U.S. lawmakers nominate jailed Uighur scholar Ilham Tohti for Nobel Peace Prize

Abstract: WASHINGTON - U.S. lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle have nominated jailed Uighur scholar Ilham Tohti — sentenced to life in prison for “separatism” — for the Nobel Peace Prize. Sen. Marco Rubio, a Republican, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, both signed the nomination letter earlier this week, which came from the bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China. “We believe there is no one more deserving of the Committee’s recognition in 2019 than Professor Tohti, who embodies the peaceful struggle for peace and human rights in China,” the lawmakers wrote to the president of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, Berit Reiss-Andersen, and its other members Tuesday. Tohti, 49, was sentenced to life in prison in September 2014 over comments he made in class, in interviews and on a website he ran that were critical of official policies directed at China’s mainly Muslim Uighur minority in the restive far-west Xinjiang region. The region has seen a security crackdown in recent years. Beijing says it faces a terror threat, but rights groups say restrictions on Islam and the Uighur language have fueled violence. Currently, up to 1 million Uighurs and members of other mostly Muslim minority groups are held in extrajudicial detention in camps in Xinjiang, according to a group of experts cited by the United Nations. Beijing says the centers help people drawn to extremism to steer clear of terrorism, and allow them to be reintegrated into society. “This nomination could not be more timely as the Chinese government and Communist Party continue to perpetrate gross human rights violations with over a million Uighurs and other ethnic minority Muslims detained in ‘political reeducation’ camps,” Rubio said in a statement Wednesday. “Ilham Tohti’s peaceful efforts to promote understanding and ethnic harmony between Uighurs and Han Chinese merits recognition by the Committee.”

nobel peace prize
china
rights
ethnicity
u.s .
congress


Security firm linked to Blackwater founder Erik Prince signs preliminary Xinjiang training deal

Abstract: HONG KONG - A Hong Kong-listed security firm who has a former U.S. Navy SEAL on its board has signed a preliminary deal with authorities in China to build a training center in Xinjiang where Uighur Muslims have experienced a huge security crackdown. Frontier Services Group, which specializes in providing security and logistics for businesses operating in risky regions, said it had signed a deal to run a training base in the city of Kashgar, according to a statement posted on its Chinese website. One of FSG’s board members and its deputy chairman is Erik Prince, a former SEAL and the brother of U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. Prince was the founder of the U.S. military contractor Blackwater, whose mercenaries had a prominent and controversial role during Washington’s wars in Iraq and Afghanistan — including the 2007 killing of 14 unarmed Iraqi civilians by Blackwater employees. FSG, which has a Hong Kong headquarters, has built up a wealth of contracts both inside China and for Chinese companies operating overseas, particularly in Africa. But its presence in Xinjiang is controversial because of the sweeping security crackdown Chinese authorities have launched in the restive far-western region, including reported mass incarcerations. On Friday, a spokesman said Prince — a minority shareholder — was unaware of the deal, which was preliminary and would need to be signed off by all board members before final approval. “He had no knowledge or involvement whatsoever with this preliminary memorandum regarding the company’s activity in Xinjiang,” the spokesman said. Up to 1 million Uighurs and members of other mostly Muslim minority groups are held in extrajudicial detention in camps in Xinjiang, according to a group of experts cited by the United Nations. Beijing says the facilities are benign “vocational education centers” to help people drawn to extremism to steer clear of terrorism, and allow them to be reintegrated into society. Critics and ex-detainees say the facilities are little more than prisons. In October, a report showed how one local government prefecture’s purchases had little to do with education and included 2,768 police batons, 550 electric cattle prods, 1,367 pairs of handcuffs, and 2,792 cans of pepper spray. The region is a major plank in Beijing’s massive “Belt and Road” global infrastructure push, acting as China’s western gateway to Central Asia and beyond. Security companies have seen a boom in business as a result. FSG’s original Chinese language statement on Jan. 22 said one of its subsidiaries had inked a deal for a “training center” with the Kashgar Caohu industrial park in southern Xinjiang. The Jan. 11 signing was attended by officials from Xinjiang’s Tumxuk city and a subsidiary of the state-run conglomerate Citic Group. The statement did not detail what kind of training would be provided. FSG’s website shows it has previously trained “overseas security specialists” for a host of Chinese companies. It has also helped train Chinese military and police. Last month it announced it had obtained a security license to operate in Cambodia, where it will aim to provide “cash escort, airport security (and) VIP close protection.”

blackwater
erik prince
xinjiang
china
military
prisons
religion
u.s .
rights


Pope Francis considers delivering criticism of nuke production during Japan visit

Abstract: NAGASAKI - Pope Francis is eager to deliver a message from one of Japan’s two atomic-bombed cities that the making of nuclear weapons — not just their use or possession — is unethical, according to a Japanese Catholic source. The pope plans to visit Japan in November, making him the first pontiff to travel to the country since John Paul II nearly 40 years ago. He may also go to Hiroshima and Nagasaki — the cities that suffered U.S. atomic bombings in the final days of World War II. Referring to the pope’s ongoing efforts to call for a world without nuclear weapons, the source said, “The pontiff is expected to go a step further.” Francis, elected head of the Roman Catholic Church in 2013, condemned not only the use of nuclear weapons but their “possession” for the first time in a speech in 2017. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Japan said there are no official records that the pope went so far as to criticize the making of nuclear armaments. The source hopes that the pope’s remarks, possibly to be made in Nagasaki, will give fresh impetus to the nuclear disarmament movement at a time when concerns over a new nuclear arms race are growing following announcements by both the U.S. and Russia of their planned withdrawal from a 1987 nuclear arms control treaty. A landmark U.N. treaty outlawing nuclear weapons was adopted in 2017, but it has yet to enter into force. Japan, which relies on the U.S. nuclear deterrent for protection, and the world’s nuclear weapons states are among the countries that have not ratified the pact. “If the pope conveys what is right, it will have a worldwide impact,” said Akira Kawasaki, a steering committee member of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, which won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts that led to the adoption of the treaty.

pope francis
nagasaki
nuclear weapons
atomic bombings


Two Tokyo wards to allow female students to wear pants for school uniform

Abstract: Tokyo’s Nakano Ward has decided to allow female students at all municipal junior high schools to choose pants for their uniforms starting in April. Setagaya Ward will also give the option to girls entering their first year at its municipal junior high schools in April, sources said Friday. The ward has 29 junior high schools. Through the moves, the wards hope to create school environments in which children respect diverse backgrounds, including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. Nakano Mayor Naoto Sakai told a news conference that the decision was made after a female student in her final year of elementary school handed him a class survey showing that a majority of students want to wear pants at junior high school. “We have accepted the children’s viewpoint,” he said. Five of the ward’s 10 junior high schools have already allowed girls to choose between wearing skirts or pants on a daily basis, depending on weather conditions and mobility needs. Nakano’s board of education confirmed that the pants option will be offered at the remaining five schools. While the ward has yet to examine the idea of allowing male students to wear skirts, in part due to fears that such students may be bullied, Sakai said, “Of course some boys may prefer skirts.” Therefore, the ward has asked the principal of each school to discuss the matter, he added. In Setagaya, new female junior high school students can wear pants as soon as their schools make the appropriate preparations. In April 2015, the education ministry asked schools throughout Japan to show consideration for their students, including by allowing them to wear the uniforms of their self-identified genders. Given the request, an increasing number of schools are changing girls’ school uniforms from sailor-style tops to blazers to match those worn by male students.


