Stocks plunge as Trump says U.S. will impose 25% tariffs on steel, 10% on aluminum imports

Abstract: WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday the United States would impose tariffs of 25 percent on steel imports and 10 percent on imported aluminum next week. At a meeting with U.S. industry officials at the White House, Trump vowed to rebuild American steel and aluminum industries, saying they had been treated unfairly by other countries for decades. The move is likely to increase tensions with China, whose top trade official, Lui He, is in Washington for trade talks. An early morning tweet from Trump that said the steel and aluminum sectors needed protecting from unfair trade drove shares in domestic industries sharply higher. AK Steel Holding was up 2.8 percent, U.S. Steel Corp. was up 2.3 percent and Nucor rose 1 percent. By contrast, industrial stocks such as Boeing fell, with traders citing tariffs, which would hit manufacturers. The administration says duties would protect U.S. industry, but critics say they would raise costs for industry and fail to deliver on a campaign pledge to boost domestic jobs. Trump tweeted on Thursday that American steel and aluminum companies needed “free, fair and smart trade.” Trump has indicated he favors a duty of 24 percent on steel imports. The administration has also cited national security interests for its action, saying the United States needs domestic supply for its tanks and warships. The Department of Defense has recommended targeted steel tariffs and a delay in aluminum duties. Although China only accounts for 2 percent of U.S. steel imports, its massive industry expansion has helped produce a global glut of steel that has driven down prices. China has indicated it could retaliate against U.S. steel tariffs by targeting imports of U.S. agricultural commodities, such as soybeans of which America is the largest supplier. Trade tensions between the United States and China have risen since Trump took office in 2017 and the administration is also pushing on what it regards as forced technology transfers to China. Shares of Asian steel producers such as South Korea’s POSCO and Nippon Steel fell overnight. While American steelmakers have lost three quarters of their jobs between 1962 and 2005, a major study by the American Economic Association showed that much of this had been due to improved production technology as output per worker rose five-fold. “Thus, even if trade protection leads to increased domestic production, increases in employment may be far less than many hope,” a report from the highly regarded independent Econofact economist network said last week. Consumers of steel and aluminum have lobbied hard against the tariffs. Econofact said in its report that 2 million jobs were in industries that use steel “intensively,” including auto parts, household appliances, farm machinery and oil equipment. Jobs in the consuming industries are concentrated in California, Texas, the Northeastern and Midwestern states that comprise the rust belt and states in the Southeast. “Across many states, the number of jobs adversely affected in these steel-using industries could far exceed any steel jobs saved,” Econofact warned. “Past experience also shows that unilateral action like Section 232 tariffs will invite retaliation — the Bush-era steel tariffs led many countries to target politically sensitive U.S. exports like Florida oranges and North Carolina textiles.”

aluminum
donald trump
steel imports
china
nippon steel
wall street
protectionism
japan


Aid convoy with supplies for 50,000 reaches Syria's Afrin, ICRC says

Abstract: GENEVA - An aid convoy carrying humanitarian supplies for 50,000 displaced people has arrived in Afrin in Syria, the International Committee of the Red Cross said on Thursday, as Turkey wages an offensive in the area. The situation in Afrin and other areas along the Syria-Turkish border is alarming, with the majority of people living in “dire conditions,” the ICRC said in a statement. “Only four hospitals are operating in the area. Medical staff are overwhelmed and struggling to cope with the increase in casualties,” it said, adding that some people needing medical care were reportedly trapped in certain areas of Afrin. ICRC spokeswoman Iolanda Jaquemet said it was the first time this year that the ICRC and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent had got the approval of the warring sides to send a convoy into Afrin. The ICRC is concerned that the fighting between Turkish forces and the Kurdish YPG militia is moving closer to a dam and water treatment facility that are vital for water supplies to people in the area, Jaquemet added. The 29-truck convoy was carrying 430 tons of food, mattresses, blankets, winter clothes and hygiene kits, the statement said. Jaquement dismissed as untrue reports that the convoy had come under attack during the journey. The United Nations has estimated 30,000 people may have been displaced in Afrin since the Turkish offensive began, but there is little information available. Jaquemet said 30 percent of the population of Afrin district was thought to be displaced, but she did not have any other figures. “The majority are living in dire conditions and are hosted in communities and collective centers. The ongoing fighting has forced thousands more to flee. What we are doing now is to meet the most pressing needs of the most vulnerable,” she said. Ankara launched its offensive in January against the U.S.-backed YPG militia, which it regards as a terrorist group linked to Kurdish militants who have been battling Turkish forces in southeast Turkey for more than three decades. Commenting on the proximity of the dam and water treatment area to the fighting, Jaquement said: “Were they to be damaged it would deprive at least 200,000 people of water.”

aid convoy
syria
afrin
icrc
turkey
conflict
u.n .
kurds


Aussie swimmer nearing 100 sets world record at Commonwealth trials

Abstract: SYDNEY - Australian George Corones, who will celebrate his 100th birthday next month, shaved a good chunk of time off the 50 meters long course freestyle world record for his age group at this week’s Commonwealth Games trials. The 99-year-old Victorian was the only competitor in the 100 to 104 years men’s masters category and set a time of 56.12 seconds for a single length of the Gold Coast Aquatic Centre pool, which will host the swimming events. The games start on April 4 and end on April 15. Wednesday’s race was staged before the trials proper especially to allow Corones to attempt to break the 100-104 age group record of one minute 31.19 seconds set in 2014 by Briton John Harrison. The Australian had been unable to claim previous short course masters world records because of the lack of automated operating equipment at the pool where he swam the times. Corones told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. in 2013 that he swam as a youngster before World War II “stopped things,” and returned to the sport at the age of 80.

swimming records aging wwii australia elderly


China will set stricter targets against air pollution

Abstract: BEIJING - China will set more stringent targets for improving the nation’s air quality under a new three-year plan, as Beijing prepares to beef up a nationwide crackdown on polluters in its campaign to clear its notoriously toxic skies. The new targets for concentrations of small, breathable particles known as PM2.5 will be lower than those in the country’s current five-year plan that was due to end in 2020, Environment Minister Li Ganjie said at a briefing on the sidelines of the country’s annual parliament on Saturday. In January, the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) said it was drawing up plans for tougher curbs on smog during the next three years to 2020 after a five-year crackdown on pollution helped it attain air quality targets in December. Li declined to give further details of the new goals as they are still being worked out. By the end of 2017, the country had already cut PM2.5 concentrations by around 15.8 percent, not far from the target of reducing average levels for cities by 18 percent by 2020. “So we will set a lower target for the new three-year plan,” he said. The government will also set up a nationwide inspection system this year, which will give responsibility for regular checks on polluting companies and factories to local authorities, in addition to central government, he said. The government will also punish local authorities who do not enforce the regulations correctly, he said. In some regions last year, regional governments issued blanket orders for companies to close even if they complied with tough emissions rules, he added. The “one size fits all” strategy by some local authorities will not be tolerated, he said. His comments come after the government announced earlier in the week that the 10-year old MEP will be transformed into a more powerful Ministry of Ecological Environment, absorbing duties overseeing river, marine and soil pollution as well as climate change held by other ministries and departments. It was announced as part of the biggest shake-up of government in years. Li said the bigger ministry would help push environmental protection, which is a hot-button social and economic issue for the world’s No. 2 economy, but he did not give any other details. The chief of the new ministry is expected to be announced this week.


Fukushima professor develops rubber that can make and store power from light and vibration

Abstract: Kunio Shimada, a professor of fluid mechanics and energy engineering at Fukushima University, has developed a special rubber that can generate electricity from solar and kinetic energy and save the power generated. The 53-year-old professor, who is from the city of Fukushima, says the rubber is the first of its kind in the world and is trying to patent it in Japan. His discovery could be used to develop artificial skin for robots or shock-resistant solar batteries. Robotics experts have already shown interest in Shimada’s technology, which could become part of the prefecture’s new initiative aimed at promoting robotics. Shimada has a track record in the field of conductive rubber. In 2001, he developed a liquid that contained melted magnets, called Magnetic Compound Fluid. This time, he mixed in natural rubber, the same type used to make balloons. To turn the fluid into rubber, the common method is to heat it by mixing in sulfur, but Shimada decided to electrify the mix instead. This way, he managed to create a rubbery material that was extremely conductive. By contrast, existing solar batteries are hard and easily broken when subjected to force. Conductive rubber, however, can expand or shrink in reaction to sunlight, shock or vibration and generate power from it. Hideki Shirakawa, professor emeritus at the University of Tsukuba, won the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 2000 by bucking the conventional wisdom that plastics are nonconductive to produce conductive polymers, which led to his creation of conductive plastic. Shimada was inspired by Shirakawa as he pursued the development of conductive rubber. According to Shimada, one of the challenges of robot development is supplying the power to run them. At the moment, wires or batteries must be attached to them. If conductive rubber can be used as their skin, however, they won’t need external power. This technology could also be applied to power drones, cars and prosthetic limbs. “This material provides potential for future applications in previously unimaginable areas,” Shimada said. “It is a technology that inspires big dreams.” A Fukushima Prefectural Government official in charge of robotics promotion likewise said Shimada’s technology could change the design and specifications of robots completely. Fukushima Prefecture plans to step up robot development at the Fukushima Robot Test Field in Minamisoma from April. Officials said they hope Shimada’s research will spur related innovations at the site.

