Japan Watch Thread

[wjfox]

Japanese government offers families 1m yen a child to leave Tokyo

Tue 3 Jan 2023 04.49 GMT

Japan’s government is offering ¥1m ($7,500) per child to families who move out of greater Tokyo, in an attempt to reverse population decline in the regions.

The incentive – a dramatic rise from the previous relocation fee of ¥300,000 – will be introduced in April, according to Japanese media reports, as part of an official push to breathe life into declining towns and villages.

Although Tokyo’s population fell for the first time last year– a trend partly attributed to the coronavirus pandemic – policymakers believe more should be done to lower the city’s population density and encourage people to start new lives in “unfashionable” parts of the country that have been hit by ageing, shrinking populations and the migration of younger people to Tokyo, Osaka and other big cities.

[...]

The population of the world’s third-biggest economy suffered a record fall of 644,000 in 2020-21, according to government data. It is expected to plummet from its current 125 million to an estimated 88 million in 2065 – a 30% decline in 45 years.

While the number of over-65s continues to grow, the birthrate remains stubbornly low at 1.3 children– well below the 2.1 needed to sustain the current population size.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/ ... are_btn_tw

[weatheriscool]

Suspect charged with murder in assassination of Japan's Abe
Source: AP

By MARI YAMAGUCHI today

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese prosecutors formally charged the suspect in the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with murder, sending him to stand trial, a court said Friday.

Tetsuya Yamagami was arrested immediately after allegedly shooting Abe with a homemade gun as the former leader was making a campaign speech in July outside a train station in Nara in western Japan. He then underwent a nearly six-month mental evaluation, which prosecutors said showed he is fit to stand trial.

Yamagami was also charged with violating a gun control law, according to the Nara District Court.

Police have said Yamagami told them that he killed Abe, one of Japan’s most influential and divisive politicians, because of Abe’s apparent links to a religious group that he hated. In his statements and in social media postings attributed to him, Yamagami said he developed a grudge because his mother had made massive donations to the Unification Church that bankrupted his family and ruined his life.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/shinzo-abe-j ... 4f880dddc3

[caltrek]

Japan: Improving Working Conditions In Agriculture Sector – Analysis
by Yusaku Yoshikawa
February 15 , 2023

Introduction:

(Eurasia Review) In 2019, the Japanese government introduced the Work Style Reform Law which sought to increase diversity in the workplace and improve working conditions. But reform has not been sufficiently discussed in one of the industries that needs it the most — agriculture.
The agriculture industry in Japan has suffered a dramatic decrease in labour, with the number of farmers decreasing by 50,000 per year. The majority of them are small-scale farmers with side jobs, who are also ageing at an advanced stage.

It has been a challenge for the sector to attract young farmers. In 2021, 52,300 farmers joined but nearly two-thirds of them were over 50 years old. The turnover rate of agricultural workers is also higher than in other sectors. The most common reasons for changing jobs are discontentment with working conditions, long labour hours and low incomes.

Despite some efforts being made to improve the working conditions of agricultural workers, such as discussionsby the Exploratory Committee on Work Style Reform in Agriculture organised by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), there is still a long way to go in extending the reforms.

Agriculture in Japan has long been considered a ‘family business’, with a blurred boundary between work and life. The 2020 Census of Agriculture and Forestry compiled by MAFF reported that 96 per cent of agricultural management bodies in Japan were still family-owned. On the contrary, employed workers have conventionally not been very common. Because farming activities are mostly seasonal, workers are usually employed only during the busy harvest season. Yet, Japan’s Labour Standards Act only applies to employed workers and excludes family workers engaged in agriculture.

Read more here: https://www.eurasiareview.com/15022023 ... analysis/

[weatheriscool]

Japan approves abortion pill for the first time

Issued on: 29/04/2023 - 14:12
Modified: 29/04/2023 - 14:10

Tokyo (AFP) – The abortion pill will become available in Japan for the first time after the health ministry approved the drug used to terminate early-stage pregnancy.

Abortion is legal in Japan up to 22 weeks but consent is usually required from a spouse or partner, and until now a surgical procedure had been the only option.

The ministry said in a notification to healthcare officials on Friday it had approved the drug made by British pharmaceutical company Linepharma.

The drugmaker filed its product, a two-step treatment of mifepristone and misoprostol, for approval in Japan in December 2021.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.rfi.fr/en/health-and-lifest ... first-time

[wjfox]

Tech war: Japan’s new semiconductor tool export restrictions throw a major spanner in works of China’s chip plans

- Chinese authorities have expressed anger about the Japanese government’s decision to implement the curbs and have urged a rethink
- The restricted items on the list are expansive and will target a range of hi-tech equipment and materials needed for advanced chip production

Published: 11:00am, 4 Jun, 2023

Japan’s new export restrictions on 23 types of chip-related equipment and materials, which will come into effect in July, are set to disrupt China’s semiconductor self-sufficiency plan as the specific items are highly selective and targeted, according to industry insiders.