Hokkaido offers nursing scholarships to foreign workers amid labor shortage

Abstract: ASAHIKAWA, HOKKAIDO - Chen Wan-xuan, a student from Taiwan, raises a spoonful of salad to the mouth of an elderly resident at a nursing home in Asahikawa as she speaks quietly to him. “Please eat this slowly,” the caregiver says in clear Japanese to the man, who is in his 90s. “It’s delicious,” he replies, breaking into a smile after chewing some finely sliced radish. Chen, 28, is one of a number of foreign students in Hokkaido who will receive loan-based scholarships this spring of ¥2.5 million per year to work as caregivers in areas facing serious labor shortages. The initiative, a rarity in Japan, is aimed at attracting more foreign caregivers to areas outside major cities. Normally, new arrivals tend to work in large urban areas where they can earn better pay. Chen came to Japan in 2017 to learn about the latest in caregiving after working for four years in the industry in Taiwan. After studying Japanese for a year at a vocational school in the town of Higashikawa in Hokkaido, she passed the N2 stage of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, described as the “ability to understand Japanese used in everyday situations and variety of circumstances to a certain degree.” Chen is just under a year into her studies in a caregiver program at Asahikawa Welfare Special School and is unfazed by the frigid weather on the island. She says after graduating she wants “to work as a caregiver here in Hokkaido, where it snows.” In December, eight care facilities, three towns including Higashikawa and Chen’s school established a consultative body to create a scholarship for foreign students at the school starting from April. Of the ¥2.5 million provided annually to each student, 80 percent will come from tax revenue collected from the state and distributed to the prefectural government. The students will be exempt from repaying the money as long as they work for a designated care facility for three to five years after graduation, with the length of time they are required to stay dependent on where they are working. Although there have been cases of municipalities providing scholarships to international students in the past, “I have never heard of one person getting such a large scholarship of ¥2.5 million per year,” said an official with the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. According to Asahikawa Welfare Special School, there has been a sharp rise in foreign students applying to the caregiver program. Whereas there were just five applicants to the program in fiscal 2018, the school expects 25 to 30 applicants from April. “If I have the scholarship I will be able to really focus on my studies,” Chen says. Ichiro Matsuoka, mayor of Higashikawa, also welcomes the scholarship initiative. “We want to produce caregivers who are highly communicative,” Matsuoka says. It is estimated that the nation will have a shortage of about 340,000 caregivers in fiscal 2025, and the number of Japanese signing up to caregiver schools continues to fall. Enrollment by Japanese in caregiver schools dropped by more than half to 5,714 in fiscal 2018, compared with five years ago, according to the Japan Association of Training Institutions for Certified Care Workers. In contrast, enrollment by foreign students continues to rise, having shown nearly a twofold bump in fiscal 2018 from the previous year to 1,142. Even so, about 40 percent of registered foreign caregivers work in Tokyo and the prefectures of Kanagawa and Osaka, according to the Social Welfare Promotion and National Examination Center. Gunma Prefecture has been offering Japanese courses for foreign caregivers since April 2017 as a way of enticing them to remain in the rural area. The prefecture started providing annual subsidies of up to ¥1 million to caregiver schools for language support and extracurricular activities from April 2018. A new visa system starting in April aims to attract foreign workers to labor-starved sectors, including nursing, construction and farming, which are identified as suffering from labor shortages amid the nation’s aging population and falling birthrate. The introduction of the system represents a major shift for Japan, which had effectively granted working visas only to people with professional knowledge and specific skills, such as doctors, lawyers and teachers. The number of foreign workers in the country tripled over a decade to a record 1.46 million as of October. Under the new visa system, Japan will accept around 345,000 workers over the next five years. The nation reached an economic partnership agreement with Indonesia to bring care workers and nursing candidates to the country in 2008, and later inked a similar deal with the Philippines and Vietnam. A change in the immigration law opened the door for foreign students who train at Japanese care facilities and pass a national board examination to live and work in Japan indefinitely under the kaigo residence status. Care workers were also added to the technical trainee program in the field of nursing. By providing the new visa status from April, the government has said it expects to accept up to 60,000 caregivers over five years — a projection some experts call overly optimistic in the face of competition from other countries, such as Germany, Singapore and the United States, which also have a shortage of care workers. Yoko Amari, representative director of the Overseas Carers Development Association, pointed out the importance of building a support network for foreign caregivers in their communities. “It’s very important to involve local residents to establish a life support network,” she says.


Radioactive cesium above legal limit detected in fish caught off Fukushima

Abstract: FUKUSHIMA - Radioactive cesium exceeding the state limit has been detected in fish caught off Fukushima Prefecture for the first time in about four years, the prefecture’s fisheries cooperatives association has said. The cesium level of 161 becquerels per kilogram, exceeding the limit of 100, was detected in a skate, a type of ray, caught at a depth of 62 meters during test fishing Thursday. The association stopped the shipments of skates caught in the waters. The fish will be taken off the market until safety is confirmed. The prefecture will collect more samples for research and the central government will judge the safety of the fish. In radiation checks of fish by the Fukushima Prefectural Government, a cesium level exceeding the limit was last detected in a stone flounder in March 2015, at 140 becquerels per kilogram. The prefecture is home to Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.’s crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.

fishing
fukushima
radiation
fukushima no . 1
nuclear energy
radioactive water


Tokyo, Beijing agree to step up preparations for Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Japan

Abstract: BEIJING - Japan and China agreed Saturday to accelerate preparations for Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Japan later this year, as the two nations have pledged to promote reciprocal visits by their leaders, a Japanese government official said. At their meeting in Beijing, Senior Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Takeo Mori and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi confirmed Xi’s visit to Japan will be “the most important schedule” this year for the two countries, the official said. But the official told reporters that Mori and Wang did not touch on a specific timeframe of Xi’s visit. If realized, Xi will be the first Chinese president to make an official trip to Japan since May 2008, when Hu Jintao, Xi’s predecessor, visited as a state guest. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has invited Xi to visit Japan on the occasion of the Group of 20 summit in Osaka in June. At a summit with Abe in Beijing last October, Xi said he would “seriously” consider visiting Japan, with both expressing willingness to promote high-level reciprocal visits. Sino-Japanese ties have been improving recently as 2018 marked the 40th anniversary of the signing and entering into force of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and China. In May 2018, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visited Japan for the first time since he became China’s head of government in 2013. Prior to that, the last Chinese premier to make an official visit to Japan was Wen Jiabao in 2011.

xi jinping
shinzo abe
china-japan relations


Facial recognition technology: What would George Orwell say?

Abstract: This coming June, British author George Orwell’s dystopian novel, “Nineteen Eighty-Four,” marks the 70th anniversary of its publication. In the United States, Penguin has announced plans for a special 75,000-copy reprint. According to The New York Times, the publisher noted that, sales of the novel have increased by 9,500 percent since the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump. Demonstrating remarkable foresight, Orwell envisaged a terrifying future in which a “Big Brother” government would harness tools to watch each and every one of us. When Winston Smith, the book’s protagonist, wanted to meet his illicit lover, he was forced to take extreme measures to avoid a two-way device called a “telescreen,” described as follows: “The telescreen received and transmitted simultaneously. Any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it, moreover, so long as he remained within the field of vision which the metal plaque commanded, he could be seen as well as heard.” For some years now, high-resolution, low-light cameras have been observing us passively on the street, at railway stations, at airports, in office buildings and in shops. Since our faces — essentially the face of every human on the planet — are as uniquely individualistic as fingerprints, facial recognition technology means you are no longer a member of the faceless masses. Privacy ends the moment you step outside the door of your home. What sort of future awaits us, Spa! (Jan. 15-22) wants to know: innovation or dystopia? Certainly law enforcement and security organizations armed with facial recognition technology have an added advantage in spotting known terrorists, international criminals and fugitives on the run. One of the world’s leaders in facial recognition technology, Japan’s NEC Corp., claims a recognition accuracy of close to 100 percent. Its system is claimed to be capable of recognizing even a subject who uses face paint to alter a portion of his or her appearance. Adoption of an NEC system in Surat, a major metropolis in northwestern India, has reportedly contributed to a 27 percent fall in crime in that city. With governments and the private sector jumping on the bandwagon, U.K.-based MarketsandMarkets Research Private Ltd. predicts that demand for facial recognition hardware and software will double from the present size by 2022, reaching the equivalent of ¥857 billion in annual revenue. Not everything related to facial recognition need be viewed as ominous — far from it. Yasuhiro Tsuchida, chief technology officer at AI Tokyo Lab, told Spa! that its various applications will advance the ongoing trend toward a cashless society and raise the accuracy of so-called one-to-one marketing. Imagine walking into a store and, upon being recognized as an established customer, being rewarded with a discount coupon. “This sort of ‘one-to-one marketing’ is likely to inspire business operators to come up with numerous types of incentives,” Tsuchida says. That said, issues such as individual privacy and human rights are likely to remain a serious concern. “The various images used to develop the facial image database can come from items such as a passport or driver’s license,” attorney Hiroaki Muto says. “Presently, even without a court order, those can be provided to the police from various sources, including government ministries, public security offices or local governments. In other words, in order to identify and arrest a suspect, the police have already been relieved of the limitations of facial recognition applications, opening up the possibility of creating a system of excessive surveillance. “While such a system may offer benefits in terms of crime prevention or commercial uses, it’s best that citizens first be made to understand the merits and demerits, and then arrive at an acceptable formula,” Muto says. Criminologist Nobuo Komiya, a professor at Rissho University, says police maintain two schools of thought toward facial recognition: the technocrats, who support the system, and the suspicious. Those of the latter school remain convinced that the instincts of a trained detective are still superior to artificial intelligence. More Japanese have been looking to China, whose government has been putting facial recognition to work to deter crime and “anti-social behavior.” In her “Report from China” in Nikkan Gendai (Jan. 19), writer Konatsu Himeda reviews Shanghai’s ubiquitous monitor cameras, which were initially installed around the city as an anti-terrorist measure. On social media, exchanges can be found in which one poster asks, “Is there any way to avoid them?” “How about wearing a surgical mask?” one person suggests. “No, the only way is to apply Peking opera facial makeup,” another replies. Such efforts to avoid detection, however, are probably futile since it’s possible that data stored in the system may also include approximations of what an individual might look like in cases when his or her facial characteristics are purposely altered. I sent an email to a contact in the Chinese police about how facial recognition is being used and was told: “In some cities, when someone violates traffic rules like jaywalking, an electronic camera can take a snapshot of his or her face. This will get posted on the news.” A link to such a site showed the photos of faces of jaywalkers in Jinan, capital of Shandong province, displayed together with the individuals’ full names, identification card numbers (with five digits blanked out), location of the violation and the date. Is it worth the effort to shame jaywalkers publically? Certainly Japan boasts the same technical capabilities and new developments can be expected in the near future. “I suppose the Tokyo Olympiad and Osaka World Expo, which can expect large numbers of visitors, will see wider adoption of public safety systems,” Jonggi Ha, editor of Roboteer magazine, predicts in Spa! “In Osaka, one of the Expo’s main themes will be artificial intelligence, so over the next six years hopefully we will see a legal framework developed for facial recognition technology.”