rubber
energy
fukushima university
electricity
robotics
solar power


As Vatican and China talk, Taiwan looks on nervously

Abstract: VATICAN, CITY/TAIPEI - Five blocks from the Vatican, on the bustling, tourist-packed street leading to St. Peter’s Basilica, a Taiwanese flag flutters from the window of a third-story suite of offices that house Taipei’s embassy to the Holy See. These days, the staff inside are anxious. They know that one night they may have to lower that flag — red and blue with a white sun — for the last time. As the Vatican and China move closer to a historic deal on the appointment of bishops, which would signal a warming of once-frigid relations, diplomats and scholars say Taiwan could lose the most from the deal. Under the deal, the Vatican will have a say in negotiations for the appointment of future bishops in China, whose Catholics are divided between an “underground” church loyal to the pope and a government-backed church. Even a partial resolution of the issue could open the way for eventual diplomatic relations between Beijing and the Vatican. That would give the church a legal framework to look after all of China’s estimated 12 million Catholics. It would also leave Taiwan in the diplomatic lurch. The Vatican is one of only 20 states that still recognize Taiwan, officially known as the Republic of China. Beijing insists that if countries want relations with it they must break ties with Taiwan. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said last month that Beijing has always been sincere in its efforts to improve China-Vatican relations. A senior Vatican official said, however, that the accord on bishops “is not a political one,” suggesting that it does not include any formal link to diplomatic relations and that the Vatican will not be the next country to switch relations to China from Taiwan. Catholic leaders in Taipei are also hopeful. “They (the Vatican and Beijing) won’t build diplomatic ties. You need to share common values with each other in order to establish diplomatic ties,” Archbishop John Hung of Taipei said during an interview in Taipei. “The values the Vatican holds are different from those of the Chinese Communist Party. Building ties with the Vatican requires values including freedom and democracy.” Hung said the church in Taiwan is “sleeping well at night.” But for how long? Some experts say diplomatic ties between Beijing and the Vatican are inevitable, even if probably not right around the corner. “The church does not have preference among its children and it’s clear that the Vatican does not want to do anything to displease Catholics on Taiwan” said Agostino Giovagnoli, a history professor at Milan’s Sacred Heart Catholic University and the author of two books on Catholicism in China. “But strategically the Catholics on the mainland are more important because the future of evangelization of China and all Asia passes through China. It is key for the Catholic Church,” he said. While Taiwan’s embassy to the Vatican proudly flies the flag from its window, hosts cultural events and publishes a newsletter, the Vatican’s counterpart in Taipei is a study in low-key diplomacy. It is located in a quiet residential neighborhood in the city’s Daan distinct. The only clue of its function is the papal symbol of crossed keys and a tiara, or crown. That symbol is not widely known to the general public. The Vatican’s last diplomat on the mainland was expelled in 1951 and the Holy See mission settled in Taiwan, where Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalist government had fled in 1949 after its defeat by the communist armies of Mao Zedong, founder of the People’s Republic of China. Since the 1970s, following the United Nations vote to recognize the PRC as the sole legal China, the Vatican has not appointed a nuncio, or ambassador, to Taiwan. It has kept the status of the mission at the lower level of “charge d’affaires ad interim” since. Diplomats say the Vatican’s low profile in Taiwan for four decades has been aimed at placating Beijing, which still sees Taiwan as its sacred territory. In 1999, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, then the Vatican’s secretary of state under Pope John Paul, sent shock waves through Taiwan’s diplomatic corps. He said the Vatican was ready to move its embassy from Taipei to China “not tomorrow, but tonight if the Chinese authorities allow it.” In Vatican directories and diplomatic lists, the ambassador from Taiwan, currently Matthew Shieh-Ming Lee, is listed under “China,” not “Republic of China,” which is Taiwan’s official name now, and was China’s official name before 1949. The ambiguity is not accidental, diplomats say. By keeping the listing vague and generic, the Vatican has avoided further irritating Beijing as it has tried to seek an agreement about Catholics on the mainland. It also would make it easier for the Vatican to move its embassy to Beijing eventually while claiming that it is not really abandoning Taiwan, where it would likely leave an “apostolic” representation to the local Church. “It is very interesting that both sides are putting the question of diplomatic relations at the very end of the road, on the horizon,” Giovagnoli, the history professor, said. He said that because China’s diplomatic and economic strength has grown enormously over the past few decades, it no longer craves the Vatican’s diplomatic recognition as it did in the past, making a gradual political rapprochement after a deal on bishops is signed more likely than quick recognition. “Diplomatic recognition is no longer a quid pro quo for a deal on the naming of bishops as it once was,” Giovagnoli said. Those who will likely feel most hurt if the Vatican eventually does realign its political relations with Taiwan are the island’s 300,000 Catholics. While they make up less than 2 percent of the island’s population, they are disproportionately influential. Taiwan Vice President Chen Chien-jen is a devout Catholic and visited the Vatican in 2016 for the canonization of Mother Teresa. The Fu Jen Catholic University is considered highly prestigious. The Taiwan Catholic Regional Seminary trains priests from many parts of Asia, including China.


Amid tourism rise, Tsushima Island could play evacuation role if tensions flare with North Korea

Abstract: TSUSHIMA, NAGASAKI PREF. - Within sight of the bright lights and bustling beaches of Busan, sleepy Tsushima Island has little in common with its neighbor located a mere 50 kilometers north, but the island of about 31,000 people has recently become a hot spot for South Korean tourists. Duty-free shops abound in the center, advertising Japanese goods in Korean, and groups of Korean tourists, day-trippers in many cases, are everywhere. The island received 356,316 Korean visitors in 2017, up 37.1 percent from the year before, making international tourism a vital source of revenue. Tsushima, which also has a long, colorful, and often bloody history with the Korean Peninsula, made headlines for a different reason late last year when it was reported it could become the focal point of a large-scale evacuation should tensions flare between Seoul and Pyongyang. Despite recent signs that tensions over North Korea’s missile and nuclear weapons programs are easing, the central government is reportedly exploring an evacuation plan that would bring tens of thousands of Japanese in South Korea to Tsushima, in the event of a military incident. Local residents and politicians, however, worry that the island’s infrastructure is ill-equipped to handle a large stream of evacuees. The plan, reported in media on both sides of the Tsushima Strait late last year, could see nearly 38,000 Japanese nationals living in South Korea, as well as Japanese tourists in the South, evacuated via Tsushima in the event of a military clash with the North. Air, Maritime and Ground Self-Defense Force elements based on Tsushima would take the lead in getting people from Busan to the island before transporting them on to Honshu or Kyushu islands. As the island has recently become a popular destination for South Koreans via ferries from Busan, there is also concern over what to do about any South Koreans who find themselves evacuated to or stuck on Tsushima. But on Tsushima itself, there is little information available about what might happen in the event tens of thousands of people arrive, even if their stay is temporary. “What the evacuation plans would entail, how they would be carried out, and what kinds of advance preparations that would be needed are all things that the local governments in Tsushima and the Nagasaki Prefectural Assembly have yet to hear about,” Tomonori Sakamoto, a Liberal Democratic Party member of the Nagasaki Prefectural Assembly from Tsushima, said in an interview. Chizuru Yoshinaga, who works at Sakamoto’s Tsushima office, questioned the island’s ability to handle large numbers of evacuees. “For example, there aren’t a lot of qualified medical personnel on Tsushima … and the number of medical facilities is quite limited,” Yoshinaga said. “Many elderly residents seek treatment in Fukuoka or Nagasaki, but transportation can also be problematic. It’s nearly five hours away by ferry and two and a half hours by hydrofoil to Fukuoka.” When asked to comment on the issue at a January news conference, Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera offered only vague comments on the possibility of evacuating people to Tsushima, saying the government believes it’s an important location in terms of security and it has been studying various options to protect the lives of Japanese nationals. Yet for many Tsushima residents and visitors, the most pressing issues related to the island are not military or political but economic. Thanks to a law that went into effect last April, Tsushima is one of 15 island groups eligible for central government funding. Through the new legislation, “The central government helps subsidize the cost of running the ferries and gives island residents a big discount on flights, although those who are not residents still pay more,” said Kazuaki Ogi, a Fukuoka resident who visits Tsushima regularly on business. “In addition, local fishermen receive different kinds of help that make it easier to get seafood caught in Tsushima waters sent to other parts of Japan.” According to the city of Tsushima, after the law went into effect there was nearly a 9 percent increase in the number of island residents taking advantage of cheaper fares for the four daily flights to Fukuoka and the four or five daily flights to Nagasaki, both with a flight time of about 30 minutes. Whether this will lead to more people visiting, and possibly even relocating, to Tsushima has residents wondering. Like most of Japan, the population of Tsushima is aging and decreasing. About 34 percent of Tsushima residents are over 65 years old, and in 2013, the National Institution of Population and Social Security Research predicted Tsushima’s population will drop to around 18,000 by 2040 from the current 31,000. Its proximity to South Korea means that islanders need Korean tourists to help the local economy, but residents are also worried wealthy Koreans will buy up property that’s been passed on to heirs who don’t want it. In 2014, concern was raised locally and by right-wing nationalists after it was learned that South Korean businesses were buying up real estate near the Maritime Self-Defense Force’s Tsushima base. “There were concerns about the land being used for spying purposes,” Sakamoto said. Meanwhile, international tourism continues to be a vital sector of the Tsushima economy. “It’s a very tough situation. Korean tourists help the economy, and some new hotels and restaurants are being built for them. But we also want to effectively encourage younger Japanese to come to Tsushima and perhaps even move here,” said Yoshinaga. Throughout its long history, Tsushima has been a survivor on the front lines of East Asia. It’s been a quasi-independent fiefdom that survived a Mongol invasion, and a base for bands of wako pirates who raided the coasts of Korea, leading to an attack by Korean rulers. It’s also close to the area in the Tsushima Strait where the Japanese navy defeated the Russians in 1905, ending the Russo-Japanese War. Today, despite attention in Tokyo over what to do with Tsushima in the event of a new Korean war, local residents are more worried about ensuring that enough of them remain, and prosper, so that the island’s rich culture will continue to flourish.

