled amid North Korea missile fears
Concern over the North Korean threats has led to the cancellation of a school trip to Guam, while local governments hold or plan evacuation drills.
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2017
Osaka's ancient burial mounds eyed for World Heritage status but clear explanations elude
The government's decision in late July to nominate a group of 49 ancient burial sites in southern Osaka Prefecture for UNESCO World Heritage status has raised local hopes for a major boost in international prestige and tourism appeal.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Aug 21, 2017
Color-coded map identifies potential nuclear waste sites in Japan but local governments may only see red
On July 28, the central government released what it called a scientific, specialized map of the country highlighting areas where highly radioactive nuclear waste from the nation's power plants might, or might not, be safely buried underground for as long as 100,000 years.
JAPAN / View from Osaka
Aug 19, 2017
Lessons learned from the failure of the Osaka Foreign Settlement
This year, Osaka is celebrating the 150th anniversary of the opening of its port to the outside world. Numerous events, lectures and symposiums on how Osaka developed from 1868 to the present have taken place or are planned between now and early next year.
JAPAN
Aug 18, 2017
Ways to curb gambling's social ills top talks at second casino hearing in Osaka
The second of eight public hearings on the structure, risks, and local rewards of building integrated casino resorts took place in Osaka on Friday, with concerns raised about problem gamblers, floor layouts and where the resorts would likely be most profitable.
Nissan says it will not take new U.S. orders for Mexican-built Infiniti SUVs
A Nissan manufacturing complex in Aguascalientes, Mexico. Nissan says it will not take new orders from the United States for two Mexican-built Infiniti SUVs following new auto tariffs levied by the U.S.
Japan digs deep to address 'national crisis' caused by Trump tariffs
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks during a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office on April 1. He has said that Japan is facing a "national crisis" following the introduction of new tariffs by the United States.
'Hang tough, it won't be easy': Trump defiant on tariffs
U.S. President Donald Trump waves as he walks to deliver remarks on reciprocal tariffs during an event in the Rose Garden entitled "Make America Wealthy Again" at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
Ishiba says he plans to speak to Trump about tariffs in coming days
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks during a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Nissan considers transferring some domestic production to U.S., report says
Nissan plans to reduce production at its Fukuoka factory and shift some manufacturing of its Rogue SUV to the United States to mitigate the impact of Trump's tariffs.
‘Let’s make it practical’: NATO chief eyes greater defense-industrial ties with Japan
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte plans to visit Japan on Tuesday and Wednesday — his first to the Indo-Pacific region since taking office in October, as he seeks to implement lessons from the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Tottori takes a bold leap forward in the arts
The city of Kurayoshi in Tottori Prefecture celebrated the opening of its public art museum with festivities such as a parade that drew 1,000 revelers.
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).
Nintendo to launch the Switch 2 on June 5
The controllers for the Switch 2 will attach to the console magnetically rather than sliding on rails as with the original device.
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.

Podcast

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Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

An ongoing shortage of rice has resulted in rising prices for Japan's main food staple.
Why Japan is running out of rice — and farmers to grow it
By Alex K.T. Martin

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