facial recognition technology
ai
surveillance
artificial intelligence


Tiramisu copyright furor highlights the internet's importance

Abstract: Allegations of copyright infringement have undermined a high-profile attempt to sell a renowned coffee-flavored Italian dessert in Tokyo. Hero’s opened in Tokyo’s Omotesando neighborhood on Jan. 20, offering various tiramisu flavors inside Instagram-friendly mason jars decorated with illustrations of superhero-style cats. In another universe, the launch of such an establishment would be placed alongside other quirky Harajuku culinary footnotes that also include rainbow cotton candy and drinks served in faux light bulbs . However, Hero’s immediately found itself embroiled in controversy. Internet users noticed that the new store’s name, logo and primary product bore a resemblance to Singaporean tiramisu staple The Tiramisu Hero , which has been going strong since 2012 and even has a presence in Japan, albeit via an occasional pop-up store and an online shop through Rakuten . Making matters worse for Hero’s was an ad on television that purportedly tried to hitch itself to the Singaporean franchise, going so far as to imply that it had finally arrived in the country despite being a totally different undertaking. Netizens reacted harshly . Twitter users came out swinging against the store and the owner of the company behind it . Some pointed out how clearly it appeared to plagiarize the logo , while others left negative comments on the Omotesando store’s Twitter account. Influencers who had earlier promoted Hero’s apologized to folks on Instagram, while others demonstrated their support to the original franchise by ordering tiramisu online . 株式会社gramが行った行為は到底許されるものではない。 本家ティラミスヒーローのロゴと名称を自分たちの商標として登録し使えなくしてから、類似ティラミス専門店をオープンしFC展開するえげつなさ 私は今後、gram関連は不買します。 一昔前の中国ならまだしも、こんなこと日本で許されてたまるか。 pic.twitter.com/EEtAP2FlKi — ニャン五郎 (@5chmatome) January 21, 2019 The story then took a twist. People started looking into Gram, the company responsible for Hero’s, and discovered that it appeared to using the same logo and typeface as a pancake store in Osaka of the same name. In its defense, a person claiming to have been involved in founding Gram claimed the entity bought the Kansai-based pancake maker a few years back and was therefore within its rights to use the logo. Unfortunately, however, allegations regarding copyright infringements didn’t stop there . Hero’s in Omotesando initially tried to spin it as a coincidence , but eventually said they would refrain from using the problematic logo . The Tiramisu Hero, meanwhile, has thanked Japanese fans on Instagram , while also documenting a possible coincidental trip by the company to Japan. View this post on Instagram To all our business partners, customers and friends, Thank you for giving us your support and speaking up for us. We are extremely humbled by your friendship and love. We are certain that your voice will help us through this difficult times. We want to share with you that we will be at our store the TIRAMISU STAR, in Kobe on 31 January 2019 and we hope to meet you there. Please note that we will be operating as TIRAMISU STAR in Japan until the conclusion of these proceedings. Unfortunately we will not be able to comment further due to an ongoing lawsuit. #thetiramisuhero #tiramisustar #ティラミススター A post shared by The Tiramisu Hero (@thetiramisuhero) on Jan 22, 2019 at 1:01am PST Although the Italian dessert at the center of this debate has provided a new twist, netizens have long crusaded against pakuri , a Japanese term that describes the act of cribbing ideas from someone else. Ever since the internet became a major center for discussion in Japan, netizens have used it as a space to shame those perceived to be stealing ideas from others for monetary gain. This reached a boiling point in the mid-2000s, when numerous copyright infringement cases were online, including the artist behind one of J-pop duo Halcali’s albums being accused of copying another artist’s work . Such allegations frequently appeared on the web , but more traditional forms of media tended to ignore these stories altogether. With more and more people using the internet these days, issues that were once the domain of web nerds have become mainstream. As a result, pakuri has become a much bigger deal in recent years, most notably crystalized in the case of the initial logo for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics being scrapped after allegations of intellectual copyright theft arose. The recent debate surrounding an Italian dessert might not quite feel as if it’s on the same plane as far as international news is concerned, but mainstream TV broadcasters and news outlets have both covered the story in a way that never would have gained traction a decade earlier. The outrage surrounding Hero’s and its tiramisu isn’t just a lesson in making sure that branding ideas are original, it’s a reflection of how central the internet has become in everyone’s lives. What’s more, for many it has become a way to expose questionable behavior. Tiramisu seems to be the flavor of the month today. Tomorrow? Who knows. Postscript Since this story was published, illustrator Gemma Correll contacted the contributor, alleging that The Tiramisu Hero had traced her work, borrowing material from her 2013 book “A Pug’s Guide To Etiquette.” Correll claims The Tiramisu Hero used her work as a basis for its logo, merchandise and several other elements in the store. On Thursday, The Tiramisu Hero shared an Instagram post, saying that the creators behind the store were “indeed heavily inspired by the creations of Gemma Correll.” “While we tried our best to make sure our cat drawings looked different, we did reference Gemma’s style on background, setting and certain body positions,” the post said. “It was a huge oversight on our part for not informing Gemma at the very start, to let her know that her work had inspired us and that we were referencing it while learning to draw.” The Tiramisu Hero says it will refrain from using designs “inspired” by Correll’s work in the future.

