Tag - cabinet

 
 

CABINET

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi (right) during a meeting in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 24, 2024
Why Japan's mysterious stash of classified funds escapes scrutiny
The funds can be used by the chief cabinet secretary with no explanation needed, fueling speculation of widespread misappropriation.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is struggling to stay in office amid low public approval ratings and discontent from within his party. However, it is extremely rare for a sitting LDP president running for reelection to be dethroned.
EDITORIALS
Jul 5, 2024
Kishida fights for his political life
Despite low public approval ratings and discontent in the LDP, all is not lost for Prime Minister Kishida if the summer is kind to him and he plays his cards right.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida listens during a news conference in Tokyo on June 2.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 29, 2024
Kishida marks 1,000 days in office — but how much longer can he hold on?
With the milestone, Kishida became the country's eighth PM to reach the mark since the end of World War II.
Over 70% of respondents in a survey do not support Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's handling of the high-profile slush fund scandal involving factions of his ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
JAPAN / Politics
May 16, 2024
Kishida Cabinet's support rate edges up, poll shows
The poll found that 72.9% of respondents do not support Kishida's handling of a high-profile slush fund scandal.
Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa meets with Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara in Abidjan on April 29.
JAPAN / Politics
May 7, 2024
Kamikawa supporting struggling Kishida government on diplomatic front
Some in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party are hoping she will become a candidate for the party presidency and lead it through the next general election.
Approval rate for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's Cabinet hit a new low of 16.6% in April since its launch in October 2021.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 11, 2024
Support for Kishida Cabinet sinks to fresh low of 16.6%, poll shows
The approval rate fell 1.4 percentage points from the previous month, while the disapproval rate climbed 2.0 points to 59.4%.
Former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori attends the Liberal Democratic Party's convention in Tokyo on March 17.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 30, 2024
LDP questions ex-PM Mori over political funds scandal
Yoshiro Mori has denied any involvement in the scandal, which could see the LDP advising some implicated executives to leave the party.
Among those who experienced physical abuse from their spouses or partners, 12.6% said they felt that their lives were in danger, according to the government survey conducted late last year.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 27, 2024
Record 1 in 5 in Japan report partner abuse, government survey shows
Among married couples, the rate is even higher at 1 in 4.
The record high, which reflects rising prices, was the worst since the subject was added to the poll in 2008, according to a Cabinet Office official.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 23, 2024
Record 63% in Japan feel financially uncomfortable, government survey finds
The result, which reflects rising prices, was the worst since the subject was added to the poll in 2008, according to a Cabinet Office official.
The Cabinet approved a bill on Tuesday to provide a better support for victims of sex crimes and the bereaved families of murder victims.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 5, 2024
Japan to boost legal aid for crime victims and bereaved families
A new bill is designed to reduce the mental and financial burdens of victims and bereaved families.
Investigators at the site of the murder of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with a handmade gun in the city of Nara in July 2022
JAPAN
Mar 1, 2024
Japan bill would punish those who encourage unlawful gun ownership
The bill is also aimed at toughening requirements to qualify for possessing a so-called half-rifle hunting gun.
The Cabinet has agreed to new national security legislation on sensitive government- and private-sector information that lawmakers should pass.
EDITORIALS
Mar 1, 2024
Protecting information is the key to national security
In recent years, however, that landscape has shifted and new fields are now considered essential to a country’s security and prosperity.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks to reporters at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Feb 23, 2024
Nikkei's all-time high unlikely to serve as tailwind for Kishida
Many analysts point out that the jump in Tokyo shares is not due to the economic and monetary policies of the government and the Bank of Japan.
The disapproval rate for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's Cabinet has also exceeded 60% for the first time.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 15, 2024
Support for Kishida Cabinet hits new low of 16.9% in Jiji poll
The approval rate is also the lowest for a Liberal Democratic Party-led administration since the party returned to power in December 2012.
Fumio Kishida
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 5, 2024
Kishida Cabinet support rate falls to 24.5% over scandal, second-lowest
The approval rating of the Kishida Cabinet hit an all-time low in December last year at 22.3%, wavering in the 20% range for the past four polls.
Ryu Shionoya (left), chairman of the Abe faction, and former parliamentary affairs chief Tsuyoshi Takagi bow during a news conference on Friday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 20, 2024
Record-low public support sends shockwaves through LDP
The falling support for the LDP is primarily due to a political funds scandal involving the party's powerful factions.
Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa during a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the State Department in Washington on Friday
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 14, 2024
Kamikawa's star rising as potential candidate to replace Kishida
Since Kamikawa took office in September, her reputation has been gradually bolstered by her energetic diplomatic trips.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi took office on Dec. 14 after his predecessor quit over a political funds scandal.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 27, 2023
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi vows to tackle distrust
Hayashi, who took office after his predecessor quit over a funding scandal, says revising the relevant law is related to freedom of political activity.
Self-Defense Forces soldiers take part in an evacuation drill on Yonaguni island in Okinawa Prefecture in November.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 22, 2023
Japan approves record ¥8 trillion defense budget
The defense budget announced Friday includes ¥370 billion to build two new warships that will utilize the U.S.-developed Aegis missile defense system.
A meeting is held at the Liberal Democratic Party's headquarters in Tokyo on Friday to officially replace two of the party's executives.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 22, 2023
In search for top officials, Kishida constrained by funds scandal
The limited number of viable candidates not suspected of misconduct means new appointees look more likely to be stopgap replacements.

Longform

Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals