Stories about Japanese from July, 2007
Japan: A Historic Election Defeat
The overwhelming defeat of the Liberal Democratic Party in Japan's upper house elections on Sunday, historic in its scale, brought about a drastic shift in the Japanese political landscape and sent a clear message to prime minister Abe Shinzo and his government. While media across the world analyze political fallout of the political shift, bloggers are echoing the message and demanding change.
Japan: Protester nearly killed at Henoko Bay
An activist protesting environmental surveys currently being conducted in Henoko Bay (Okinawa) in preparation for the construction of a new military base was reportedly nearly killed when government-contracted divers attacked him. While the Defense Facilities Administration Agency (DFAA) denies the incident, the activist himself, pastor Taira Natsume, released a statement...
Japan: Ground Zero at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa
On July 16, shaken by a massive earthquake originating in a fault line that apparently runs directly underneath it, one of the power generators of the world's largest nuclear power plant, Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, burst into flame and started billowing black smoke. This week's post includes a report from Diet member and blogger Kondo Masamichi, one of the first to arrive on the scene, and the reaction of another blogger who questions the government's handling of the crisis.
“Welcome to Japan”? Kurdish refugee family leaves for Canada
Few people, including Japanese themselves, are aware of the dismal record of Japan's treatment of refugees, particularly its treatment of Kurdish refugees. After struggling for many years to make a home in Japan, Erdal Dogan and his family, who fled Turkey amid religious and ethnic persecution, have finally been forced to leave, luckily having been accepted as refugees in Canada. Japanese bloggers reflect on the departure with sadness and frustration.
Japan: Typhoons, earthquakes and missiles
After Japan experienced one of the most disastrous weekends in its history, a blogger [Ja] comments that “the odds of Japan getting devasted by typhoons and earthquakes are much higher than they are of it getting hit by a missile from a foreign country; however, the government is more preoccupied...
Japan: A Week of Typhoons, Earthquakes, and Nuke Leaks
The past week has been rough for Japan. Just as a torrential typhoon finished ripping through Okinawa and Kyushu, massive earthquakes hit Niigata and nearby regions, among other things setting fire to parts of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, the world's largest nuclear power plant. Video footage and blog translations in this week's post provide a glimpse into what has been happening at ground level.
Cambodia: Cambodian Students Safe in Japan Quake
Cambodian student Himatsubushi, currently living in Japan, describes his experience of the recent earthquake that hit Japan.
Japan: The psychology of right-wing nationalist intellectuals
Blogger Niphonese writes about the phenomenon of Japanese going to study in Europe, then returning to Japan and joining right-wing nationalist groups [Ja]: “After experiencing discrimination in Europe, these Japanese people think to themselves: ‘Westerners talk about these things like human rights and so on, pretending like they don't know....
Japan: A Social Media “Explosion”
A seminar entitled "Explosive Social Media" held at the Jiji Press Hall in Tokyo last Tuesday brought together people from various sectors of the business world interested in finding out about the explosive potential of social media in Japan.
Japan: Internet regulation up for debate, but nobody is debating
While nobody was watching, an interim report drafted by a study group under the Japanese Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications has set down guidelines for regulation of the Internet in Japan which, according to one blogger, would extend as far as personal blogs and homepages. In the report, this...
Japan: Responses to the Kyuma A-Bomb Statement
Two weeks ago, then-Defense Minister Kyuma Fumio made a famous statement referring to the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as something that "couldn't be helped". Despite later attempts to qualify this statement, Kyuma was ultimately forced to resign amid public outcry and political opposition. Bloggers also had a lot to say on the topic of the controversial statement.
An Insider's View of the Japanese Meat Industry
A recent scandal involving a Japanese company from Hokkaido selling pork disguised as beef has once more eroded people's confidence in the quality and safety of their own food. One blogger provides a sobering warning, from first-hand experience working in a meat processing plant, about the lax enforcement of quality controls within the Japanese meat industry.
Alberto Fujimori: Arrested in Chile, Running in Japan, Dreaming of Peru
Alberto Fujimori, the former president of Peru now under house arrest in Chile, has surprised everyone with the announcement that he will run for the Senate in his motherland, Japan. Despite his future being in the hands of the Chilean Supreme Court, where he facing charges of corruption and human...