tourism
tsushima
south korea
security
insights


Tsushima Island was key conduit of Japan's Edo Period trade with Korea

Abstract: TSUSHIMA, NAGASAKI PREF. - Japan’s historic relationship with the Korean Peninsula has often been complicated by mutual misunderstanding and distrust, if not outright hostility. But on Tsushima, a Japanese island off the coast of the peninsula, efforts are being made to celebrate long-ago diplomatic missions with Korea that took place for the purposes of peaceful coexistence and trade during Japan’s period of isolation in the 17th through 19th centuries. Last October, UNESCO’s Memory of the World heritage program agreed to register 333 diplomatic documents, travel records and records of cultural exchanges of a dozen missions by Korean envoys to Japan between 1607 and 1811. Of these, 209 items are held in Japan and 124 in South Korea. The registration effort was the result of years of joint cooperation by both countries. “The missions benefited not only the two countries, but also East Asia as a whole by stabilizing the political situation and maintaining trading channels,” Japan and South Korea said in the 2016 application to UNESCO. Each journey to Japan involved a round trip of 4,500 kilometers between Hanyang (now Seoul), and Edo (Tokyo). Along the way, the envoys, numbering in the hundreds, stopped in or passed through towns in modern Fukuoka, Yamaguchi, Hiroshima, Okayama and Hyogo prefectures before arriving in Osaka and Kyoto, and then heading to Tokyo. “Tsushima had undertaken trade and diplomacy with Korea, and it was the first place in Japan the Korean envoys came to before traveling across western Honshu to Edo, ” said Shigeki Kojima, an official with the city of Tsushima’s cultural exchange section. The story of the envoys to Japan begins with a crime, in this case counterfeiting, on Tsushima. A few years after the unsuccessful invasion of Korea by Japanese feudal lord Toyotomi Hideyoshi, in which he’d ordered the lord of the Tsushima domain to prepare the way for invasion, the king of Korea’s Joseon dynasty sent official letters to the Tokugawa shogun . The lord of Tsushima, who understood how testy Edo political types were about foreign trade, decided to make counterfeits of those first letters for reasons lost to history but, no doubt, in the hope that his edits would lead to better trade relations between Japan and Korea. “Despite the counterfeiting, these fake letters were received by the shogun and actually functioned as diplomatic documents,” the official UNESCO application reads. The registered collection includes diplomatic notes, lists of gifts given to the shogun, and even poems composed in the various stops along the way (the Korean retinue actually included a secretary who was responsible for exchanges of written communication, including poems between the envoys and their Japanese hosts). This official, who traveled to Japan in 1719-1720, also kept a diary of his trip, making notes on the country’s topology, social systems, daily life, and scholarly activities. “Communication was not difficult because both parties were familiar with Chinese characters and sentence structures. Conversations were held by writing classical Chinese sentences, which were understood well by both parties. Even Chinese-style poems were composed by both parties in turn,” the joint application to UNESCO read. And, of course, there were paintings. One of the items registered is a painting of the 1711 mission to Japan. Tawara Kizaemon, a Tsushima-based painter, and Edo-based artists worked for nearly five months, producing 14 volumes of paintings of that year’s mission. In order to make some of the items located on Tsushima more publicly accessible, the city is now constructing a new museum to house the records and other documents. It is expected to open in 2020. But officials hope it will be more than just a library. “In addition to records of the envoys here in Tsushima, the new museum will include models of the ships they used. We hope it will attract visitors from all over the world,” Tsushima Mayor Naoki Hitakatsu told the city assembly in December. Given that Tsushima has always been an international crossroads of trade, the city is working to ensure modern visitors who have trouble reading ancient texts or fully understanding Edo Period relations with Korea can still find unique gift items for friends and family.

tsushima
nagasaki
unesco
south korea
history


Once harassed herself, South Korean lawyer fights for Me Too victims

Abstract: SEOUL - Almost a decade ago, Lee Eun-eui was thrust into a lonely battle against her employer, Samsung, after she reported unwelcome touching by a superior. Shamed by her supervisors and sidelined by her colleagues, Lee’s career as an international sales representative at the company stagnated. “No one will be on your side,” Lee says her boss told her. After two years, Lee won a lawsuit against her employer, Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., prevailing against part of a conglomerate so large and powerful in South Korea that the country is often referred to as the “Republic of Samsung.” Lee has since built a new career as a lawyer helping other South Korean women with sex abuse cases. Haunted by her colleagues’ silence, Lee hopes the Me Too movement now sweeping the country will inspire more people to stand up for women who might otherwise experience the shame and silence she faced. “What people need to think about now amid the Me Too movement is empathizing with those Me Too stories that are not personally related to them,” Lee said. After sluggish start, the global Me Too movement has gathered pace in South Korea, leading to accusations in recent weeks of sexual assault and harassment against prominent politicians, entertainers and religious figures. Seoul has since vowed to strengthen laws against sexual assault and implement measures to reduce harassment. Lee’s personal battle began in 2005 when she reported the abuse to her human resources department, only to be ostracized. In desperation, she filed a complaint to Samsung’s chairman Lee Kun-hee. Lee says the Samsung chairman did not respond. “If I was a little bit weaker mentally, I would have jumped off the building at Taepyung Street,” Lee said of Samsung’s headquarters at the time. In 2008, Lee filed a civil lawsuit alleging her employer did not do enough to protect her while inflicting mental pain on her. The Suwon District Court ruled in her favor in 2010 and ordered Samsung Elec-Mech to pay her around 40 million won ($37,460) in damages. “Although the plaintiff was sexually harassed at work, the defendant Samsung Electro-Mechanics did not take an appropriate measure and even put her at a disadvantage. Therefore, it is clear that this inflicted mental pain on the plaintiff,” the court verdict said. Samsung Elec-Mech did not comment after the case. Lee thinks her case did lead to needed reforms at Samsung, which did not appeal the verdict and has since treated sex abuse cases more fairly, according to Lee, citing feedback from her former colleagues. “Samsung is very sensitive about problems they have experienced,” she said. “I think we have both grown up by confronting each other.” Other lawyers supporting victims say there have been improvements with South Korea’s handling of sexual abuse cases to better help those seeking justice in the courtroom. “In the legal realm, courts have recently begun to accept victims’ testimonies as direct evidence rather than circumstantial evidence if those testimonies are detailed and consistent,” said Kim Soo-jin, an attorney from the Korean Women Lawyers Association. Lee has been offering free legal help for victims of sexual violence since 2015, as part of a South Korean government program to support the victims. She says many are still hesitant to take their cases to the court. “Office workers are still afraid of talking about their stories publicly. … There are many loopholes where companies can take minimal actions and get away with it,” Lee said. “It is not victims’ preference to come out and talk. They are desperate. I know, because I have been there.”

harassment
south korea
women
sex
sex crimes
discrimination


Japan to allow plea bargaining from June amid overhaul of criminal justice system

Abstract: The government on Friday decided to introduce the right to plea bargain on June 1 by putting into force a revised law on criminal proceedings. A decree approved by the Cabinet will allow plea bargaining in a variety of cases, including crimes related to drugs, guns and bribery. It also covers a wide scope of violations such as those related to antitrust regulations, bankruptcy proceedings, patents and organized fraud. While plea bargaining is expected to help in prosecutions related to organized crime, some lawyers and legal scholars have warned that it could result in false statements leading to charges against innocent people. Under the revised law, prosecutors can agree not to seek indictment, seek prosecution for less serious charges or demand lighter penalties if a suspect or defendant provides evidence or depositions against accomplices. Suspects or defendants will need consent from their defense counsel in writing to agree to such deals. The change is part of an overhaul of the nation’s criminal investigation and trial systems. The law was enacted on May 24, 2016, and promulgated on June 3 the same year. It is supposed to take effect within two years of being promulgated. A stipulation in the law obliging police and prosecutors to record interrogations in certain serious cases subject to lay judge trials — and in independent investigations by prosecutors — must come into effect within three years of the law’s promulgation.


'Oh, konnichiwa': U.S. interior secretary's remark to lawmaker of Japanese descent draws fire

Abstract: U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke came under fire this week for what critics said was a “flippant” and “juvenile” use of a Japanese greeting when responding to a question from a congresswoman of Japanese descent during a House committee hearing. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa, of Hawaii, asked Zinke on Thursday whether he would continue a program that preserves sites where Japanese-Americans were interned during World War II. Zinke replied using a Japanese greeting typically spoken in the afternoon. The Democratic congresswoman, who said two of her grandparents were subjected to internment, corrected him and used the Japanese phrase for “good morning.” “Are you committed to continue to grant programs that are identified, I believe, as the Japanese-American Confinement Sites grants program, which were funded in 2017? Will we see them funded again in 2018?” Hanabusa asked in reference to a program that offers grants toward the preservation of internment camps where Japanese-Americans were held during World War II. “Oh, konnichiwa ,” Zinke replied, using a Japanese greeting typically used in midday. After a brief silence, Hanabusa corrected Zinke, using the Japanese greeting for “good morning.” “I think it’s still ‘ ohayo gozaimasu ,’ but that’s OK,” she said. Zinke’s response prompted a flood of criticism, including from Hawaii Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono. “The internment of nearly 120,000 Japanese Americans is no laughing matter, @SecretaryZinke,” Hirono wrote on Twitter. “What you thought was a clever response to @RepHanabusa was flippant & juvenile.” Others cited Zinke’s remarks as justifying the need for continued funding of the internment cites. “No better example of why we need continued support for historical sites where the rights of Japanese Americans were violated b/c of race,” tweeted California Democratic Rep. Judy Chu. “Zinke’s comment betrayed a prejudice that being Asian makes you a perpetual foreigner. Intentional or not, it’s offensive. He should apologize.” Meanwhile, Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth tweeted that what Zinke said was racist. “Nope,” she tweeted. “Racism is not OK.” After the exchange at the hearing of the House’s Natural Resources Committee, Zinke said funding for the grants “probably got caught up” by larger 2018 budgetary items, and vowed to work with Hanabusa on the matter. “I will look at it and I will work with you on it because I think it is important,” Zinke told her. Hanabusa had framed the grant program as a necessity during the hearing. “I sit before you the granddaughter of two internees. Both of my grandfathers were interned during World War II,” Hanabusa said. “It is essential that we as a nation recognize our darkest moments so that we don’t have them repeat again.” Over 100,000 Americans of Japanese descent were placed in internment camps during World War II in an effort to remove them from the West Coast. In one of the darkest moments in U.S. history, the administration of then-President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, fearing a Japanese invasion after the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, issued Executive Order 9066 calling for the relocation of Japanese-Americans to the camps. The camps, which were infamous for their poor conditions and harsh treatment, were overseen by the Interior Department. In 1988, more than 40 years after the first camp was built, the U.S. government formally apologized for the internment, offering a payment of $20,000 to each camp survivor. Despite the internment, thousands of Japanese-Americans would fight at the time in segregated units operating in the European theater during World War II. One such unit, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, is the most highly decorated fighting unit for its size and duration in U.S. history.

