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December 23, 2024
 

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Masami Ito

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Masami Ito
Masami is a staff writer for the Life and Culture Division at The Japan Times. She is in charge of the weekly Sunday Timeout, covering various issues related to Japan, from alcohol/drug addiction and juvenile crime to female sushi chefs and kendama. Over her 15-year career, she has written extensively on Japanese politics, foreign policy and social issues.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Aug 5, 2008
Yasukuni in spotlight as Aug. 15 nears
Aug. 15 marks the 63rd anniversary of the end of World War II. For the people of Japan, including relatives of the war dead, it is a day of remembrance and of peace.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 3, 2008
Fukuda vows action on oil, terror
Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda vowed to tackle pressing issues like surging oil prices and participation in the "war on terrorism" as his new Cabinet was officially launched at an attestation ceremony at the Imperial Palace on Saturday.
JAPAN
Aug 2, 2008
Key challenge: Keeping New Komeito on board
Although Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda finally managed to name his own Cabinet on Friday, the lineup appears subdued and reserved, just like him, critics say.
JAPAN
Jul 31, 2008
Reshuffle talk growing stronger
Speculation is rife in Nagata-cho that Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda may name a new Cabinet early next week.
JAPAN / G8 SUMMIT 2008
Jul 10, 2008
Lack of concrete promises disappoints NGOs
TOYAKO, Hokkaido — Various nongovernmental organizations expressed deep disappointment Wednesday over the G8 summit, which ended without any concrete goals or commitments and left much unfinished business for next year's meeting in Italy.
Japan Times
JAPAN / G8 SUMMIT 2008
Jul 9, 2008
At People's Summit, NGOs plug the voices of 'ordinary' people
SAPPORO — Domestic and international nongovernmental organizations ended their three-day People's Summit on Tuesday vowing to keep pushing "rich" Group of Eight leaders to heed the voices of ordinary citizens.
JAPAN / G8 SUMMIT 2008
Jul 9, 2008
Actor's new role: to remind G8 of their pledges
SAPPORO — The Group of Eight leaders need to "act now" and place eradicating poverty at the top of their agenda because 30,000 children are dying every day in the developing world, British actor Bill Nighy said.
JAPAN / G8 SUMMIT 2008
Jul 8, 2008
Ainu artist, activist has spent a lifetime fighting prejudice
Shizue Ukaji was born in March 1933 in a small southern coastal area of Hokkaido known as Urakawa.
JAPAN / G8 SUMMIT 2008
Jul 8, 2008
Indigenous peoples hold unique fear of climate change's impact
SAPPORO — Indigenous peoples will be the hardest hit by climate change because of their dependence on "Mother Earth," Ben Powless, a native Mohawk from Canada, told a convention of nongovernmental organizations Monday.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2008
Panel formed to study Ainu situation, advocate policies
A government panel was formed Tuesday to recommend future policies regarding the Ainu after studying their current conditions and the discrimination they face, Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said.
JAPAN
Jul 1, 2008
Prime ministers should serve four-year terms, Nakagawa says
The prime minister should serve a four-year term instead of the current situation in which the post sometimes seems like a revolving door, Hidenao Nakagawa, former secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party, said Monday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Jun 29, 2008
Jero: U.S. enka singer takes Japanese soul by storm
Decked out in his broad-brimmed baseball cap, silver necklace and jeans, the young man stands alone on a black stage. With his voice full of emotion, he begins to sing in Japanese:
JAPAN
Jun 26, 2008
Ex-New Komeito chief lashes out at Soka Gakkai
Former New Komeito leader Junya Yano said Wednesday that Soka Gakkai, Japan's largest lay Buddhist organization, has been violating his human rights by threatening him and obstructing his freedom of speech.
JAPAN
Jun 24, 2008
Fukuda again rules out snap election, new Cabinet lineup
Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda on Monday once again rejected opposition calls for him to dissolve the Lower House and hold a snap general election in the near future.
JAPAN
Jun 21, 2008
Fukuda gets report on boosting immigrants
Members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party submitted a bold report Friday to Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, calling for Japan to increase its foreign residents to up to 10 percent of the nation's population in the next 50 years.
JAPAN
Jun 21, 2008
After the drama, the curtain drops quietly on the current Diet session
The curtain drops on the ordinary Diet session Saturday, quietly and without the catharsis the Democratic Party of Japan aimed for with its last-minute censure motion against Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda last week.
JAPAN / G8 COUNTDOWN
Jun 20, 2008
NGOs press Fukuda for midterm gas emissions goals
A strong sense of urgency regarding climate change must be communicated to the Group of Eight leaders and more than a long-term goal for cutting greenhouse gas emissions is called for, representatives of nongovernmental organizations said Thursday.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2008
Lawmakers form group to tackle touchy tobacco issues
Lawmakers formed a nonpartisan group Friday to discuss the issues surrounding tobacco, including tax revenue and health risks, amid calls by some to triple the price of a pack of smokes to ¥1,000.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2008
Pyongyang to reopen abduction probe
Pyongyang has promised to reopen its investigation into the missing Japanese its spies abducted, and Tokyo will partially lift economic sanctions in response.
JAPAN
Jun 13, 2008
Let 10% of Japan be foreigners: Nakagawa
Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers made an ambitious proposal Thursday to raise the ratio of immigrants in Japan to about 10 percent over the next 50 years.
Zelenskyy to replace Ukraine ambassador to Japan
Ukrainian Ambassador to Japan Sergiy Korsunsky delivers a speech during a handover ceremony of Self-Defense Force vehicles to Ukraine, at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo, in May last year.
Bankruptcies and suicides rise as Japanese struggle with mounting debt
Lawyers estimate that personal bankruptcies in Japan are on track to reach the highest since 2012 this year.
Honda and Nissan consider mutual production of vehicles, report says
Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe at the Japan Mobility Show 2023 at Tokyo Big Sight in October 2023.
The mighty Mekong River's growing plastic problem
A group of elephant keepers in Chiang Saen, Thailand, remove plastic waste from the Ruak River, a tributary of the Mekong River, as a pair of Asian elephants bathe behind them.
Record 78% of people in Japan feel anxious, government survey finds
The public opinion survey on people's lives, conducted by the Cabinet Office, found that 28.1% of respondents think that their standard of living is at a lower-middle level among the general public — the highest percentage to give that response in 35 years.
For baseball fans, 2024 brought The Summer of Shohei Ohtani
Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani reacts to a standing ovation from fans after hitting his 50th home run of the season, against the Marlins in Miami on Sept. 19.
Casual workouts, cool living, ‘complete’ food: Japan’s health trends of 2024
In 2024, efficiency trumped effort among Japan's fitness-focused aspirants.
Is Japan finally ready to tap its abundant geothermal energy potential?
Steam rises from a geothermal plan in Yuzawa, Akita Prefecture. Despite its long history and potential, geothermal provided just 0.3% of Japan's overall energy mix in the fiscal year from April 2023
Japanese officials inspect Yokota Air Base over PFAS concerns
The Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo in September 2019. An inspection of the base by Japanese government officials on Friday came amid public pressure to investigate suspected links between the use of PFAS-containing firefighting foam by the U.S. base and contamination of soil and groundwater in western Tokyo.
Crime numbers rise in Japan for second straight year
A police officer stands in front of the residence of a man alleged to have stabbed two junior high school students in Kitakyushu.

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