copyright
the tiramisu hero
japan pulse
hero 's


Tabloid's objectification of women continues to stir controversy

Abstract: The weekly magazine Spa has apologized for an article it published in December that ranked universities in terms of how easy it is to get their female students into bed. The article generated backlash but the apology was issued in response to a petition that had been drawn up in protest. The petition was organized by Kazuna Yamamoto, a student at the International Christian University in Tokyo. In an interview with the BBC , Yamamoto, who is Japanese but grew up mostly overseas, explained that she purposely launched the petition in English because she wanted its message to be heard by more internationally aware Japanese people — those who had lived overseas like her or otherwise had broad contacts with the international community — so as to exert pressure on Spa “from the outside,” the implication being that had she addressed Spa’s sexist purview in Japanese she would have had a harder time making an impression. When the BBC interviewer asked her about the reaction among Japanese women in general, she said they weren’t pushing back at all. The international #MeToo movement to resist sexual aggression, she said, had yet to enjoy the same level of awareness and involvement in Japan. The interview didn’t allow for a detailed discussion of why Japanese women do not actively fight sexual aggression. Yamamoto boiled it down to conformity with social mores. On Jan. 16, Spa posted on its Nikkan Spa website the minutes of the meeting its editors had with Yamamoto and her group. When Yamamoto asked the editor-in-chief, Takashi Inukai, how Spa came up with such an article, Inukai said that it grew out of a proposal to cover something called gyara-nomi no jittai — gatherings where women, often university students, receive prearranged payments to drink with men, as well as an app that solicits people for such parties. From that starting point the topic expanded and, Inukai admitted, the language became more suggestive “in order to attract attention.” “We had no intention of encouraging sexual assaults,” Inukai said. “In the process of producing the pages, however, we became desensitized.” Another editor added that the idea of ranking universities according to their female students’ perceived sexual availability was based on the “thinking” of the manager of a matching site. One of Yamamoto’s associates, Wakana Goto of the nonprofit organization Humanity, asked if Spa purposely treated women as “commodities,” and later in the discussion Yamamoto commented that anyone who read the Spa article would assume that men who attend gyara-nomi parties can have sex with the women who attend. Spa’s objectification of women springs from its editors’ inherent understanding of sex as a transaction. Yamamoto told them they should commission more articles about “consent” and mutual satisfaction — sex as communication. The chief editor of Joshi Spa, an offshoot publication that targets women, recalled via email features she’d done that promoted a more “sexually positive” attitude for women with the notion that sexual “passivity” was “old-fashioned.” However, the goal of such features was “being attractive to men” rather than fulfilling a woman’s sexual needs. Ultimately, the articles still implied that women existed for men. This dynamic also lies at the heart of a scandal involving photojournalist Ryuichi Hirokawa, who has been accused of sexual harassment by various women. Hirokawa, 75, is the founder and president of Days Japan, a pictorial news magazine that focuses on current affairs and which will cease publication this month, a decision that prefigured the sexual harassment revelations reported by the weekly Shukan Bunshun in late December. The author of the Shukan Bunshun article, Hideharu Tamura, wrote about it in the Jan. 9 edition of Business Insider Japan . As a contributor to Days Japan, Tamura has known Hirokawa since 2004, and he heard rumors that Hirokawa had acted inappropriately with female volunteers and employees. He never said anything because it was none of his business and, more significantly, he didn’t want to jeopardize his professional relationship with Hirokawa. That anxiety was also felt by Hirokawa’s victims, many of whom were working with him to advance their own careers in journalism. Tamura describes a woman who saw her job prospects fade after rebuffing Hirokawa’s advances. For his part, Hirokawa has denied that he purposely took advantage of his position, claiming he didn’t recognize the women’s true feelings at the time. What he thinks, however, is meaningless, since, according to Tamura’s reporting, the women he approached — both those who succumbed to his advances and those who didn’t — considered the sex a condition for Hirokawa’s attentions. The scandal shocked essayist Karin Amamiya, who, writing in the online Magazine 9 , said she was an admirer of Hirokawa. When Days Japan asked her for an article about suicide 10 years ago, it was one of the greatest honors of her life. Now she doesn’t know what to think. In the past, she says, when she read an article such as the one in Spa, her reaction was disgust followed by numbness. Anyone who protested such articles knew they were open to public ridicule, so they held back. When she heard about Yamamoto’s petition, she shuddered. Here, she thought, was a new generation that could express their anger without compunction. “She didn’t second guess her feelings the way I would have,” wrote Amamiya about Yamamoto. Feminist writer Minori Kitahara wrote something similar on her Love Piece Club website. She references an open letter that appeared last year in Courrier Japan, written by one of the six Japanese female students who were raped in Rome in 1993. The media blamed the victims. Kitahara is “embarrassed” to recall the incident because she didn’t speak out “in empathy” for the women at the time. Like Amamiya, such news left her numb and also, like Amamiya, she is heartened by the simplicity and directness of Yamamoto’s protest. “It’s important to look back on the past,” writes Kitahara, “and not repeat those mistakes.”

universities
kazuna yamamoto
sexism
spa !


Pilot for ANA subsidiary Air Japan bumped from flight after failing alcohol screening

Abstract: All Nippon Airways Co. said Saturday that a co-pilot at its Air Japan Co. subsidiary was prevented from flying after testing positive in a preflight alcohol check, the latest in a string of similar incidents among Japanese carriers. The co-pilot, in his 40s, had planned to fly without telling his company about his alcohol consumption the night before, ANA said. On Thursday night he consumed between two and three times the limit set by the company, which is equivalent to two medium-sized bottles of beer, or about 1 liter. But he did not tell the company this when he was asked to fly to Yangon, Myanmar, from Narita airport near Tokyo, on Friday, ANA said. He was not initially scheduled to be working on that flight. The pilot started drinking vodka at home before 5 p.m. and the company contacted him around 7:40 p.m. to request that he be on the flight. The company prohibits drinking in the 12 hours before a flight, and the pilot said he had not breached this regulation. The flight to Yangon was scheduled for 11 a.m. He was replaced by another pilot after breath tests before the flight detected 0.25 milligram of alcohol per liter. The transport ministry on Friday urged another subsidiary of ANA, ANA Wings Co., to improve operations after one of its pilots tested positive in a preflight alcohol check. The nation’s airline sector has been mired in similar incidents, prompting the ministry to urge airlines to review their alcohol rules and introduce mandatory alcohol tests for pilots.

alcohol
all nippon airways
airlines
aviation
scandals


Japan Times 1919: Tokyo gripped by dread disease

Abstract: 100 YEARS AGO Sunday, Feb. 2 1919 Tokyo gripped by dread disease THE JAPAN TIMES Spanish influenza again holds Tokyo in its deadly grip, favored by the changeable weather. Pneumonia frequently sets in and fatalities are numerous and constantly increasing; doctors, nurses, undertakers and crematories have more than they can do. Five crematories in Tokyo, all in the suburbs, are not equal to the fast increasing death rate and, at the Mikawashima Crematory alone, over 400 corpses, mostly victims of Spanish influenza are awaiting cremation. Corpses are lying in heaps at other crematories, and they have applied for a special permit to work day and night. The victims of the epidemic are daily reported from all classes and most of the obituary notices appearing in the Japanese papers are most of the upper classes of society who have succumbed to the malady. Many are the sad homes in which both parents have died leaving young children orphans or in which one parent has died leaving the other to look after the little ones. The congestion of the dead awaiting cremation gave a rise to a rather odd incident a few days ago. A certain merchant of Koishikawa Ward lost his daughter through the influenza and her body was sent to a crematory but owing to the congestion of corpses claiming precedence it was laid aside for a few days to await its turn. This was too much for her parents who took back the coffin wishing to see once more the face of their beautiful daughter. The coffin was brought back home but on opening it they found, to their horror, the body of a shabby old man. An estimated 23 million people nationwide are believed to have been affected by Spanish influenza during the 1918-19 outbreak. 75 YEARS AGO Monday, Feb. 28, 1944 Entertainers to curb extravagant centers THE JAPAN TIMES Full support of the government’s measures to temporarily reduce the scope of activities of extravagant entertainment centers is pledged by Uzayemon Ichimura, leading Kabuki actor; Takejiro Otani, president of Shochiku theater and film interests, and other leaders of the Japanese stage and screen. In item 7 of the Decisive War Emergency Draft Measures that were announced by the Board of Information on Feb. 25 as the result of the government’s Cabinet meeting the same day, “prohibition from operations of high class pleasure establishments” is being envisaged. It is further stipulated that “high-class entertainment centers shall be temporarily closed” and that “these facilities shall be made use of for other purposes in accordance with their needs,” and that those connected with such establishments “shall be employed in activities in conformity with the present situation.” Uzayemon Ichimura, leading veteran Kabuki star player, declared: “Things have come to a point to which they had to come as a matter of course. I rather think, the new measures have been taken much later than ought to have been. That under such an intensified war situation the amusement circles should have continued their activities without change, until now just as in peace time — this fact in itself is rather surprising. True, it may be said that this is proof of Japan’s great reserve strength. Yet, under present conditions, such a situation can no longer be allowed to continue. At last, the internal structure must in all fields be switched to another footing at great speed. We are always ready to quit the large theaters at any time at the government’s order. Then, what shall be our activities after leaving the large theaters? We actors, it goes without saying, shall offer our services for itinerant performances to entertain the fighters on the production front and the farming, mining and fishing villages. Many of us may have had this in mind already before, but on account of our professional engagements it has hitherto not been realized. But from now on, we shall be free to offer our services for such kind of itinerant performances. Thus, a way has been opened for those active on the stage to serve the nation.” 50 YEARS AGO Friday, Feb. 7, 1969 Dancer arrested after 30 die in Koriyama fire THE JAPAN TIMES Koriyama police Thursday arrested a Tokyo stage dancer on suspicion of having caused a fire that killed 30 persons, including a Swiss woman, at a recreation center and a hotel here Wednesday night. Whipped by winds of 15 meters per second, the fire gutted the three-story ferroconcrete Banko Paradise Recreation Center, the four-story ferroconcrete Bank Hotel and destroyed a wooden residence. The suspect was identified as Masaki Matsushita, 29, a member of the Seven Star dancing troupe, headed by Hiromitsu Yamanaka, 28, who was one of those burned to death in the fire. Police said Matsushita, preparing to appear in the final show of the day, “Gold Dust Show,” had painted his body with gold dust shortly after 9 p.m. in the green room behind the stage in the big banquet hall, and had a metal stick with a ball of cloth doused with benzine attached to it. The fire started when he placed the torch against a kerosene stove in the room, the dancer told police. The fire then spread to curtains, and to the ceiling and to the carpeted floor. Matsushita told police that we has unable to put the fire out because it spread too rapidly. 25 YEARS AGO Thursday, Feb. 10, 1994 Dog trainer suspected of being serial killer THE JAPAN TIMES A self-proclaimed dog trainer who admitted to killing two women in Osaka confessed Wednesday to killing three men and burying their bodies on a farm in Shiojiri, Nagano Prefecture, police said. According to police, Yoshinori Ueda admitted he killed and buried three Osaka Prefecture men who had been missing since summer 1992. The three are Sanpei Fujiwara, 35, unemployed and an acquaintance of Ueda from Osaka; Ko Kashii, 22, a construction worker also from Osaka; and Hiroshi Seto, 25, a part-time worker from Sakai. Ueda became acquainted with Kashii and Seto when they worked together on temporary jobs. He proposed partnerships in the pet business to all three, police said. Ueda has been arrested on suspicion of killing Sachiko Takahashi, 47, and has confessed to murdering Nobuko Ahiji, 47. Police quoted Ueda as saying he fatally drugged the two housewives and buried their bodies on the same farm last Nov. 2. The victims were all believed to have been dog lovers, and four were involved in the suspect’s plan to form a partnership in a new pet business, according to police.