internment
rights
history
wwii
u.s .
congress
ethicity


Moritomo scandal threatens Osaka leaders too

Abstract: OSAKA - “A man once thoroughly endued with these three qualities of lying, impudence, and ingratitude will, I believe, scarce want any other titles to preferment and grandeur.” — Henry Fielding, from a satirical article on the traits of successful politicians, 1740 Over a year after it first blew up in Osaka, then went to Tokyo and languished, the Moritomo Gakuen scandal came roaring back with a vengeance earlier this month, shaking Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s administration to the core. The “Teflon prime minister,” as Abe is dubbed by critics and admirers for his political durability, may finally have run out of luck. His finance minister, Taro Aso, whose ministry admitted it rewrote, deleted, or falsified records related to the scandal is facing intense pressure from the opposition, and members of his own party, to resign — and soon. Without his friend Aso by his side, Abe will head into the September elections for Liberal Democratic Party president (and thus prime minister) weakened and a lame duck unlikely to be granted a third consecutive term — all because of a scandal that just would not go away. The key questions still unanswered boil down to who gave the school an unprecedented discount on the land it wanted, why Moritomo received special treatment, who decided to give it that treatment and who was involved in the subsequent “editing” of ministry documents. At the national level, those questions involve the prime minister and his wife, the finance minister and senior Finance Ministry officials and at least three Diet members. They include Takeo Hiranuma, the ultra-right-wing Liberal Democratic Party representative from Okayama, LDP veteran Yoshitada Konoike, a scandal-plagued politician from neighboring Hyogo Prefecture, and former Upper House LDP lawmaker Issei Kitagawa, who is from Osaka. Former Moritomo head Yasunori Kagoike’s claim that he was betrayed by lying, impudent, ungrateful politicians and bureaucrats sounds a bit more credible now. But one influential politician of interest to Osaka was not in the documents: Osaka Gov. Ichiro Matsui. Given that, in Diet testimony, Kagoike alleged the person who betrayed him the most was Matsui, Osaka’s media are now aggressively pursuing the Moritomo Gakuen “Osaka angle.” And they are asking what might have been going on between Matsui, the Kinki bureau of the Finance Ministry, Abe, Aso, Hiranuma and their friends in the conservative lobby group Japan Conference (Nippon Kaigi), reference to which was also originally deleted from Finance Ministry documents. Matsui insists he had nothing to do with influencing the Kinki bureau to cut a deal with Kagoike and no evidence has surfaced to suggest otherwise. But, politically, he has two problems. The first is local. More questions about Moritomo makes it ever more difficult for Matsui and his supporters to realize their integration of Osaka city, which is once again under discussion and still faces intense opposition. The second problem is Osaka’s relationship — and the Nippon Ishin no Kai party’s relationship — with the Abe wing of the LDP. If a splintering LDP leads to Abe stepping down, either now or later, then Matsui and Nippon Ishin must deal with another prime minister, one likely to be less friendly. Various LDP leaders are now garnering attention as possible successors to Abe. They include former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba, former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and Internal Affairs Minister Seiko Noda. In Osaka, Ishiba, who is from Tottori Prefecture and has strong connections in the Kansai region, has already reached out to younger LDP members who are battling with Matsui and Nippon Ishin (some of whom are former LDP members). How all of this plays out depends on what additional revelations there are about the Moritomo scandal. But in Osaka, as well as Tokyo, politicians and bureaucrats are running for cover, desperate to avoid a resurgent scandal most thought had long since been overcome.

scandals
moritomo gakuen
shinzo abe
taro aso


Japan struggles to overcome its groping problem

Abstract: A group of men boarded the women-only car of the Chiyoda Line subway in Tokyo during the morning commute on Feb. 16 as a form of protest, saying that excluding men was a form of discrimination. Such protests are not unusual, but the media almost never covers them. In this case, the women who were already on the train objected loudly, but the men refused to leave after the train arrived at Kokkai-gijidomae Station, thus prompting station staff to become involved. Then, one of the protesters pushed the emergency stop button on the platform. The train ended up being delayed by more than 15 minutes. Now that was news, so when one of the leaders of the anti-women-only car movement, a man called “Dr. Sabetsu” (“Dr. Discrimination”), tried to speak publicly in front of Shibuya Station on Feb. 24 , the press was on hand. This is exactly the kind of publicity the movement has been trying to attract for years. Dr. Sabetsu said that discrimination is discrimination, regardless of the reason, and that men had every right to ride on any train car they wanted to. The reason for women-only train cars is chikan — sexual molestation or groping — a problem as old as rush hour itself and one that Japan has never been able to solve. Starting around the turn of the century, some train lines in Tokyo introduced women-only cars as an option on some evenings, mainly at the request of the Metropolitan Police Department. As media critic Maki Fukasawa explained on the Feb. 27 edition of Bunka Hoso’s “Golden Radio,” although there has been a movement against women-only cars ever since they were introduced, it has become more visible in recent years thanks to the rise of social media, which allows for better coordination among men who want to protest. It’s important to remember that men are not legally prohibited from entering these cars. They are simply asked not to use them during rush hour. Railways are counting on passengers’ good will, so protesters know they can cause disruptions by just trying to board. The women on the train may object, but they are usually more concerned with getting to work on time. These protest groups have also sued railways for discrimination, but have never won in court. The chikan issue didn’t make headlines until 1988, when a woman on the Midosuji Line in Osaka saw a man groping a girl and told him to stop. Angered, the man intensified his attack and then he and another man dragged the girl off the train, took her to a construction site and raped her. No one stopped them. Fukasawa was a student at the time and wrote a paper on the incident. She says that what people took away from the story was that it was better to say nothing. Over the years the media have been more likely to cover the chikan issue when it’s found that a woman has made a false accusation against a man, a situation immortalized in Masayuki Suo’s hit 2006 film, “ I Just Didn’t Do It. ” Last May, the media was all over a story about a man who, trying to escape after being accused of groping, was killed by a passing train . Until the mid-1990s, railways resisted even using the term “chikan,” preferring the milder “ shōbōryoku ” (nuisance) or “ meiwaku ” (annoyance). And while “chikan is a crime,” as in-car posters now point out, until last year’s passage of stricter sex assault laws, a woman had to formally press charges for an alleged attacker to be arrested. Fukasawa says that less than 10 percent of train groping victims actually report their attacks. The reasons are various, but mainly have to do with the fear of not being believed or of arriving late to work. Meanwhile, underground groups of chikan trade tips on the internet about the best times and places to partake of their pastime. Fukasawa says that women-only cars were not introduced to discriminate against men in general, but, in practice, they do. However, given the nature and prevalence of the problem — some women are terrified of rush hour — there doesn’t seem to be any other solution. JR’s Saikyo Line, which produces more reports of chikan than any other, installed cameras in 2009 to catch attackers in the act, and while the number of reports decreased, they haven’t disappeared. According to Akiyoshi Saito, who manages a mental health program and wrote a book about the subject, some men have a compulsion to grope. In an interview with Asahi Shimbun , he explained that his main goal is to prevent recidivism among men who have committed chikan crimes. Unlike the general image, these men are mostly university graduates with good jobs and families, and their preferred targets are what he describes as unassuming women. Groping is a power game. The excitement has less to do with sex than with letting off steam and getting away with something. They are addicted to groping. If that’s the case, then the best solution would be relieving passenger congestion, since these men count on the cover of crowds. Train groping is not limited to Japan. It happens all over the world. If it seems to be more prevalent in Japan it’s because of the long, cramped commutes that make it easier for these men to get away with furtively touching women. The Asahi Shimbun suggests that the Japanese word “chikan” is becoming the preferred term internationally for this phenomenon. Is it possible to eradicate groping? Professor Kazue Muta of Osaka University Graduate School, a specialist in gender theory who was also interviewed by the Asahi , doesn’t think so, but in any case the situation has never been properly studied because groping isn’t taken seriously in Japan. The basis of all sex crimes against women is a deep-seated belief that men are superior, which makes it easier to “trivialize” train groping. Japan’s sex education program doesn’t address gender dynamics and the attendant rights of individuals. Society thinks it’s scarier for men to be falsely accused of groping, no matter how rarely that happens, than it is for women to be groped on a daily basis.