The measures require specific permission for the export of 23 types of items to any country not on a list of 42 “friendly” markets, according to the insiders and a list seen by the Post. For China, it would be a de facto ban, similar to US export curbs announced in October 2022, dealing a heavy blow to Beijing’s push for greater self-sufficiency in chips.

Chinese authorities have expressed anger about the Japanese government’s decision to implement the curbs and urged a rethink, but there is little sign that the decision will be suspended or revoked.

https://www.scmp.com/tech/tech-war/arti ... hinas-chip

[caltrek]

International Atomic Energy Agency Approves Plan for Water Discharge at Fukushima Plant
by Keitaro Fukuchi and Mizuki Sato
June, 2023

Introduction:

(The Asahi Shimbun) The government received the international approval it wanted to begin dumping treated radioactive water from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant into the ocean.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met on July 4 with Rafael Grossi, the visiting director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, who presented his agency’s final report on the water discharge plan.

The report said the plan would have a negligible impact on people and the environment.

“I want to explain the situation in a highly transparent manner based on the scientific rationale (of the report),” Kishida said in the meeting. “We will deal sincerely with the issue after listening to the contents.”

Grossi wrote in the foreword to the report: “The IAEA has concluded that the approach and activities to the discharge of ALPS treated water taken by Japan are consistent with relevant international safety standards.”

Read more here: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14948337


China Urges Japan to Stop Ocean Discharge of Fukushima Treated Water
July 4, 2023

(Kyodo News) China renewed its call on Tuesday for Japan to halt a planned discharge of treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean, questioning Tokyo's claim that it is the safest and most reliable option.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said a safety review of the plan presented the same day by the International Atomic Energy Agency "should not be the 'shield' or 'green light' for Japan's discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean," adding that the report "failed to fully reflect views from experts that participated in the review."

The IAEA concluded in its report that Japan's plan on the water release aligns with international safety standards and the move would have "a negligible radiological impact on people and the environment." The Japanese government aims to start the discharge around this summer.

Read more here: https://english.kyodonews.net/news/202 ... ater.html

[weatheriscool]

Japan Records Steepest Population Decline While Number of Foreign Residents Hits New High
Source: Associated Press

Japan's population declined in all of its 47 prefectures for the first time in a record drop, while its number of foreign residents hit a new high, reaching almost 3 million people, according to government data released Wednesday, highlighting the increasing role that non-Japanese people play in the shrinking and aging country.

The population of Japanese nationals fell by about 800,000 people, or 0.65%, to 122.4 million in 2022 from the previous year, falling for a 14th straight year, according to data from the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry based on residency registrations as of Jan. 1 this year.

Japan's total population was 125.41 million, down just over half a million people from a year earlier, and there was a 10.7% jump in foreign residents with addresses registered in Japan, the ministry said

Read more: https://www.usnews.com/news/news/articl ... s-new-high

[weatheriscool]

JAPAN: LDP Loses One of 2 Closely Watched By-Elections

okyo, Oct. 22 (Jiji Press)--Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party lost one of the two parliamentary by-elections held Sunday, with the results possibly making it difficult for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to dissolve the House of Representatives, the all-important lower chamber of the Diet, the country's parliament, by year-end.

The LDP won the other by-election. But the outcomes are expected to deal a blow to Kishida, also president of the LDP. The party had both contested seats before the elections.

The by-elections, both head-to-head battles between the ruling and opposition sides, were the first parliamentary polls since Kishida reshuffled his cabinet and the LDP's leadership team in mid-September.

On Monday, Kishida is set to deliver a policy speech at the extraordinary Diet session that opened Friday. Following the speech, full-scale parliamentary debates between the ruling and opposition blocs will kick off.

https://www.nippon.com/en/news/yjj2023102200402/

[caltrek]

JAPAN: LDP Loses One of 2 Closely Watched By-Elections

...

https://www.nippon.com/en/news/yjj2023102200402/

More on that:

LDP, Kishida Downbeat After Winning 1 of 2 By-elections
October 23, 2023

Introduction:

(Asahi Shimbun) The ruling Liberal Democratic Party lost one of two by-elections for Diet seats previously held by party lawmakers, despite Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s pledge to win both polls.

In the Lower House’s Nagasaki No. 4 district, the LDP’s Yozo Kaneko defeated Seiichi Suetsugu of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan in a tight race on Oct. 22.

But Hajime Hirota, an independent backed by the CDP, trounced the LDP’s Ken Nishiuchi in the Upper House’s Tokushima and Kochi electoral district on the same day.