spanish influenza
kabuki
shochiku
koriyama
yoshinori ueda
wwii
accidents
world war ii


Japan's trade deficit expands in January as China-bound exports plummet

Abstract: The nation’s trade deficit for January grew from a year earlier with exports to China tumbling in their worst decline in three years, government data showed Wednesday. Japan logged a trade deficit for the month of ¥1.41 trillion ($12.8 billion), 49.2 percent larger than a year before, the Finance Ministry said. Exports were down for the second month in a row, with exports to China tumbling 17.4 percent — the sharpest fall since January 2016 — as shipments of plastic and electronic devices saw a sudden drop. The data comes amid a global economic slowdown and growing trade tensions. Japan exports a range of goods including electronic parts and industrial equipment to China, which has been locked in a trade standoff with Washington. Tokyo’s latest trade data “reflects a slowdown in the Chinese economy,” said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute. Japan often logs a deficit in January because China’s lunar New Year holiday period tends to result in a dent in demand. But last month, “exports of products such as microchip-making devices that are not related to China’s New Year celebration fell, showing that Chinese companies’ spending on equipment and plants is falling,” Minami said. China’s slowdown will also pressure Europe as well as other neighboring Asian countries, he said. “As the global economy slows, it will weigh on Japanese exports further,” he said. Japan’s politically sensitive surplus with the United States marked its first rise in seven months, increasing 5.1 percent thanks largely to higher exports of cars. With the European Union, Japan logged a deficit of ¥96 billion, down 4.9 percent from a year earlier. Both sides hope to see trade soar in the future after a massive trade deal went into effect this month covering economies that together represent a third of the world’s gross domestic product.


An overview of the major firms and agencies paring presence and payrolls in U.K. as Brexit looms

Abstract: PARIS - As Britain’s March 29 departure from the European Union looms, several major companies and agencies have announced they are downsizing their operations in the U.K. or completely shipping out. A panorama: Carmaker Honda announced Tuesday it will close its plant in the southwestern English town of Swindon in 2021, putting 3,500 jobs at risk. Honda said Brexit was not a factor but the announcement comes after its competitor, Nissan, decided in February to ditch plans to build its X-Trail SUV at its plant in northeastern England due to Britain’s departure. The new line would have created about 740 jobs. Jaguar Land Rover said in January it would ax around 4,500 mostly U.K. jobs, one-tenth of its global workforce. It put the move down to a slump in Chinese sales, buyers dumping diesel cars for electric vehicles, as well as uncertainties linked to Brexit. Also in January, Dutch multinational Philips announced the closure in 2020 of a factory in eastern England that produces baby bottles, threatening 430 jobs. It cited “ongoing geopolitical challenges,” months after warning about Brexit, and said it would transfer work back to its Dutch base. Schaeffler, a German maker of parts for cars and industrial products, is also planning to shut two U.K. sites, with Brexit cited for its axing of a reported 500 jobs. Major financial players based in Britain are also worried: should the U.K. leave the European single market, banks based there will lose the “passporting rights” that allow them to do business with clients across the other 27 member states of the bloc. To continue operating in Europe, many financial firms will have to set up new business units in EU countries and some are already boosting their operations there, mainly in Paris and Frankfurt. Bank of America and HSBC are among those that plan to reduce their activities in London in favor of Paris, while U.S. firms Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup are eyeing Frankfurt. Japan’s Sumitomo, Mitsui Financial Group, Daiwa Securities and Nomura, and Britain’s Standard Chartered have also chosen the German financial hub. The European Union’s various agencies are not allowed to be based outside the union. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) — one of the world’s most powerful drugs watchdogs, which employs 900 pharmaceutical experts, biologists and doctors — has chosen to relocate to Amsterdam. Based in London’s Canary Wharf business district, it is in a court battle to break its lease that runs until 2039. The European Banking Authority and its nearly 200 staff will leave London for Paris. The monitoring base for the bloc’s Galileo satellite navigation system will quit Swanwick in southern England for Madrid, and the EU’s anti-piracy forces will move their headquarters to Spain and France. Several major multinationals have also chosen to shift their headquarters from Britain amid the Brexit uncertainties. Electronics giant Sony announced it will transfer its European headquarters from Britain to the Netherlands by the end of March to avoid Brexit-related customs issues. British electric appliance pioneer Dyson will switch headquarters to Singapore this year, but said that this was due to booming Asian demand and not because of Brexit.

brexit
eu
honda
jobs
nissan
jaguar
sumitomo
u.k .


American investor Jim Rogers warns of severe economic downturn and forecasts grim future for Japan

Abstract: Prominent American investor Jim Rogers has warned in a new book that the worst economic downturn in his lifetime is around the corner and that Japan’s future is in jeopardy unless it takes serious steps to deal with staggering debt and a declining birth rate. In an interview with The Japan Times in Tokyo on Tuesday, the chairman of Rogers Holdings Co. Inc. said that even though the United States and China are poised to reach a trade agreement, any euphoric mood will be temporary. He predicted that U.S. President Donald Trump will ramp up trade wars in earnest to boost his re-election bid in 2020 as the economy slows down. “Later this year or next, when things are getting bad in the world economy — therefore America is going to start suffering — and Mr. Trump has an election in 2020, he is going to say ‘we got to bash these guys,'” Rogers said. “That’s when Japan, China and other people are going to feel more effects of trade war because he thinks it will help him win the election.” Rogers jointly established a commodity fund known as the Quantum Fund with influential investor George Soros in the 1970s. He is visiting Japan this week to promote his book, “The Future of Japan and The World That Will Be Read Through the Flow of Money” released in January. The book, available in Japanese, is based on the publisher’s interviews with Rogers. In the book, he foresees a catastrophic economic downturn within a year or two due to the “unprecedented” level of debt worldwide. The Institute of International Finance reported that global debt soared to $247 trillion in the first quarter of 2018, and Rogers said debt has increased by $75 trillion, or 43 percent, since 2008. Rogers also portrays a stark future for Japan in the book, pointing to mounting debt, a rapidly dwindling population and a reluctance to embrace immigration. Japan is set to bring in as many as 345,000 migrant workers in the next five years from April as part of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s push to rejuvenate the shrinking labor market. Abe, however, has refused to characterize this as immigration policy, in an apparent attempt to appease part of his conservative base. Rogers, who believes Japan should accept more immigrants “with caution,” says the move is “better than nothing” to counter the declining population, but says it’s not enough. “You either have babies, immigrants or declining standard of living. You have decided to have declining standard of living,” he said. “If that’s what Japan wants, do it. … Seventy-thousand immigrants a year for a country of 125 million people doesn’t solve the problem.” Rogers refrained from directly criticizing Abenomics itself in the interview — he is critical in the book — but he took a swing at its practice of printing money excessively, calling this “lunacy.” Rogers is known for making provocative statements. In 2017, he said on a financial podcast that “if I were a 10-year-old Japanese, I’d get myself an AK-47 or I’d leave” because of the country’s harrowing economic prospects. He has persistently made a case for investing in North Korea, predicting in the book that South and North Korea will be unified and describing the Korean Peninsula as the hottest place for investment. In the interview, he said unification would save money earmarked for defense in South Korea and save lives in both countries. While there might be resistance, he said combining natural resources and labor from North Korea with capital from the South would improve upon the status quo. While the book takes a grim view of Japan’s future, Rogers hasn’t entirely dismissed the country. He lists tourism, agriculture and the education sector as industries to consider for investment and he proposes spending cuts, lower tariffs and more — but cautious — acceptance of immigration as prescriptions for the country’s problems. It’s up to Japanese to take his advice, he said. “I love Japan. It’s one of my favorite countries in the world,” he said. “I just hope you don’t mess it up. You are messing it up now but I hope you’ll get it right.”

investments
jim rogers
quantum fund
immigration
abenomics


Ghosn's lawyer worries about case's impact on Japan's reputation and believes ex-Nissan chief is innocent

