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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 / Crime & Legal
Oct 9, 2014
Asbestos victims win landmark legal battle as state faulted for poor ventilation
In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court rules that the Japanese government acted illegally in failing to require ventilation for asbestos mills, holding it liable for ¥330 million in redress.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 8, 2014
Child sex abuse victims face hurdles seeking redress in court
By the time survivors of childhood sex abuse are mentally and financially ready to confront their tormentors, the time for pursuing legal action has often long expired.
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2014
Typhoon Phanfone prompts evacuation advisory in Tokyo's Minato Ward
The Minato Ward Office issues its first-ever evacuation advisory in response to a natural disaster, urging residents to seek refuge amid an elevated risk of landslides as powerful Typhoon Phanfone swept through the metropolis.
BUSINESS
Oct 2, 2014
Stores see profit in prayer as they cater to foreign tourists
From free Wi-Fi to prayer rooms, Japan's retailers are devising creative ways to encourage foreign tourists to spend.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 30, 2014
Japan begins soul-searching over crimes against unsupervised children
In a nation where young children are commonly encouraged to walk to school on their own, the recent shocking murder of a girl in Kobe raises questions over whether people in Japan are too trusting and should supervise schoolchildren more closely.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 25, 2014
Major halal-food expo planned to help make Japan more friendly to Muslim tourists
In response to a recent surge in Muslim tourists, a major halal-themed international expo will be held in Chiba Prefecture in November.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 24, 2014
String of torched vending machines prompt call for tougher anti-theft devices
A string of vending machines across Katsushika Ward, Tokyo, have been torched and robbed, authorities said Wednesday — a rare event in a country where the ubiquitous machines usually escape thieves' attention.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 22, 2014
Serial arsonist suspected in series of Tama housing fires
A series of arson attacks in construction sites for houses and apartments in Tama, western Tokyo, indicate that someone has a perverse desire to upset the incoming owners, according to an expert on criminal profiling.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 19, 2014
Japan-born Filpino teen wins right to stay but parents get boot
In a rare ruling, the Tokyo High Court exempts a Filipino teen whose parents illegally entered Japan from deportation, hinting at a potential shift in immigration policy.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 12, 2014
Pop star Aska gets off with suspended sentence for drug use
The Tokyo District Court hands disgraced pop star Aska a suspended prison term for possession and use of illegal stimulants.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CABINET INTERVIEW
Sep 12, 2014
Matsushima stays course on death penalty but targets rape
Newly appointed Justice Minister Midori Matsushima on Thursday backed the death penalty as a deterrent against crime and said she planned to stiffen the penalty for rape and bolster immigration staff.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 8, 2014
Japanese companies riding high on Nishikori's success
After Kei Nishikori became the first Asian male to advance to a Grand Slam final on Saturday in New York, enterprises ranging from Wowow to Uniqlo rejoiced at what they happily described as an “unprecedented” surge in subscriptions and sales of related merchandise.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 4, 2014
New environment chief Mochizuki takes on Fukushima radiation woes
New Environment Minister Yoshio Mochizuki on Thursday stressed the ministry's commitment to speeding up efforts to reduce Fukushima's radiation woes and vowed to get the prefecture's radioactive waste storage facility up and running.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 4, 2014
Artist veils photos showing his genitalia to parry police censorship
The censorship action taken by police last month at an Aichi museum showing photos of a photographer's genitals constitutes a human rights violation and highlights the nation's shift toward a more controlling society, the artist said Thursday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 2, 2014
Amid dengue outbreak, eviction also a threat to Yoyogi Park's homeless
The greatest danger the outbreak of dengue fever traced to Tokyo's Yoyogi Park poses to the homeless there may be the threat of eviction, not infection, advocates said Tuesday.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 2, 2014
Ehime prison remodeled to address space shortage for female inmates
A prison in Ehime Prefecture will start housing women to help address a nationwide shortage of facilities for female convicts, a prison official said. When it opens in November it will be the first such facility in Shikoku.
JAPAN
Sep 1, 2014
Chiba cities prepare to take back, dispose of their radioactive waste
Three cities in Chiba Prefecture contaminated with radioactive materials have agreed to dispose of the toxic waste on their own if the central government fails to find a final disposal site.
Japan Times
JAPAN / GENERATIONAL CHANGE
Aug 31, 2014
Rebel entrepreneur turns job market on its head
Yujun Wakashin seeks to present an alternative lifestyle that he hopes will serve as a wake-up call for dropouts, shut-ins and underutilized hopefuls such as high school girls.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 29, 2014
Takefuji arsonist, ex-yakuza hanged for eight murders
A would-be robber who torched five Takefuji employees in 2001 and a yakuza who gunned down three people from 2001 to 2005 are executed for murder.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 28, 2014
Pop star Aska pleads guilty to drug charges
Prosecutors demand a three-year term for singer Shigeaki Miyazaki, the disgraced pop star better known as Aska, as his trial over illegal drug use opens in Tokyo.

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