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 Tomohiro Osaki

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Tomohiro Osaki
Tomohiro Osaki is a staff writer in the Domestic News Division. A graduate of Sophia University in Tokyo, he likes to explore under-reported realities of Japanese youth, with a tendency toward the taboo.
JAPAN
May 12, 2015
Academics denounce 'foolish' policy of rewriting uncomfortable facts in school textbooks
Scholars representing three academic associations call on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government to revise its 'foolish' rules dictating changes in school textbooks, which they allege are designed to indoctrinate pupils with certain political views.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
May 11, 2015
Tokyo ramps up 'English village' plan as 2020 approaches
As Tokyo gears up to host the 2020 Olympic Games, demands for action are growing to overcome Japan's notorious English-speaking phobia.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 8, 2015
'Beauty salon bully' Yuri Takano steps down as president
A scandal-tainted beauty salon operator in Tokyo has announced that founder and long-running leader Yuri Takano stepped down as president last month but denied the move was related to her contentious management style.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 3, 2015
Activists battle to justify, denounce Constitution
As the conservative LDP forges ahead with its bid to revise the national charter, activists rally on Constitution Day to press both sides of the debate.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 30, 2015
Ex-Aum Shinrikyo member Katsuya Takahashi gets life in prison over 1995 sarin attack
The Tokyo District Court has sentenced former Aum Shinrikyo member Katsuya Takahashi to life in prison for his role in the doomsday cult's 1995 sarin attack on the Tokyo Metro.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 29, 2015
Visa overstayers march for right to remain in Japan
Visa overstayers facing deportation orders marched through Tokyo's Ginza district on Wednesday afternoon, pleading for permission to remain in a country that many have called home for decades.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 26, 2015
Rainbow parade celebrates LGBT equality push
Some 3,000 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people paraded through Tokyo's Shibuya district Sunday afternoon to demonstrate their hope that Japanese society will continue to forge ahead with recent moves to embrace equality and diversity.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Apr 24, 2015
British Embassy hosts same-sex marriage of own staff
For the first time ever, two British Embassy employees got married in a same-sex wedding at the embassy in Tokyo Friday in the hopes of helping Japan learn of U.K.-style "diversity and inclusion" as it searches for ways to better accommodate lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Apr 24, 2015
Lack of progress in probe into ASIJ ex-teacher's sex abuses riles victims
Nearly a year after the American School in Japan promised to launch a third-party investigation into sexual abuse by late former teacher Jack Moyer, victims and alumni are becoming increasingly frustrated the school's administration has yet to provide a report on the probe or offer an apology and redress....
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 23, 2015
Discovery of drone on roof of prime minister's office highlights legal shortcomings: expert
The discovery of a hobbyist-style drone on the roof of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's office on Wednesday has revealed a blind spot in Japan's counterterrorism policies and underlined the need for greater regulation of the increasingly popular aerial devices, experts said Thursday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT
Apr 19, 2015
Caregiver trainee program coming up short, but options on table also daunting
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 17, 2015
Sony moves to allow young workers to study abroad
As part of efforts to give its younger workers an incentive to acquire skills that will benefit their future careers at the company, Sony Corp. said Friday it will allow its junior employees to study abroad for two years.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 16, 2015
Japanese ballerina leaps into principal role at Australian Ballet
A 24-year-old Japanese ballerina has been appointed principal artist with the prestigious Australian Ballet, the company has announced.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 15, 2015
Vagina artist pleads not guilty to obscenity charge
Taking the stand on the first day of her trial, Megumi Igarashi said she is fighting the charge to challenge the widely held belief in Japanese society that female genitals are “shameful.”
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Apr 9, 2015
No-foreigners landlord case shows Japan 'utterly unprepared' to fight discrimination: expert
A decision by the Justice Ministry's Kyoto bureau not to pursue a complaint against a landlord's no-foreigners policy shows Japan is “utterly unprepared” to move on discrimination cases, an expert says.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Apr 3, 2015
Tokyo considers rewards for administering first aid
In what is expected to be a first in Japan, the Metropolitan Fire Department may offer financial aid to people who administer first aid to accident and disaster victims, an official said Friday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 31, 2015
Life sought for Aum member over role in Tokyo subway gas attack
Prosecutors on Tuesday sought life imprisonment for a former member of the Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult for playing a major role in the 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway system that left 13 people dead and thousands injured.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 30, 2015
Ex-bureaucrat blasts Abe on news program
A surprise show of protest by a former bureaucrat against Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a live news program Friday night is drawing flak from both the government and broadcaster TV Asahi.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 24, 2015
Tourism agency to tout historic venues for international conferences
The Japan Tourism Agency is going to publish a list of 85 historic buildings suitable for use as conference venues in the hopes of luring more foreign professionals who might then become tourists, officials said Tuesday.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 23, 2015
Shibuya mayor defiant on certificates for same-sex couples despite LDP opposition
The mayor of Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, has reaffirmed his municipality's determination to recognize same-sex partnerships despite opposition by conservatives. The move would be the first of its kind in Japan.

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