“The elections were undoubtedly tough,” LDP Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi told reporters at the party’s headquarters in Tokyo on Oct. 22.

“We humbly accept the results.”

Read more here: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15036209

[caltrek]

Japan Approved to Buy 400 Tomahawk Cruise Missiles
Howard Altman and Tyler Rogoway
November 18, 2023

Introduction:

(The Drive) The State Department on Friday approved a potential $2.35 billion sale of 400 Tomahawk cruise missiles to Japan. The deal would allow for Japan to receive up to 200 Tomahawk Block IV and 200 Tomahawk Block V All Up Rounds (AUR) and related equipment.

The approval comes after years of talk that Japan would procure long-range land attack cruise missile capability via Tomahawk and is another glaring example of the country's changing military policy when it comes to 'offensive' weaponry. This is primarily spurred by tensions mounting in the Pacific that have pushed Japan to expand its counterstrike capacity against potential threats, especially emanating from China and North Korea.
(See link for Twitter feed).

Japan is planning to use the Tomahawks on its Aegis destroyers, although ground and submarine launch platforms are also a possibility in the future.
The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force has eight Aegis destroyers: four Kongō class, two Atago class and two Maya class — Japan’s latest in-service Aegis capable destroyers.

The Tomahawks would add a new offensive kinetic dimension to these vessels. Equipped with powerful radar systems and an assortment of surface-to-air missiles, as well as anti-ship and anti-submarine weapons, they currently serve, in part, as floating air and missile defense platforms.

Read more here: https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/ ... missiles


DOD

[caltrek]

Prime Minister Kishida Mulls Replacing All Ministers from Abe Faction
December 10, 2023

Introduction:

(Kyodo News) Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is considering replacing all ministers from the Liberal Democratic Party faction previously led by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, over a series of political fundraising scandals, sources close to the matter said Sunday.

Kishida has already decided to sack Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno over his alleged failure to report millions of yen received as part of fundraising efforts for the party faction, which is the largest within the ruling party, the sources said.

Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura faces similar allegations. Along with the ministers, Kishida is also expected to dismiss all senior vice ministers and parliamentary vice ministers from Abe's faction, the sources added.

In addition to Matsuno, the top government spokesman, and Nishimura, the list includes two other ministers, five senior vice ministers and six parliamentary vice ministers from Abe's faction.

Kishida is likely to gauge the timing of when to change his Cabinet after the end of the ongoing extraordinary parliamentary session on Wednesday, the sources said, while calls are growing that Matsuno should be replaced as soon as possible as he holds twice-daily press conferences during the week.

Read more here: https://english.kyodonews.net/news/202 ... ces.html

[caltrek]

Japan’s GDP Hits Record Low 4.2% Share in Global Economy
by Yoichi Yonetani
December 26, 2023

Introduction:

(The Asahi Shimbun) Driven by the weak yen, Japan's economic output produced its lowest percentage on record in the global economy last year, according to data released by the Cabinet Office on Dec. 25.

Japan’s gross domestic product without adjustment for inflation fell to $4.2 trillion (597.469 trillion yen) in 2022, accounting for 4.2 percent of the global GDP.

That was 0.9 percentage point down from the previous year, marking the lowest share since comparable data became available in 1980.

Although Japan remained the world’s third-largest economy, the economic outputs of the top two countries, the United States and China, dwarfed that of Japan.

Of the $101.4 trillion global nominal GDP, the United States held the largest share, 25.1 percent, equivalent to $25.4 trillion, followed by China with 17.7 percent, or $17.9 trillion.

Read more here: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15095543

[caltrek]

Toshiba Goes Private
December 20, 2023

Introduction:

(RTTNews) - Toshiba Corp. has been delisted from the Tokyo stock exchange after 74 years and taken private by a consortium led by an equity firm Japan Industrial Partners in an 11 billion pound deal.

The company has also been delisted from Nagoya Stock Exchange, Inc.

Announcing the delisting, Toshiba said, "Toshiba Group will now take a major step toward a new future with a new shareholder. Even after privatization, with its basic commitment of 'Committed to People, Committed to the Future,' the Company will strive to further enhance its corporate value and contribute to society."

Toshiba, which was founded in 1875 as a clocks and mechanical dolls maker, started trading its shares in May 1949 at the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Following continuing financial and other struggles, Toshiba initiated a restructuring of its operations and received its first takeover bid in April 2021 from Europe-based CVC Capital Partners. In November 2021, Toshiba announced a plan to split the entire group into three companies.

Read more here: https://markets.businessinsider.com/ne ... 32915627

[caltrek]

Hayashi Cancels Parties to Mark his Appointment
December 30, 2023

Introduction:

(Asahi Shimbun) Newly appointed Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi scrapped plans to hold a New Year party in his Yamaguchi Prefecture constituency to celebrate his promotion after being warned his timing was ill-advised.