Reactions to GoPro sushi train video reflect gaps in etiquette between East and West

Abstract: Every piece of content on the internet can be divisive these days, even the innocuous stuff. This truism was on full display over the past week and a half thanks to a now-removed YouTube video set in a Tokyo sushi restaurant, which charmed many Western viewers and angered a few Japanese. On March 6, Tokyo-based American YouTuber Tkyosam posted a video to his channel showing him placing a GoPro on a conveyor belt at sushi restaurant chain Sushiro. The device moved around the revolving belt, recording other customers as they eat. Some don’t see the camera, others point it out, while several happily wave at it. When it reaches the back, an employee plucks it off the belt, and consults what appears to be a manager about what to do. After a minute and a half of being pointed at a wall, the camera is returned to its owner. The video, originally titled “Camera goes on Japanese sushi conveyor belt — TROUBLE!!!” before being taken down last week, features some cute shots. However, it’s not completely original. Several dozen videos of GoPro cameras placed on conveyor belts come up on YouTube, some set in Japan (“not the first of this kind, I know” reads a description from six years ago) and others from abroad . Some focus on the “ sushi train ” aspect of the journey, while others misuse the “Yackety Sax” theme song from “Benny Hill.” Examples exist even from early internet days — see this 1998 music video . Yet those clips feature a couple hundred views at most, or in the case of the music videos are lost curios. Tkyosam’s video went viral, and topped 636,000 views before it was removed. Dozens of English-language websites shared it, while the seven-minute work appeared on the front page of Reddit . So how did it manage this? Whereas other videos typically face the camera forward, Tkyosam pointed it toward customers. This allowed it to tap into a trend Western media has embraced in regards to Japan in recent years. “Putting a GoPro on a sushi conveyor belt makes for a surprisingly relaxing video” says Mashable . “Charming footage gives glimpse into the lives of chatting diners,” reads part of The Daily Mail’s exhausting headline (which still shows a part of the original video). The bulk of aggregated posts and comments left in threads related to the clip echo a similar sentiment — it’s a calming watch, and one offering snapshots of (perceived) daily life in Japan. It’s not far off from how Western media have written about the reality show “Terrace House,” reflecting an emerging interest in mundane footage. RocketNews highlighted a Reddit comment saying, “All those untold stories are laid in front of us without context and I find it beautiful.” They must break down when they go to supermarkets. Japanese netizens had a very different reaction. An article on J-Cast News highlighted the major complaints, primarily hygiene concerns and the lack of permission given by those filmed. The story spread to sites such as Yahoo! News and Livedoor News, each featuring photos of Tkyosam and a friend — but with the latter’s face blurred out, underlining the permission issue. Sushiro issued a press release saying they did not consent to the video being taken, and promised customers they had cleaned the conveyor belt. On Thursday, the chain banned customers from filming inside its restaurants altogether . YouTubers spoke at length on the video, and many Japanese netizens left negative comments beneath the video, prompting Tkyosam to respond to the “haters” in a passionate post that was soon replaced with something resembling diplomacy. That, however, is no longer visible, as Tkyosam appears to have either removed the video or made it private. This might be due to further media scrutiny — morning show “Mezamashi Terebi” aired a report on the saga , featuring a lawyer saying the YouTuber could face three years in jail or a ¥5 million fine. That sounds like a worst-case scenario sprinkled in for some extra drama, but it does underline how negatively many in Japan perceived the stunt. “When I took the video everybody was happy with it, not a single person came up to me and asked me to delete the video,” he wrote, adding that he was originally inspired by a Japanese person uploading a similar video. He even threw in some sarcasm at the end by noting that the staff and him “all went out for ice cream and high fives afterwards.” YouTubers, domestic and international, often find themselves in situations where Japanese netizens rage against them for reasons related to cleanliness and consent. Plenty of filmers simply walking around the city capturing footage of other people are committing the same basic faux pas as Tkyosam. In many ways, it’s a simple albeit low-stakes reminder to keep certain etiquette in mind . Yet the sushi video reveals a new tension. Many of the aforementioned articles refer to Tkyosam as “an American YouTuber” or “foreign YouTuber,” and imply (or directly link) his behavior to that of Logan Paul , whose antics accelerated existing friction. Putting the fairness of this aside for a second, Japanese netizens and media are lumping this together, and future creators might find similar hurdles. Western media, on the other hand, which was unified against Paul, embraced the sushi video. It turns out there are some GoPro-size gaps that continue to exist between perceptions of charm and disrespect that still need to be straightened out on all sides.


With amnesty or death, Japan seeks to draw a line under Heisei Era crimes

Abstract: Those with the conviction that members of Japan’s Imperial family have negligible impact on the lives of their subjects should bear in mind that for a tiny few, it can literally be a matter of life or death. More specifically, on festive occasions such as the coronation of a new emperor, it has long been the practice to offer amnesty to convicted criminals. The law provides for five levels of pardons ranging from amnesty, special amnesty, commutation of sentence (usually by one degree) and exoneration to full restoration of rights. These are determined according to the recommendations of a penal review board. One well-known beneficiary of this form of clemency was the notorious murderer Sada Abe, whose lurid mutilation-murder of her lover, Kichizo Ishida, in Tokyo on May 18, 1936, led to a citywide dragnet. She was sentenced to a seven-year term at Tochigi Women’s Prison, but in May 1941 was granted early release as part of a general amnesty the previous year, in celebration of the 2,600th anniversary of the mythical founding of Japan by Emperor Jimmu. Despite nervous chuckles from males residing in Abe’s Tokyo neighborhood, as far as is known the ex-convict committed no other crimes. She died in obscurity. Writing in Shukan Post (March 23-30), Michinori Saito notes that issuing of special amnesties is a tradition that continues to this day. He names several examples in the case of the current Emperor. In one, on Dec. 8, 1989, a 72-year-old man was released provisionally from Kumamoto Prison after serving 42 years. Saito also cited a recent article by the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper that reported that in connection with the ascension of the next emperor to the Chrysanthemum Throne, set for May 1, 2019, the government is indeed studying plans for an amnesty. There seems to be some confusion as to how this will be carried out, however, since Imperial succession this time will take place not through the death of the Emperor but through his abdication. Not being able to rely on historical precedence may or may not affect the process, but whatever else a convict might think, assumptions about being granted amnesty clearly carry a certain degree of risk. “In anticipation of an amnesty upon Emperor Showa’s ascension to the throne (in 1927), four convicts on death row independently decided not to appeal their sentences,” Saito recalls. “But they did not obtain amnesty and afterward their executions were carried out.” Others, however, have no hope of amnesty and seem resigned to their fates. “If a trustworthy defense attorney were to tell me I had a chance for amnesty, I’d consider it,” death row convict Chisako Kakehi told writer Ikko Ono in an interview in prison. “Because my life is something given to me by my parents. But … amnesty for a minor crime is one thing; for someone like myself, I suppose there’s no forgiveness.” Kakehi — convicted of fatally poisoning four people with cyanide — was sentenced to death by the Kyoto District Court last November. She chose not to appeal. How does this bode for the 122 men and women on death row in Japan? In December, a senior Justice Ministry bureaucrat confided to one of the weeklies that the prevailing view is “to wind up the incidents that occurred during the Heisei Era (1989 to present) before the era comes to an end.” The article went on to explain that as the government prefers to avoid executions close to the holding of festive events, the schedule was likely to be moved up “so as not to distract from felicitations.” The two-year postponement of the wedding of Princess Mako to her university classmate Kei Komuro, originally slated for this coming November, may subtly influence plans for the executions of the 13 members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult now on death row. On March 14, seven of the 13 Aum members were moved out of Tokyo Prison and sent to several other facilities. Executions in Japan are limited to seven prisons — Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Sapporo, Sendai, Hiroshima and Fukuoka. “Does this mean ‘A-Day’ — the date of execution of Aum ‘guru’ Shoko Asahara — is approaching?” Yukan Fuji (March 15) asks. It was 23 years ago this week — Monday, March 20, 1995 — that Aum followers, allegedly acting on Asahara’s orders, released sarin, a nerve toxin, on cars in the Tokyo subway system, resulting in 13 deaths and more than 6,000 people requiring treatment. The number of casualties would have likely been much higher had the date not been a Monday before a national holiday, with many workers having decided to extend their weekend. This act “snapped the strings of the patience bag” — as Japanese describe “the straw that broke the camel’s back” — and the police rounded up hundreds of cult members, but nevertheless came under heavy criticism for allowing Asahara’s cultists to run rampant for the previous six years, terrorizing the populace from as far back as 1989. At least 29 are believed to have been murdered by cult members. One factor said to worry the authorities is that Aum still exists, in a manner of speaking. Following the arrests and trials of some 190 of the cult’s leaders, the remaining cult, now renamed Aleph, still boasts an estimated 1,500 followers. They have been observed bedecking photos of Asahara with floral wreaths and celebrating his birthday (he turned 63 on March 2). Aleph members have also been seen walking around the periphery of Tokyo Prison, Asahara’s current home, as part of their shūgyō (spiritual training). Some authorities have voiced concern that if Asahara is put to death, his followers will be inclined to deify him with a “god-like” status and possibly engage in other types of malicious mischief.

heisei era
abdication
aum shinrikyo
death penalty


U.S. unlikely to pay family of woman slain by civilian base worker in Okinawa

Abstract: NAHA, OKINAWA PREF. - The U.S. military appears unlikely to compensate the family of a Japanese woman slain in Okinawa Prefecture in 2016 by a civilian U.S. base worker, it has been learned. In December, Kenneth Shinzato, 34, was sentenced to life in prison by the Naha District Court for murdering the woman, then 20, in Uruma. He has appealed. In January, the court ordered Shinzato to pay the family compensation, but he does not have the financial means to do so, a court filing seen Friday says. The Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement says Japan has the right to demand compensation for illegal acts committed by U.S. military personnel even when they are not performing official duties. If they are financially unable to do so, the U.S. government is required to make payment instead. But the U.S. military says the rules do not apply in this case because Shinzato was employed by a private company at the time of the crime.

okinawa
military
kenneth shinzato
courts
murder
u.s .
sofa


Life in Japan can be exhausting

Abstract: A couple of interesting figures we stumbled across online last week: 66.1%: The percentage of people in a survey conducted by MyVoice Communications who reported to be chronically fatigued . About 80 percent of women between the ages of 10 and 40 said they felt fatigued in some manner. Of those who said they felt fatigued, 27.9 percent claimed physical exhaustion, 26.2 percent reported mental fatigue and 35.4 percent felt both. 14.5%: The percentage of people in another MyVoice Communications survey who use smartphones to make regular payments , principally at convenience stores and supermarkets.