Abstract: The case against former Nissan Motor Co. Chairman Carlos Ghosn could damage Japan’s reputation as a place to do business, according to the veteran lawyer leading his defense team who maintains he is certain his client is innocent. Speaking at a news conference Wednesday, Junichiro Hironaka said as with the world closely watching developments in the case, he is concerned it “could signal that Japan is unpredictable and excessive in what it allows authorities to do to individuals, in terms of conducting business.” “For the rest of the world I think the case could leave the shocking impression that in Japan, even in a matter that should be discussed and handled internally by a company, such proceedings could turn into a criminal case and one could be detained out of the blue,” Hironaka told reporters at his first media appearance since his appointment. “This is a significant problem for Japanese businesses,” he said. On Nov. 19, the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor’s Office arrested the 64-year-old Brazilian-born French auto executive when he arrived at Haneda airport, on suspicion of underreporting his income. The prosecutors subsequently arrested him again on two additional counts of financial misconduct, including allegedly understating his income on a different occasion and aggravated breach of trust for the alleged transfer of private investment losses to Nissan during the global financial crisis in 2008. “Issues that needed to be dealt with internally have somehow been brought to prosecutors. The prosecutors somehow then take the case, even though they are not supposed to interfere in civil affairs,” Hironaka said. Last week Ghosn replaced his legal team, which had been led by former local prosecutor Motonari Otsuru, with one now headed by Hironaka, known for using aggressive tactics to defend high-profile clients. He stressed that Ghosn is innocent of all the allegations. “I have not seen the evidence, therefore I did not draw my conclusion logically by putting the pieces of information together. My belief (that Ghosn is innocent), in one sentence, is based on my gut feeling and experience up until this point,” said Hironaka. He explained that he happened to have a similar hunch when he first talked to Atsuko Muraki, a former top bureaucrat at the health ministry, who was falsely accused of fraud in 2009. Hironaka successfully defended Muraki. Hironaka has handled other high-profile cases and successfully defended notable figures such as Ichiro Ozawa, an influential politician who was accused of involvement in a political funds scandal. Asked when Ghosn’s trial will start, Hironaka said it will probably begin this summer or later. Hironaka added that with Ghosn’s detention having now continued for over three months, the world is growing increasingly doubtful about the fairness of Japan’s criminal justice system.

nissan
carlos ghosn
junichiro hironaka
courts
carmakers


China regulator requests pause in new video game applications to clear backlog

Abstract: BEIJING/SHANGHAI - China’s top content regulator has asked local authorities to stop submitting requests to monetize new video games while it processes a backlog of applications built up after a lengthy pause last year, three people with knowledge of the matter have said. The General Administration of Press and Publications (GAPP) issued the notice this week, the people said, indicating the impact on gaming stocks of the nine-month hiatus could continue and dulling hopes raised by the recent resumption of approvals. The regulator’s notice has not previously been reported. China stopped approving the monetization of new titles last March amid a regulatory body reshuffle triggered by growing criticism of games being violent and addictive, as well as concern over the increase in myopia among young people. Gaming firms such as Tencent — China’s most valuable listed company — were able to continue filing applications, building up a backlog. They could also distribute new titles but were unable to earn any income from them, such as through in-game purchases. The regulator resumed processing applications in December, with industry insiders estimating at least 5,000 games await approval. In China, game companies file applications to local authorities which in turn submit them to the regulator. “The regulator asked local authorities to stop submitting applications because there is too much of a backlog for it to deal with at the moment,” said one of the people, whose company was informed about the matter by its local authority. Game companies will still be able to file applications but they will no longer be passed on to the Beijing regulator while it deals with applications already in hand, said a second person. The people declined to be identified as they were not authorized to speak with media on the matter. GAPP and the Communist Party of China did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The approval freeze dragged down shares in Tencent and wiped billions of dollars off its market value. Among titles for which Tencent is awaiting a license to monetize is “PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds Mobile,” which industry insiders estimate could generate annual revenue of up to $1 billion. The freeze has also hit many smaller companies that rely on a number of game releases each year. The regulator approved 1,982 domestic and foreign online games during January-March last year before the freeze, government data showed. It approved 9,651 domestic and foreign online games in all of 2017. It has approved 538 games since December.


U.K. admits trade deals with Japan and South Korea are unlikely before Brexit

Abstract: LONDON - Business Secretary Greg Clark said the U.K. isn’t likely to reach agreements with Japan and South Korea to roll over existing trade deals before Britain’s scheduled departure from the European Union on March 29. Britain benefits from about 40 free-trade agreements with 70 nations through its EU membership, and it’s been seeking to extend them after Brexit. Combined, they account for 11 percent of U.K. trade. “Unfortunately not all of the FTAs — and I might mention the Japan and Korean ones that are important — are expected to be concluded in time,” Clark told executives and journalists on Tuesday at the annual conference of the MakeUK manufacturing lobby group. “That is one of the reasons why I think it is so important that we should not leave without a deal.” The admission throws into stark relief Trade Secretary Liam Fox’s old promise that the deals would be ready at “one second past midnight” after Brexit day. The two Asian nations buy about £18.6 billion ($24 billion) of British exports a year and send just under £17 billion of imports per year, according to official figures. Clark also emphasized that it’s “unacceptable” that exporters to those markets aren’t able to know what their terms of trade will be in under 40 days’ time, and referred to the freighter the Thalassa Mana, which left Felixstowe port in eastern England on Monday and is due to arrive in Osaka on March 30. “That is, I know, unacceptable to you and it’s unacceptable for me,” he said, adding that it’s “absolutely essential” for the U.K. to conclude arrangements as soon as possible “and not at the last minute on March 28.” The Brexit deal Prime Minister Theresa May is struggling to get through Parliament includes a 21-month transition in which EU trading arrangements would be little-changed, though it’s still up to partner countries — including Japan and South Korea — to decide whether they want to roll over their agreements with the EU to the U.K., which will technically have left the bloc. Fox’s international trade department has so far agreed to roll over agreements with Switzerland, Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Chile, the Faroe Islands, and Eastern and Southern Africa. The department said in an emailed statement that it’s still “seeking continuity for existing free trade agreements.” “We will continue to engage with all our trading partners, and businesses should continue to plan for a range of Brexit scenarios — including no deal,” the department said.

trade
japan
south korea
brexit
greg clark
eu
fta
u.k .
u.k.-japan relations


Twitter follows Facebook and Google in tightening EU political ad rules before election

Abstract: LONDON - Twitter said Tuesday it is tightening up rules for European Union political ads ahead of bloc-wide elections this spring, following similar moves by fellow tech giants Facebook and Google. The social media company said it is extending restrictions already in place for federal elections in the United States. Under the new rules, which will also apply in Australia and India, political advertisers will need to be certified. It’s also taking steps to increase transparency. Ads, in the form of “promoted tweets,” from the past seven days will be stored in a publicly accessible database showing how much was spent, how many times it was seen and the demographics of the people who saw it. Facebook and Google have put in similar systems ahead of the EU vote in May, as the U.S. tech companies respond to criticism they didn’t do enough to prevent misuse of their platforms by malicious actors trying to sway previous elections around the world. “This is part of our overall goal to protect the health of the public conversation on our service and to provide meaningful context around all political entities who use our advertising products,” the company said in a blog post. Hundreds of millions of people are set to vote for more than 700 European Union parliamentary lawmakers. Political advertisers can start applying now for certification under Twitter’s stricter ad rules, which take effect March 11, by providing more information such as photo ID or a company identification number. Twitter defines political ads as those bought by a party or candidate or that advocate for or against a candidate or party.

twitter facebook google eu elections advertising


UBS wealth management unit still bullish on yen despite Bank of Japan chief's warning of further easing

Abstract: The “sharply undervalued” yen is poised for a revival even after Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda surprised markets by warning of further potential policy easing, according to UBS Global Wealth Management. The fund manager, among the biggest in the world, sees the yen gaining 5 percent to ¥105 per dollar in the next 12 months. Japan’s accelerating wage growth is bound to spur inflation, the company reckons, even as Kuroda said Tuesday that additional stimulus may be considered if the exchange rate affects the country’s economy. Floundering world economic momentum could also see the yen benefit from safe haven demand, UBS GWM strategists, including Thomas Flury, head of currency research, said in a note to clients on Friday. They said Japan’s macro position is healthy and, despite Kuroda’s remarks, forecast that the BOJ will start normalizing monetary policy in early 2020, even before achieving its 2 percent inflation target. “The Japanese yen remains the most undervalued major currency,” said the fund manager, which oversees about $2 trillion. “Sluggish global economic growth momentum and the approaching end of the BOJ’s easing policy should tilt the balance of risks toward a stronger yen.” Kuroda’s warning has weighed on the yen but investor skepticism has limited losses. The currency traded at ¥110.88 per dollar as of 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. UBS GWM recommended financing a long yen position by going short on an equally-weighted basket of the dollar, Swiss franc and the Chinese yuan, a set-up that covers three major regions and helps reduce volatility, they said. In 12 months they predict the yen will strengthen to ¥105 per Swiss franc from ¥110.23 currently, and 15 per yuan from ¥16.35. The key risk to this trade would be accelerating global growth, but even in that scenario UBS GWM sees Japan’s inflation dynamics improving, triggering an earlier-than-expected policy move by the BOJ. In contrast, they expect the U.S. Federal Reserve will reach the end of its current rate hike cycle, resulting in a policy divergence and boosting the yen versus the dollar.