Hayashi was named earlier this month to replace Hirokazu Matsuno as the government’s most senior spokesman. Matsuno resigned over a money and politics scandal that has engulfed the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s Abe faction. He is alleged to have received more than 10 million yen ($70,900) from a slush fund created from party fundraising ticket sales.

Hayashi’s political patronage association and the LDP’s Yamaguchi prefectural federation were going to co-host a gala for 200 guests at a hotel in Yamaguchi on Jan. 20 to celebrate his appointment. The attendance fee was 5,000 yen.

There were also plans to host a New Year’s party on Jan. 21 in Shimonoseki with a 3,000-yen fee that included alcoholic refreshments.
A Dec. 28 report by The Asahi Shimbun on the plans for the parties prompted Hayashi’s office to explain the functions in n

Read more here: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15099236

[caltrek]

Japan, China to Hold Expert Talks About Fukushima Treated Water
by Anri Takashi
December 28, 2023

Introduction:

(The Asahi Shumbun) The Japanese and Chinese governments plan to hold discussions at an expert level early next year regarding treated radioactive wastewater being discharged into the ocean, according to Japanese government sources.

However, it is unclear whether the talks will lead to Beijing lifting its blanket import ban on Japanese seafood due to the release from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, which began in late August.

The development comes after Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to hold expert-level talks at a summit held in November.

The Japanese government is considering having the discussions attended by officials specializing in treated contaminated water from relevant ministries and agencies, such as the secretariat of the Nuclear Regulation Authority, the Foreign Ministry and the industry ministry, according to the sources.

As China will enter its new year holidays from Feb. 10, Japan is requesting that the talks begin before then.

Read more here: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15097958

[caltrek]

Japan’s Economic Balancing Act
by Masahiko Takeda
January 1, 2024

Introduction:

(Eurasia Review) The Japanese economy in 2023 had two distinct features. Macroeconomic indicators, such as GDP and employment, were broadly in good shape. But economic trends that are unsustainable kept worsening, raising concerns about Japan’s future economic stability.

Japan’s real GDP growth in 2023 was slightly above 1 per cent — modest, but not bad given potential growth estimated at below 1 per cent. The output gap — the difference between actual and potential output — is closing, the unemployment rate, which ticked up during the COVID-19 crisis, has fallen and the national jobs-to-applications ratio is well over 1.

Consumer price inflation is currently around 3 per cent, exceeding the Bank of Japan’s (BoJ) 2 per cent target. Corporate profits are buoyant, share prices have reached a post-bubble high and inbound tourism has recovered to pre-COVID-19 levels, benefiting industries hit hard by the pandemic.
Despite these positives, most of the Japanese populace is unhappy. The source of their discontent is that, although nominal wages are rising, the pace at which they are rising is slower than that of inflation. This has eroded real wages, undermined consumption and cast doubt over the continuation of modest economic growth.

The wage–price gap has affected macroeconomic policy decisions. Although the BoJ took several steps to marginally relax its yield curve control, it refrained from normalising extremely loose monetary policy. This decision is grounded in the absence of the so called virtuous cycle of wage and price increases. In November 2023, the government introduced a fiscal package aimed at ‘completely overcoming deflation’. The odd reference to ‘deflation’ reflected the notion that unless wages rise to meet or supersede inflation, the economy is seen as not free from deflation.

Read more here: https://www.eurasiareview.com/01012024 ... nalysis/

[caltrek]

Nine of 10 Abe Faction Members on Reform Body Tied to Kickbacks
January 13, 2024

Introduction:

(Asahi Shimbun) A political reform body set up by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to address a funding scandal that has embroiled factions in the party was on shaky ground even before it held its first meeting on Jan. 11.

Of the 38 members on the panel, 10 are lawmakers from the faction once led by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and all but one of them are thought to have received kickbacks.

The Abe faction, the party’s largest and most influential, is in the crosshairs of Tokyo prosecutors because it is thought to have accumulated the lion’s share of unreported mountains of cash through fund-raising parties.

As such, the LDP can hardly expect to escape questioning about the seriousness with which it is trying to deal with the scandal that has already cost several leading politicians their posts.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ordered the formation of the new body to discuss political reform and the first meeting was held Jan. 11.

Read more here: https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15111023

[spryfusion]

[firestar464]

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2024/ ... -march-11/

13 years after 3/11, Japan's readiness for complex disasters remains inadequate

[Tadasuke]

My stance on Japan is like this:

Either countries with aging populations (like Japan) quickly introduce useful automation and also hopefully healthy-life-extension (maybe practical transhumanism) or the related problems will only be getting worse and worse with each passing year. Innovate or perish. I don't enjoy it being like that, just stating a fact.

This may be worth checking out:
https://www.dw.com/en/japan-can-anythin ... a-66432824