Japan tries its hardest to keep up with the Kardashians

Abstract: The internet desperately tried to keep up with the Kardashians last week when the famous family visited Japan. Kim, Kourtney and Khloe traveled to Tokyo and Kyoto while filming an episode of their enormously popular reality show that has been running for 14 seasons, and they brought their entire entourage with them. Kim seemed to be inspired by Japan before the trip even began, dyeing her hair bright pink in a very anime-esque fashion. When asked about it on Twitter, Kim removed any doubt by writing, “I am obsessed with anime.” She also posted a photo of a pink-haired character from the animated show “Darling in the Franxx” on Instagram with a succinct caption: “My hair inspo.” (The photo currently has more than 970,000 likes.) Hardcore anime fans had a mixed reaction online about Kim’s new “inspo,” arguing that she’s not a real fan. User @syanneferguson7 wrote “It’s 2018 and everybody coming out as an anime lover.” User @bella_17 defended her, saying, “If you have a problem with Kim Kardashian liking anime then block me delete me I don’t want you in my life.” Many users noted that her husband, rapper and designer Kanye West, has been particularly vocal about his anime habits in the past, so this could just be one of his interests rubbing off on her. Kim’s pink vision landed the Kardashian clan on the front pages of websites they probably wouldn’t have expected to see themselves, including Anime News Network . They even forced Vice News to ask the question of our generation: Is Anime ‘Cool’ Now? The only thing more controversial than Kim’s hair was Khloe’s baby bump. The 33-year-old sister joined everyone in Japan, a trip that can feel long and exhausting to even a seasoned traveler, despite the fact that she’s eight months pregnant. Many people online voiced their outrage over what they argued was an unwise decision. User @StephanieSidley asked “Why would you fly 17 hours over an ocean at 8 months???” The backlash over her decision to fly prompted articles in Travel + Leisure , U.S. Weekly , Harper’s Bazaar and InStyle , while Google Trends revealed that the phrase “Can I fly while pregnant” spiked in the United States during Khloe’s time in Japan. After all the mean tweets and think pieces, Khloe silenced everyone by writing: “Of course, before our flight, I took all precautions and got my body checked from my dr and I’m completely healthy. I wouldn’t put my baby at risk in any way.” It seems publications finally stopped questioning her health and focused on the wild maternity clothes she was wearing in Japan instead. Kourtney, on the other hand, had a low-key trip. She focused all her energy on taking Instagram photos in front of classic tourist spots such as Asakusa , Kyoto’s bamboo forest and a bunch of innocuous vending machines . (The latter has more than 1.5 million likes on Instagram.) Kourtney’s photos, which featured her in an array of dramatic poses and outfits, dwarfed any snapshots mere mortal travelers dream of taking during their time in Japan. User @endylipa wrote “Kourtney Kardashian in Japan is what I aspire to be.” The Kardashians’ posts can also be a godsend for companies in the country. Harajuku’s Kawaii Monster Cafe, which sells colorful drinks and dishes in a fantastical and trippy setting, received a gift from the social media heavens after Kim and Kourtney posted a picture of them eating ice cream there with the simple caption “Kourtney & Kim Take Tokyo.” The Kawaii Monster Cafe has been trying to become a tourist mainstay over the past few years, and the Kardashians’ photos may do the trick. Kim’s post received more than 1.7 million likes and even garnered a story by People magazine , and the restaurant posted a simple message that read, “yes, the girls came finally.” The Kardashians are just the latest in a line of celebrities whose trips to Japan have been immortalized on social media, whether it’s Justin Bieber standing around shirtless , Lena Dunham posing at the Park Hyatt Tokyo hotel or Keanu Reeves walking carefree down the streets of Akihabara . Before his death, Robin Williams often spoke about his love of anime and the joy he felt when doing press tours in Japan. The trip seems to have made an impression on the Kardashians, too. Kourtney posted a picture of herself surrounded by women in kimono with the message: “I am still in awe of Japan and its beautiful culture. Never have I met more kind and polite people. Thank you for being so welcoming to us. Until next time … arigatō (thank you).”


Japan's labor reform ignores elementary principles

Abstract: Earlier this month, the Finance Ministry reported that the labor share in the final quarter of calendar year 2017 for companies with capital of more than ¥1 billion was 43.9 percent. That basically means 43.9 percent of these companies’ income went to employees. The Nihon Keizai Shimbun described this portion as being “ still stagnant ,” implying that Japanese corporations are not paying their workers enough, especially given that they hold a record ¥400 trillion in retained earnings — money that isn’t being used for anything. (In contrast, the labor share for small and medium-sized companies is 70.1 percent.) Corporations aren’t spending this cash because they are afraid demand will continue to deteriorate and that if they increased pay, it would be difficult to decrease it if business went bad. But if workers aren’t being paid enough, they are going to be more reluctant to spend, thus reducing demand and realizing their employers’ fears. This elementary economic principle hasn’t been mentioned in the public debate about the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s proposed series of labor reform bills , but it’s at the heart of people’s concerns about their possible passage. The government, at the behest of the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren), wants to raise productivity in order to make Japan more globally competitive. It also wants to solve (or, at least, be seen as trying to solve) the problem of excessive overtime, which has led to the well-reported dangers of karōshi (death from overwork). In the face of labor shortages, companies want laws that reduce their obligation to pay overtime, while workers are afraid that limiting it will reduce their wages, since in many cases they have come to expect overtime, not as the occasional compensation for extra work, but rather as an essential part of their livelihood. Workers are opposed to two of the bills that deal directly with overtime. One would expand the scope of the existing discretionary labor system, where employees are paid for hours it is presumed they will work rather than the actual hours they work, the upshot being that this presumed overtime is part of their base pay. The other related bill is “ ko-puro ” (a portmanteau of “ kōdo purofesshonaru ,” or “advanced professional”) reform, a new system that would eliminate overtime regulations for “highly professional” workers in certain fields such as journalism and securities investment. These bills would only affect workers who make above average salaries, but years ago when Keidanren first proposed the stalled “white-collar exemption” for overtime , they wanted it to be for office employees who made at least ¥5 million. The lower threshold for the new bill, which is quite similar in character to the white-collar exemption, is ¥10.75 million, but workers understand that, in the long run, an employer’s aim is to exempt overtime for as many employees as possible. In 2014, professor Yoshio Sasajima of Meiji Gakuin University was quoted by tabloid Nikkan Gendai as saying that if the white-collar exemption were passed, affected workers’ pay would drop by as much as 13 percent . So it was no surprise last week when a Kyodo News poll found that 69.1 percent of the public thought it was unnecessary to pass the bills . Media pinned the blame on the way Prime Minister Shinzo Abe presented them in the Diet, using data provided by the labor ministry that purportedly showed workers who already toiled under the discretionary labor system were actually working fewer hours, but opposition lawmakers quickly pointed out that the data was seriously flawed. Eventually, Abe retracted the data and even the bill itself. However, he refuses to cancel the ko-puro bill, despite the fact that opposition lawmakers see it as simply the discredited white-collar exemption law with a different name. Moreover, last week a labor standard office concluded that an employee for Nomura Real Estate Development Co. who was working under the discretionary labor system committed suicide in 2016 due to overwork . The public seems more engaged in the controversy than the press is. At the height of the Diet debate, TV news was wrapped up in the Pyeongchang Olympics. Even NHK dedicated only cursory coverage to the bills. The exception was TV Asahi, whose nightly news show, “Hodo Station,” showed the ruling party dodging the opposition’s questions. The program’s own survey of viewers found that 65 percent said the discretionary bill should be scrapped . The most penetrating coverage was offered by TV Asahi’s “Morning Show” on Feb. 27, the day before the discretionary bill was retracted. Host Shinichi Hatori explained how the data presented by Abe was flawed and Shiro Tazaki, a political pundit known to be a close friend of Abe’s, tried to defend the government by saying that the bad data showed how the quality of work in the labor ministry had “declined.” There was nothing wrong with the bill itself, he said, and as soon as better data was available, people would understand. Regular commentator Toru Tamakawa dismissed Tazaki’s assertion, saying the flaws were so egregious that they must have been intentional. Tamakawa concluded that the labor ministry — whose job, after all, is to protect workers — purposely sabotaged the bills by including dodgy statistics that could be “picked up” by the opposition. With the failure of the discretionary labor bill, the government is doubling down on the ko-puro bill in order to placate Keidanren, whose head until the end of May is Sadayuki Sakakibara of Toray Industries, Inc. Last November, it was revealed that a Toray Group company forged quality assurance documents due to a shortage of qualified staff, thus forcing an unqualified manager to make up data because he couldn’t finish the job, even after working overtime. On March 2, Nikkan Gendai presented this example as an illustration of nabakari kanrishoku , or “management in name only.” The worker was given a management position so that the company wouldn’t have to pay him overtime. When suppressing pay is the desired end, any means will do.