ubs
yen
haruhiko kuroda
ubs gwm
currencies
boj


Tokyo stocks rise further on yen's weakening

Abstract: Stocks gained further ground on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Wednesday, helped partly by the yen’s fall against the dollar. The 225-issue Nikkei average gained 128.84 points, or 0.60 percent, to end at 21,431.49, its highest finish since Dec. 17 last year. On Tuesday, the key market gauge climbed 20.80 points. The Topix index of all first-section issues was up 6.95 points, or 0.43 percent, at 1,613.47. It rose 4.56 points the previous day. The indexes extended their winning streaks to a third day. In the morning, the market was buoyed by futures-linked buying spurred by the yen’s drop, with the Nikkei briefly gaining over 190 points. Stocks lost some of the steam in afternoon trading, falling prey to sales reflecting a pause in the downswing of the Japanese currency, according to market sources. The market performed well in the morning thanks to lingering hopes for progress in U.S.-China trade talks, Yoshihiko Tabei, chief analyst at Naito Securities Co., said. But selling to cash in on gains increased after the Nikkei approached the psychologically important 21,500 line, he noted. Hiroaki Kuramochi, chief market analyst at Saxo Bank Securities Ltd., cited foreign players’ selling amid a halt to the yen’s drop as a factor in the market’s failure to advance further in the afternoon. He sounded upbeat, however, saying that “Japanese stocks are expected to rise further” in the near future, as they are still lagging behind U.S. equities. Rising issues outnumbered falling ones 1,196 to 846 on the TSE’s first section, while 88 issues were unchanged. Volume grew to 1,168 million shares from Tuesday’s 1,066 million shares. Alconix shot up 13.08 percent, with investors taking heart from the nonferrous metal trader’s own share buybacks carried out on Wednesday, brokers said. Also on the plus side were technology conglomerate SoftBank Group and air conditioner manufacturer Daikin. By contrast, Pola Orbis met with selling after Daiwa Securities lowered its investment rating and target share price for the cosmetics maker. Among other losers were maker of chip manufacturing equipment Tokyo Electron and oil company Showa Shell. In index futures trading on the Osaka Exchange, the key March contract on the Nikkei average rose 120 points to 21,420.

stocks
tokyo stock exchange
nikkei
topix


Dollar firmer around ¥110.90 in late Tokyo trading

Abstract: The dollar was firmer around ¥110.90 in late Wednesday trading in Tokyo, lifted by a rise in Japanese shares. At 5 p.m., the dollar stood at ¥110.88-89, up from ¥110.65-66 at the same time on Tuesday. The euro was at $1.1342-1342, up from $1.1299-1299, and at ¥125.77-78, up from ¥125.04-04. After moving around ¥110.50-60 in early trading, the dollar rose above ¥110.70 later in the morning thanks to buying by Japanese importers. The greenback then gained further ground to top ¥110.90 on the back of the firmness of the key Nikkei stock average. In the afternoon, the U.S. currency fell below ¥110.80 as the Nikkei shed some of its earlier gains, but rose back above the threshold after Tokyo stocks regained steam. The dollar was “supported by the view that U.S.-China trade negotiations are going well,” a currency broker said. Meanwhile, the dollar’s topside was capped around ¥111 due to a bout of profit-taking, traders said. Dollar selling would increase if minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Jan. 29-30 policy-setting meeting, to be released later on Wednesday, turn out to be dovish, an official at a foreign exchange margin trading service firm said. But if U.S. stocks rise following the release of the minutes, the dollar would also likely attract buying, the official added.


Ford to close oldest plant in Brazil, cut 2,700 jobs and exit South America truck biz

Abstract: SAO PAULO/DETROIT - Ford Motor Co. said on Tuesday it will close its oldest factory in Brazil and exit its heavy commercial truck business in South America, a move that could cost more than 2,700 jobs as part of a restructuring meant to end losses around the world. Ford previously said the global reorganization, to impact thousands of jobs and possible plant closures in Europe, would result in $11 billion in charges. Following that announcement, analysts and investors had expected a similar restructuring in South America. Ford Chief Executive Jim Hackett said last month that investors would not have to wait long for the South American reorganization plan. The factory slated for closure is in Sao Bernardo do Campo, an industrial suburb of Sao Paulo that has operated since 1967. It first produced a number of auto models before being switched predominantly to trucks in 2001. It makes the F-4000 and F-350 trucks, as well as the Fiesta small car, a sales laggard. The factory closure may mean Ford is refocusing on the core of its car business in Latin America’s largest economy, based in a much newer factory in the northeastern state of Bahia. But the job cuts in Brazil’s industrial heartland represent a psychological blow for the new administration of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, which is battling an unemployment rate above 11 percent. Ford’s latest cuts come as investors watch for signs of progress on the company’s alliance with Volkswagen AG, which already encompasses commercial vans and pickup trucks but may soon expand into electric and self-driving cars. The two automakers have also pledged to work together on other projects, which could include combining capacity in regions like South America. “You can’t cost cut your way to prosperity in the long term,” said David Kufka, who heads Michigan-based Mainstay Capital Management, a firm that previously owned Ford stock. “We want to hear about the future, what you’re doing for mobility services and autonomous vehicles.” The closure is also a blow to the industrial outskirts of Sao Paulo, where Brazil’s automotive industry was born and which long drove its industrial growth. It is also where imprisoned former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva came to fame as a union leader who organized massive strikes that helped harken the end of the military dictatorship. Representatives for the union in Sao Bernardo, as well as the local government, did not have an immediate comment. Sales of Ford cars and light trucks grew by 10 percent between 2017 and 2018 in Brazil, lagging a 15 percent post-recession pickup for the industry as a whole. In the trucks business, it ranked fourth, with sales less than half those of Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen. Ford South America President Lyle Watters said on Tuesday the automaker remains “committed” to South America, a region where it is not currently profitable. Ford said in October it would stop building Focus compact cars in Argentina in May 2019 as part of efforts to end its losses in the region. “We know this action will have a major impact on our employees in Sao Bernardo and we will be working closely with all our stakeholders on the next steps,” Watters said in a statement, without providing further details about any severance benefits for laid-off workers. Kleiton Da Silva, an employee and union representative in Ford’s surviving Bahia plant, said the carmaker was in talks to cut 650 of its workforce there, which the automaker has said totals 4,604. The No. 2 U.S. automaker expects to record pretax special charges of about $460 million, with most of that recorded this year, it said in the statement.


Japan's JAL and ANA beefing up Hawaii services as competition intensifies between domestic rivals

Abstract: Competition between Japan Airlines Co. and ANA Holdings Inc.’s All Nippon Airways over Hawaii routes is intensifying as the major airlines are beefing up services to the travel destination, which is popular among Japanese. On Tuesday, JAL announced a tie-up with Japanese hotel operator Seibu Holdings Inc. to offer experience tours in Kona, which is known for its rich natural environment, including the Kilauea volcano. For the first of the tours, the two companies Tuesday jointly started selling a “glamping” plan, in which guests can enjoy luxury services outside while staying at large tents set up at Seibu’s Westin Hapuna Beach Resort. In 2017, JAL resumed flights between Narita International Airport near Tokyo and Kona for the first time in seven years. In March last year, it launched code-sharing flights with Hawaiian Airlines, which had previously been in partnership with ANA. With its tie-up with Seibu, JAL aims to keep its position as the top Japanese airline in terms of market share for Hawaii routes. ANA currently does not operate between Japan and Kona. In an effort to catch up with JAL, ANA will introduce the Airbus A380 superjumbo jet on its Narita-Honolulu route on May 24. The aircraft has couch seats that help children sit comfortably for long hours, a feature designed to cater to families.


