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COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 4, 2017

The silencing of an anti-U.S. base protester in Okinawa

The extended detention of Hiroji Yamashiro is a shocking display of raw government power.
COMMUNITY / Voices / COMMUNITY CHEST
Jul 20, 2016

Readers' letters: Rote learning, vocab and Eiken's aims

Some readers' responses to last month's article by Hans Karlsson, 'Is the Eiken doing Japan's English learners more harm than good?'
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 11, 2016

LDP-led ruling bloc, allies clear two-thirds majority hurdle in Upper House poll

The Liberal Democratic Party-led ruling coalition scored a sweeping victory in the Upper House election Sunday that gave the Diet's pro-revision forces the two-thirds majority needed to initiate Japan's first constitutional referendum, final results showed Monday morning.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 2, 2016

What are Shinzo Abe's real three arrows?

In his campaign for the upcoming Upper House elections, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is pussyfooting around his plans to revise the Constitution. He is keeping his cards close to his chest because polls have shown that voters oppose constitutional change. Instead, Abe is calling on voters to keep the faith...
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 7, 2016

If formed, a Tokyo assembly committee could pry Masuzoe from governorship

Public calls for Tokyo Gov. Yoichi Masuzoe to step down grow despite his apology a day earlier and a pledge to refund some of the ¥4.4 million he misspent.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Apr 30, 2016

Japan's meek media kowtows to the government

Last week I compared the Catholic Church in Boston and Japan's "nuclear village" of atomic-power advocates — two powerful institutions that stifled embarrassing revelations for some time. The Oscar-winning film "Spotlight" depicts the comeuppance of the church hierarchy after investigative reporters...
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Feb 29, 2016

'Landmark' ruling sent Japan's foreign residents back to welfare limbo

Widely misunderstood 2014 case reaffirmed the decades-old stopgap that means noncitizens can receive support but can't appeal if their application is rejected.
EDITORIALS
Nov 15, 2015

Protecting broadcasters' freedom

Freedom of the press is a pillar of democracy. The administration and the LDP should refrain from trying to control the media.
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Oct 5, 2015

Let's discuss 'idols' and marriage

Last week the media obsessed over the story about the 17-year-old girl who was sued by a talent agency for violating the terms of her contract, which stipulated that she could not be involved in any romantic relationships.
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Jun 28, 2015

Has striking in Japan become extinct?

"Strike." Dear reader, what do you think when you hear this word? What impression do you get? Do you see the blood, sweat and tears? Do you see an angry, vicious mob disturbing our civil society? I bet a majority of Japanese people under the age of 40 have neither a positive nor negative impression of...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 5, 2015

Magazine IDs student suspect in Nagoya slaying, breaking legal taboo

A news magazine defies a ban on identifying minors in criminal cases by running a four-page expose on a student accused of killing an elderly woman in Nagoya.
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Jan 21, 2015

Forty years after Zainichi labor case victory, is Japan turning back the clock?

Efforts against nationality-based discrimination in Japan have made zero progress in the four decades since a landmark court case against Hitachi.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 8, 2014

Media culture is the driving force behind a lack of critical car-safety stories

Last month, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism released the results of tests to evaluate automatic braking functions that some automobile manufacturers now offer. The purpose of the tests, according to a report in the Asahi Shimbun, was to "provide consumers with a set of references...
Japan Times
OLYMPICS / OLYMPIC NOTEBOOK
Jun 14, 2014

USOC chief calls for changes in bid voting

Larry Probst, the United States Olympic Committee chairman, won't win a popularity contest within the IOC anytime soon.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
May 6, 2012

'Hidden children' of politicians no hurdle to success

Democratic Party of Japan kingpin Ichiro Ozawa was acquitted last week of conspiring to file false financial reports for his political group. He can now return full-time to the job he was elected to do, but the sense you get from the mainstream media is that he's through as a politician. The press has...
Reader Mail
Nov 24, 2011

Reports are walloping tourism

The Nov. 18 front-page article "Cesium fallout widespread" states that there has been continued testing of soil throughout Hokkaido since before and after the March 11 nuclear accidents at Fukushima, the results of which can be found at: http://monitoring-hokkaido.info/index.php?lang=en
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Jun 26, 2011

Readers offer 3/11 insights, valuable resources

As Japan has struggled with the physical and emotional challenges of the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake and tsunami of March 11, and the ongoing nuclear crisis that resulted, I have written three Our Planet Earth columns related to those events: one on Japan's response (March 27); one on alternative...
COMMENTARY
Aug 19, 2010

Mixed views in rising China

While voices in China continue to be raised against American naval exercises near the China coast and asserting Beijing's increased influence in global affairs, other voices are now being heard questioning the wisdom of China's increasing assertiveness.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jun 29, 2010

No need to know the law, but you must obey it

A few months ago I met with some Western diplomats who were looking for information about Japanese law — in particular, an answer to the question, "Is parental child abduction a crime?" As international child abduction has become an increasingly sore point between Japan and other countries, foreign...
COMMUNITY / Voices / HAVE YOUR SAY
Nov 10, 2009

Betting your family on Japan: readers respond

Life is long, should be long Mr. Cory, I truly sympathize with your comments and experiences. Your comment about mixed feelings toward your wife really struck home with me as well. Indeed, I too am a Richard Cory, living a farcical life with all of the appearances of the enviable.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 14, 2009

Cabinet member exits after tryst

Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshitada Konoike resigned Wednesday for "personal reasons" after a magazine hit newsstands with a full account of a trip he and a lover took to a hot-spring resort, during which he used a special JR pass that lets Diet members ride shinkansen for free.
JAPAN / PARTY LINE
Jul 12, 2007

Komeito to stay firmly in coalition camp

For New Komeito leader Akihiro Ota, the priority in the July 29 election is maintaining the ruling bloc's control of the Upper House, but he won't say if he will resign if the coalition falls short.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Apr 29, 2007

The medical insurance game -- you always pay and they often play

On April 13, 12 different insurance companies apologized for failing to pay benefits for legitimate claims on life and supplemental medical insurance policies. It was the latest chapter in an industry-wide scandal that started with admissions about unpaid benefits for automobile and property insurance....
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Apr 22, 2007

Imagine all the soldiers and sailors singing and dancing in harmony

With the expected passage of a bill setting procedures for a referendum to revise the Constitution, the Japanese people are going to have to think carefully about what sort of changes they want made to the charter. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has staked his political career on revising the Constitution,...
JAPAN
Sep 7, 2006

Abe looking to beef up defense posture

Shinzo Abe, the runaway favorite to succeed Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, has big ambitions for Japan's traditional pacifist diplomacy.

Longform

Atsuyoshi Koike, the president and CEO of Rapidus, says there is a “sense of urgency” when it comes to Japan’s efforts in manufacturing semiconductors. “We have to make sure we are successful,” he says.
Atsuyoshi Koike’s big game: Fourth down and 2 nanometers to go