Aichi finds wartime elementary school teaching materials

Abstract: Teaching materials for third-year students who attended Kokumin Gakko (equivalent to a modern-day elementary school) in Aichi Prefecture during the Pacific War have been discovered in Aisai, Aichi Prefecture. Believed to have been used for summer homework, the materials recommend students visit injured soldiers, pay respects to the fallen, and memorize the different types of enemy aircraft. Experts consider them to be “important materials that proved war education was part of the children’s daily lives.” The materials were displayed at the Saori Community Center until March 11. Titled “Summer Life,” there were 16 pages printed on A5-sized paper and they were edited by the prefecture’s education group in 1943. According to records of educational materials issued by the Aichi Prefectural Board of Education, the wartime education group was in charge of publishing books and magazines related to education, as well as organizing lectures. In the notes for parents written at the beginning of the texts, the following message was written: “Please teach them to have a strong mind so we can achieve victory in the Great East Asia War (the Pacific War).” This was followed by illustrations and homework for the children in the summer. There were also messages from children, including, “To soldiers who died for our country, thank you,” and “You soldiers make it possible for us to live happily.” While there are descriptions that offer vivid reminders of the war, there is also content that current elementary school students would recognize, such as an explanation on where the fins of a Japanese black porgy are located and pictures illustrating the breaststroke swimming technique. According to the Aisai Municipal Government, officials discovered the teaching materials when they were clearing out historical documents at the Hachikai branch office last summer. They were believed to have been donated by citizens of the now-defunct village of Hachikai before it merged with Aisai in 2015. “We get textbooks used in the war sometimes, but it is rare to find materials that were used as supplementary reading,” said Sachiko Matsushita, 47, curator at a museum on wars in Nagoya and Aichi Prefecture. The materials were part of the “Aisai Saijiki” exhibition that introduced local traditional events and school events. “There was a strong war sentiment, but they also included fun educational contents. I hope it gives (viewers) a sense of what children were like back then,” said Aya Hashiba, 29, a temporary staff member from the city’s Lifelong Learning Division. The exhibition also displayed other historical documents, including a graduation certificate from a regular elementary school. For more information, please contact the community center at 0567 (26) 1123.

elementary schools
aichi prefecture
pacific war
education
wwii


Beijing festival pulls Oscar-winning gay film

Abstract: BEIJING/SHANGHAI - A Chinese film festival has pulled the award-winning gay romance “Call Me By Your Name” from its program, the movie’s distributor said Monday, reflecting China’s inconsistent relationship with gay themes in the creative arts. The movie, which won a screenplay Oscar this month, was withdrawn from the Beijing International Film Festival set for April, Sony Pictures Entertainment said, declining to comment on the reason. Homosexuality is not illegal in China, but activists say conservative attitudes in some sections of society have led to occasional government clampdowns. Last July, an LGBT conference in the western city of Chengdu was called off after the venue canceled the booking, citing conflicting events. The lesbian dating app Rela was also shut down last May. A list of banned audiovisual online content last year included homosexuality, underlining the long-standing attitude in China toward same-sex relations despite often thriving gay scenes in major cities. The pulling of “Call Me By Your Name” also comes as China tightens its grip on media content. Parliament this month voted to scrap term limits for President Xi Jinping and hand control over film, news and publishing to the Communist Party’s publicity department. The film is about a summer romance in Italy between a 17-year-old boy and an older student. It was pulled after the screening proposal submitted was not approved by regulators, a person with knowledge of the matter said. In an initial screening list dated March 16, the organizer had included “Call Me By Your Name” along with other foreign films like “Lean on Pete” and art parody “The Square.” The festival organizer declined to comment. China’s State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television couldn’t be reached for comment. “This movie is in deviation from the policy environment in China,” said Wu Jian, a Beijing-based film analyst, adding that it was “quite embarrassing for China” that it had been pulled. China has long censored violence or sexual content in film releases, with a growing focus on socialist core values. Films with gay themes have met with a mixed reaction, with some banned, though others have been given the go-ahead. “There is no clear policy on this issue, so we are always confused,” said Xin Ying, executive director of the Beijing LGBT Centre, adding that following the recent reshuffle of media regulators it was getting even harder to get clear direction.


Toyohashi man, 93, was oldest to summit Mount Fuji in 2017

Abstract: The oldest person to climb Mount Fuji last year was 93-year-old Masashi Toyoda, from Toyohashi, Aichi Prefecture, according to records at Fujisan Hongu Sengen Taisha, a shrine at the foot of the mountain. “My body is not as strong as before, but I would like to climb (Fuji) again this year,” said Toyoda enthusiastically. Every year from July to September, Sengen Taisha, located in Fujinomiya, Shizuoka Prefecture, opens to the public two smaller shrines under its supervision — Okumiya and Kusushi — located at the top of Mount Fuji. Only climbers aged 70 and above under the traditional age system (where people are considered to be 1 year old when they are born) are permitted to register their date of birth, address and other personal information at either of the shrines. Most seniors hike during the summer period, so the records can essentially be used to rank hikers in terms of their age. There were 2,104 recorded hikers last year, of which seven were aged 90 or above. There was also another 93-year-old hiker, but Toyoda’s birthday was earlier so he took the top spot when he climbed Mount Fuji last August. According to Sengen Taisha, the oldest climber ever recorded was a 103-year-old man. Toyoda started hiking around at the age of 74, after he quit working as president of a construction company. Following the advice of an employee, the first mountain he climbed was Mount Hongu in Toyokawa, Aichi Prefecture, which has an elevation of 789 meters. “I was sweating and panting all the way up, but I felt such a sense of accomplishment as if I had conquered the mountain,” he recalled. He fell in love with hiking and joined Katakuri no Kai, a group for hiking enthusiasts in Higashimikawa. Even now, he continues to climb Mount Hongu more than 20 times every month. Toyoda first climbed Mount Fuji when he was about 76 years old. Since then, he has returned almost every year and has reached the summit 20 times. “Mount Fuji is a symbol of Japan, so the sense of achievement you feel is different. I’m also motivated by the fact that my name will remain in the records,” said Toyoda. At 80, Toyoda suffered a stroke. He was near the start of the trail for Mount Hongu when his legs became unsteady, and he drove himself to a hospital in Toyohashi. He was hospitalized for two months, but he underwent arduous rehabilitation and climbed up Mount Hongu again a few days after he was discharged. “When I was in the hospital, all I could think about was getting back up the mountain as soon as possible,” he noted. “It is impressive that he continues to climb mountains at the age of 93 after surviving a stroke,” said Dr. Motohiko Nishida, 58, who has been attending to Toyoda for more than 20 years. “He is older than us and we’re all inspired by his determination,” said Koichi Kamiya, 73, the head of Katakuri no Kai.

mount fuji
aichi
mountaineering
shizuoka
elderly


Foreign tourists push up Okinawa lobster prices, putting delicacy out of reach for many local residents

Abstract: Chinese tourists, who tend to have a big appetite for shellfish, have increasingly pushed up prices for Ise-ebi (Japanese spiny lobster) in Okinawa fish markets to the point that many local residents can no longer afford the delicacy. At the Makishi Public Market in the prefectural capital of Naha, foreign tourists constantly flow along the narrow passages lined with shops selling a range of seafood. Around tanks filled with lobsters, tourists haggle daily over prices with calculator-toting vendors. The average market price of spiny lobster rose to ¥4,215 ($40) per kilogram in 2017, about double what it was in 2010, official data showed. The lobster catch totaled 5,933 kg, compared with only 102 kg in 2010, according to data provided by the Okinawa Fisheries Foundation. Retail prices are much higher — ranging between ¥10,000 and ¥15,000 per kilogram in recent years. Okinawa slipper lobsters, which have an established reputation for being tastier, are traded at even higher prices. Although the prices are beyond the reach of many local consumers, robust demand persists among foreign visitors to Okinawa, which now sees about 200 international flights per week. Still, there have been some changes in buying patterns of late. Families and young people are becoming major customers at the market, known as the kitchen of Okinawa, with an increase in low-coast carrier flights to the region from abroad. Instead of being busy with wealthy buyers, vendors are ever more faced with customers who insist on lower prices. The major public market was booming until around three years ago, when so-called bakugai (explosive shopping sprees) by Chinese tourists were all the rage. “It was quite common to see customers selecting several big lobsters from a tank and buying them without even asking the price,” said Hidemori Yonamine, who works at a fish shop in the market. “There were customers who paid more than ¥100,000 at a time.” At the time, the shop could pull in 80 percent of its sales from lobsters, with Yonamine recalling it as a “golden period.” But the golden days have come to an end. Currently, Yonamine and other sellers face with foreign tourists who are willing to take time to visit each shop and seek out, or bargain for, the best price. As retailers often need to sell spiny or slipper lobsters at near cost to the tourists, their profits are dwindling, and at the same time they bear a greater risk of losing money if the lobsters they have stocked at a high price die in their tanks. Compared with three years ago, Yonamine said his shop’s profit has been reduced by about 50 percent. “Nevertheless, as there is demand, we have to continue placing the lobsters on sale,” he said. Engan, a seafood restaurant in Naha, used to offer soup made from locally caught spiny lobster, but it switched to imports from about six years ago after it could no longer charge higher prices. Kaoru Yamakawa, who runs the restaurant, said the soup made with locally sourced lobster would have to be priced at no less than ¥8,000. “If possible, I want to use lobsters from the prefecture. But they are out of my range,” Yamakawa said. “I think only foreign people can eat them.”

okinawa lobsters restaurants food tourism


Japan fails to shine in annual report on women's participation in politics

Abstract: As the world marks International Women’s Day on Thursday, an annual report shows again that Japan lags far behind other countries for women’s participation in politics. Japan ranked 158th among 193 countries surveyed by an international organization for representation of women in national parliaments in 2017. The nation’s moved up slightly from its position in the previous survey, in 163rd place. But despite a campaign by the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to increase the number of women in leadership roles in society, the survey results suggest progress has been limited. “In Japan, the question of women’s political leadership was seen more as a hot political discussion point than an action point,” noted the report released last week by the Geneva-based Inter-Parliamentary Union. At the Diet, only 10.1 percent of Lower House seats and 20.7 percent of Upper House seats were filled by female lawmakers according to the report called “Women in parliament in 2017.” Rwanda topped the list, with women occupying 49 of 80 seats in the country’s lower chamber, followed by Bolivia, Cuba, Nicaragua and Sweden. France sat at 14th, the United Kingdom at 39th and the United States at 100th. Among major economies, Japan ranked dead last. The ranking for Japan was also much lower than those for neighboring countries, with China landing in the 71st slot and South Korea coming in 116th. To have more “meaningful” representation of women in politics, without female politicians simply fulfilling male gender roles, “It’s important to have recruiters who are mindful of gender equality,” said Masumi Minagawa, a part-time lecturer in women’s studies at Waseda University. Shin Ki-Young, an associate professor of gender studies at Ochanomizu University, highlighted that the balance women often seek between their personal and working lives cannot be achieved simply by fulfilling a male gender role in the workplace. “As long as fulfilling a leadership role means giving up on a ‘private’ life and adapting to a male way of working” women will feel hesitant about pursuing a career, Shin added, noting that “what we need is a working environment that is accommodating” to all sorts of lifestyles and accepts diversity. The Japanese prime minister has often spoken of a society “where all women can shine” and has pledged to create an environment in which they can have a better work-life balance. In 2003, the government set a target for Japan to have women in 30 percent of leadership roles by 2020. A government report issued last year showed that the target has been reached in only a few sectors. While women’s participation has improved at central government levels, it remains very low in both municipal governments and the private sector.

gender
international women 's day
gender inequality


ECC to launch Japanese course in Philippines

Abstract: MANILA - English school chain ECC Co. will launch a Japanese course in the Philippines in June in partnership with a local college amid growing interest in the language among Filipinos. The Osaka-based firm and the University of Perpetual Help plan to provide a 6-month e-learning program, including a weekly supplementary lecture, for 35,000 pesos (¥72,000), targeting employees of Japanese affiliates and those planning to study and work in Japan, the company said. ECC’s first Japanese-language course overseas aims to cater to an increasing number of Filipinos taking the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, a widely used exam for evaluating and certifying the language proficiency of nonnative speakers, it said. In 2017, a record 14,062 Filipinos took the exam, up 21 percent from the previous year, while the tally for all examinees topped 1 million for the first time, according to the Japan Foundation, which administers the test. The private university, founded in 1975, has three campuses in the south of Manila with about 2,000 employees and some 18,000 students, according to ECC. The company also picked the Philippines because “many people come to work in Japan,” an ECC spokesman said. Its trial course there through last December attracted more than 30 students. The Southeast Asian nation ranked third on the list of countries sending trainees to Japan as of the end of 2016 after Vietnam and China, accounting for 9.9 percent of the 228,589 trainees, according to the Japan International Training Cooperation Organization, which supports the training program for foreign nationals. ECC sees Japanese-language instruction in the Philippines as a long-term business and is considering launching a related teacher training program in the Philippines in the future, the spokesman said. In 2016, ECC opened its first overseas English-language school in the Philippines because a growing number of Japanese are opting to travel there to study English at more affordable costs.


'The Outsider' scores a few hits among the misses

Abstract: Netflix last month released a yakuza film starring Jared Leto titled “The Outsider” to critical disdain. And as much as I expected to hate the movie, I didn’t. It’s portrayal of the world of organized crime in Japan after World War II is not entirely inaccurate. It even has its moments. The plot: An American prisoner of war named Nick Lowell is released from jail after saving a gangster from being hanged. He is offered a job, learns Japanese, is shown how to extort money from civilians and eventually becomes a full-fledged gangster himself. Variety calls the film “the cinematic equivalent of a study-abroad student showing off the kanji forearm tattoo whose meaning he never bothered to learn.” Not quite. The film’s title may reference a term typically used by gangsters: toppamono , which describes excessively violent individuals or outcasts. In this case, Nick, who has a penchant for extreme violence with typewriters (and other blunt instruments), wins a place in the (fictional) Osaka-based Shiramatsu gang. He’s almost certainly a quintessential outsider. There is an obligatory finger-chopping scene, which seems poorly executed and divorced from reality. Gangsters sometimes chop off fingers to atone for their mistakes or the mistakes of their underlings. The movie depiction is off … but let’s skip the gory details. For the record, it has been illegal to coerce a yakuza member to chop off a finger or assist them to do so since 1992. The film’s secondary conflict is a yakuza cinema staple: old-fashioned “good” yakuza vs. a new generation of ruthless corporate yakuza. The film features double-crosses galore, and none of these appear to be entirely unrealistic. Look at the Yamaguchi-gumi split starting in 2015 and the murders that have followed. In this movie, the double-crossing yakuza is the only one not wearing the obligatory black and white suit. The color of betrayal seems to be light brown. Is it impossible for a white man to become a gangster, as some critics have complained? In theory, no. Organized crime groups after World War II have been surprisingly open to foreign recruits. The Yamaguchi-gumi learned much of its trade from the Korean-Japanese mafia group, the Yanagawa-gumi (Osaka), which it later absorbed. There has been a Taiwanese yakuza boss. The Sumiyoshi-kai once welcomed an Iranian into their ranks. The yakuza are a meritocracy, although they are often structured like families. Money is thicker than blood, or race. Even the Inagawa-kai is headed by a Korean-Japanese at present. The producers seem to be aware they’d face cries of cultural appropriation or accusations of “whitewashing.” These problems are addressed by having Nick violently kill or maim the few Caucasians he meets who ridicule the Japanese. As such, Nick just may be the world’s deadliest weaboo. The movie has been unfavorably compared to “white savior” films such as “Dances With Wolves” and there are some similarities. In one scene, the “good boss” rejects an offer to join the increasingly corporate Seizu group by saying: “We are wolves. We can’t live in cages.” “Dances With Yakuza,” anyone? The sumo bout scene has been called gratuitous, but in reality it’s not. Yakuza have had a long relationship with sumo as both sponsors of the stables and individual wrestlers, as Robert Whiting detailed in his 1999 book, “Tokyo Underworld.” It was a popular spectator sport with old-school yakuza. Why? Because it costs a lot of money and takes a great amount of influence to secure good seats at a match. In fact, you could argue that the Yamaguchi-gumi’s fondness for sumo is one of the causes of its decline. In 2009, members of the gang were seen on NHK in the front row seats at the Nagoya summer tournament. This incensed the National Police Agency, which declared war on them that September. In January 2010, the Japan Sumo Association finally agreed to ban gangsters from attending matches. Nick doesn’t know the meaning of the carp being tattooed on his back — at least at first. Unrealistic, right? Although it may seem silly, he wouldn’t be the first young gangster to misunderstand the meaning of a tattoo. Often, though not always, a gangster will entrust the tattoo artist with the design and its symbolism. Four years ago, a tattoo artist who has worked on gangsters offered to give me a tattoo of a tanuki (raccoon-dog). He suggested this, he said, “because tanuki are ballsy, tenacious, shape-shifting, sneaky creatures who rummage through garbage.” It did seem like an appropriate totem animal for a reporter. He even offered to do it free of charge, but I politely declined. The real problem with “The Outsider” is that it makes life in organized crime oddly appealing. It shouldn’t be — gangsters aren’t heroes. April 15 will mark my 25th year as a reporter, with much of my time spent covering organized crime in Japan. It’s advantageous for me to be a foreign reporter, because I can find common ground with some members. Many gangsters consider themselves to be “outsiders” in their own right. We have that in common. However, I’d never delude myself that I was more than an outsider among outsiders. If you become an “insider,” the reward is usually betrayal, prison time, paranoia and/or poverty. If you have a conscience, there’s feelings of guilt to digest as well. It’s not an especially good life. Susumu Ishii, a second-generation leader of the Inagawa-kai, once said it best — “It’s better living an ordinary life as a salaryman.” That may be so, except that it wouldn’t make for a particularly compelling movie.


Japan's companies are beginning to rethink paternity leave policies

Abstract: When it comes to child care in Japan, women typically take on the lion’s share of the workload. Men, by comparison, are generally too exhausted after work to help out in any way. According to the Asahi Shimbun, however, more men are looking to take paternity leave in order to support their spouses better after they give birth. They also hope to use this time to bond better with their new offspring. At present, just 3 percent of men take paternity leave after their partners give birth, usually taking as little as five to 10 days, according to a survey compiled by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. Twenty years ago the ratio was even worse, with just 0.5 percent of men taking time off to spend with their family. One could then consider 3 percent to represent something of an improvement. Yet, the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wants to improve this ratio, looking to increase the number of men taking paternity leave to 13 percent by 2020 , according to an article in Nikkei Dual. A number of employers are starting to act. Pharmaceutical company MSD is now offering flexible paternity leaves, enabling dads to work from home or show up at the company for a certain number of days per month, according to an article in the Asahi Shimbun. Masafumi Umeda took advantage of the system after the birth of his third son, first taking a month off and then working just 30 hours of the following month. During this time, Umeda was able to help out with child care and simultaneously maintain his presence in the company. This made it easier for him to eventually return to work full time. Paternity leave has been a bone of contention in many Japanese families for decades. Many mothers have had to put their careers on hold as the shortage of day care forced them to look after their young children. As a result, family finances have suffered. Online comments show that while many mothers would like hands-on support from husbands, they’re also worried about salaries being cut and/or careers being affected as a result of their partners taking paternity leave . Until 2014, men who took parental leave were eligible for a government benefit that covered up to 67 percent of their salaries provided they didn’t work more than 10 days a month. The law has since been amended and new fathers can now work up to 80 hours per month, with parents able to receive 80 percent of their salary. A more flexible approach to either paternity or maternity leave would be helpful to women as well. Many women who were in the workforce before giving birth find it difficult to stay home all day and are anxious about regaining a foothold in the company once they return to full-time work. If a more flexible system was introduced upon their return to work, it would certainly take a load off their minds. Flexible leave also gives men an opportunity to bond with their wives. One man said he had no idea how difficult housework and child care was until he stayed home and observed what was required firsthand. Speaking to the Asahi Shimbun, Umeda’s wife said her husband’s flexible paternity leave strengthened their ties as a family, adding that she could relax around her husband and so was glad “he was there.” Interestingly, online comments suggest that men face little resistance from their bosses when taking time off for paternity leave. One man said his company was OK with it, but his parents were not, arguing that work should be their son’s first priority. Once they saw how his paternity leave benefited the family as a whole, they changed their opinion and offered their support. According to Mitsubishi UFJ Consulting, however, 26.6 percent of 1,100 dads surveyed in 2015 said that they didn’t take paternity leave because they felt that the atmosphere at work didn’t really encourage it. Would they be able to take paternity leave if they asked? One would have to think it’s possible. One man told online Kidsna magazine that once precedents are set, it will become easier for other men to follow .