Southwest Airlines maintenance pinch extends into fifth day as more planes are grounded

Abstract: DALLAS - Southwest Airlines Co.’s operational emergency stretched into a fifth day Tuesday, with double the normal number of planes taken out of service daily because of mechanical issues. The carrier notified workers Feb. 15 of the situation, saying maintenance employees risked being fired if they declined to take overtime assignments or failed to show up for work as scheduled, unless they have a doctor’s note. The Dallas-based carrier has been in contract talks with the union representing mechanics for more than six years. Southwest has canceled 519 flights since Feb. 15, according to FlightAware.com , although the total includes flights grounded by weather. A breakdown by cause wasn’t available. The carrier on Tuesday added its Dallas maintenance center to those in Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Arizona, and Orlando, Florida, that originally were covered by the alert. “Sometimes if you get a hiccup or three hiccups and aircraft need service that’s not part of the regular program, that can throw your schedule off pretty fast,” said Bill Waldock, a crash investigator and professor of safety science at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. “If you’re not flying airplanes with passengers in them, you’re not making money.” The number of planes taken out of service has continued at more than twice the normal daily average of 20, Southwest said Tuesday, and there is “no common theme” among the reported mechanical issues. The Dallas-based airline has about 750 Boeing Co. 737 aircraft and makes nearly 4,000 flights each day. The Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, which represents 2,700 Southwest employees, said its members were working as usual. The mechanics union rejected a tentative contract agreement in September. “Members are working normal schedules, and working normal overtime,” Bret Oestreich, the union’s national director, said late last week. In 2017, Southwest accused the union of encouraging members to refuse overtime assignments in order to pressure the company in contract talks. A lawsuit filed by the airline was suspended in 2018 after an initial contract agreement was reached.

southwest airlines
airlines
unions
u.s .


U.S. weighing what to do about repentant Islamic State follower in Syria who wants to return to Alabama

Abstract: WASHINGTON - The United States said Tuesday it wanted to ensure foreign jihadis remain off the battlefield as it weighed options on an American detained in Syria who says she wants to return home. The United States has urged European powers to take back hundreds of their citizens who fought with the Islamic State movement in Syria, but acknowledged the situation was complex in the rare case of an American jihadi. Hoda Muthana, a 24-year-old from Alabama who became a prominent online agitator for the extremists, said in an interview published Sunday with The Guardian that she had been brainwashed online and “deeply regrets” joining the movement. While declining to discuss Muthana’s case specifically, State Department deputy spokesman Robert Palladino said that the status of U.S. citizens detained in Syria “is by definition extremely complicated.” “We’re looking into these cases to better understand the details,” he told reporters. Palladino said that the United States generally did not see a different solution between what to do with U.S. fighters and with foreigners, saying the fighters pose “a global threat.” “Repatriating these foreign terrorist fighters to their countries of origin, ensuring that they are prosecuted and detained — that’s the best solution, preventing them from returning to the battlefield,” he said. Hassan Shibly, a lawyer for Muthana, expressed dismay that U.S. government officials had yet to interview her. “It’s really problematic that The (New York) Times, The Guardian and ABC News have all been able to meet with her and interview her, and the government has not been able to do that,” Shibly said. The situation of foreign jihadis detained by U.S.-allied Kurdish forces has taken a new urgency as President Donald Trump plans to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria. The Syrian Democratic Forces say they may have to refocus on fighting Turkey, which has vowed to crush Kurdish fighters it links to separatists at home. Trump has contemplated reopening the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay to take in new foreign inmates, while the U.K. on Tuesday revoked the citizenship of a female jihadi who wanted to return home with her newborn baby. Neither option would likely pass muster in the cases of U.S. citizens, who enjoy strong legal protections under the Constitution. Muthana, who was married three times to jihadis and has a son with one of her husbands, fled her family in 2014 to join the Islamic State group in Syria, where she took to Twitter to urge attacks on fellow Americans. In the interview with The Guardian, Muthana said that she was “really young and ignorant” when she joined IS and has since renounced radicalism. “I believe that America gives second chances. I want to return and I’ll never come back to the Middle East,” she told the newspaper. Shibly said “it’s been a difficult journey for her, and she’s relieved. She’s very resentful to them for having misguided her and having brainwashed her and manipulated her and really destroying her life.”

islamic state
syria
alabama
hoda muthana
u.s .
terrorism


Thousands demonstrate in Paris following wave of anti-Semitic attacks

Abstract: PARIS - Thousands of people took to the streets of the French capital Tuesday evening to protest a spate of recent anti-Semitic attacks, including the daubing of painted swastikas on nearly 100 graves in a Jewish cemetery in eastern France. The Paris demonstration, in the city’s central Place de la Republique, was one of more than a dozen to be staged nationwide Tuesday in response to a surge in anti-Semitic hate crimes which have triggered a deluge of outrage in France and Israel. Some 18 political parties called for the protest, with Prime Minister Edouard Philippe among those attending along with other ministers. Earlier in the day President Emmanuel Macron vowed to crack down on hate crimes as he visited a cemetery in Quatzenheim in the Alsace region near Germany where 96 Jewish tombstones were spray-painted with blue and yellow swastikas the previous night. “We shall act, we shall pass laws, we shall punish,” Macron told Jewish leaders as he toured the cemetery. “Those who did this are not worthy of the Republic,” he said, later placing a white rose on a tombstone commemorating Jews deported to Germany during World War II. Another grave bore the words “Elsassisches Schwarzen Wolfe” (“Black Alsatian Wolves), a separatist group with links to neo-Nazis in the 1970s. It was the second case of extensive cemetery desecration in the region since December, when nearly 40 graves as well as a monument to Holocaust victims were vandalized in Herrlisheim, about a half-hour drive from Quatzenheim. Macron later laid a wreath at the Paris Holocaust memorial. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed the “shocking” anti-Semitic vandalism, while one of his Cabinet colleagues urged French Jews to “come home” to Israel. Many French Jews are on edge after the government announced a 74 percent jump in anti-Jewish offenses in 2018 after two years of declines. Tensions mounted last weekend after a prominent French writer was the target of a violent tirade by a “yellow vest” protester in Paris on Saturday. A video of the scene showed the protester calling the philosopher Alain Finkielkraut a “dirty Zionist” and telling him “France belongs to us. In France, several officials have accused the grass-roots yellow vest movement of unleashing a wave of extremist violence that has fostered anti-Semitic outbursts among some participants. “It would be false and absurd to call the yellow vest movement anti-Semitic,” Philippe told L’Express magazine in an interview published Tuesday. The prime minister, who has promised a tough new law targeting online hate speech by this summer, warned however that “anti-Semitism has very deep roots in French society.” Macron, for his part, is to lay out his plans to combat anti-Semitism during a speech at the annual dinner of the CRIF umbrella association of French Jewish groups on Wednesday. Anti-Semitism has a long history in France where society was deeply split at the end of the 19th century by the Alfred Dreyfus affair, a Jewish army captain wrongly convicted of treason. During World War II, the French Vichy government collaborated with Germany notably in the deportation of Jews to death camps. More recently French anti-Semitism, traditionally associated with the far right, has also spread among far-left pro-Palestinian extremists and radicals from amongst the growing Muslim community. But Macron has resisted calls by some lawmakers to explicitly penalize so-called anti-Zionist statements calling into question Israel’s right to exist as a nation. Macron himself has been targeted in some of the anti-Semitic graffiti found in the wake of recent protests, though many prominent yellow vest demonstrators have said they plan to participate in the anti-racism marches. But a recent Ifop poll of “yellow vest” backers found that nearly half those questioned believed in a worldwide “Zionist plot” and other conspiracy theories. “The yellow vests aren’t an anti-Semitic movement,” said Jean-Yves Camus of the Political Radicalisation Observatory in Paris. “But it’s a leaderless, horizontal movement … and extremist elements have been able to drown out the voices of its high-profile figures in the media,” he said.

paris
anti-semitism
france
emmanuel macron
holocaust
yellow vests
judaism
nazis


Alabama newspaper editor slammed for urging KKK revival

Abstract: WASHINGTON - The publisher of a small Alabama newspaper has come under fire after calling in an editorial for the return of the white supremacist Ku Klux Klan. Goodloe Sutton, publisher and editor of The Democrat-Reporter, wrote the editorial that appeared in last week’s edition of the weekly newspaper in Linden, Alabama. “Time for the Ku Klux Klan to night ride again,” the editorial said. “Democrats in the Republican Party and Democrats are plotting to raise taxes in Alabama. “Seems like the Klan would be welcome to raid the gated communities up there,” it said. “Truly they are the ruling class.” Alabama Sen. Doug Jones, a Democrat, called for Sutton’s resignation. “OMG! What rock did this guy crawl out from under?” Jones tweeted. “This editorial is absolutely disgusting & he should resign — NOW! “I have seen what happens when we stand by while people — especially those with influence — publish racist, hateful views,” Jones said. Sutton, 79, defended his views in an interview with another newspaper, the Montgomery Advertiser. “If we could get the Klan to go up there and clean out (Washington) DC, we’d all been better off,” he told the Advertiser. Asked whether he considered the Klan a violent organization, Sutton said “well, they didn’t kill but a few people. “The Klan wasn’t violent until they needed to be.” Linden is a town with a population of around 2,000. According to the Advertiser, The Democrat-Reporter had about 3,000 subscribers in 2015.

alabama
ku klux klan
goodloe sutton
doug jones
racism


Jihadis and civilians quitting last Islamic State pocket in east Syria, says U.S.-backed force

Abstract: DEIR EZZOR, SYRIA - Several Islamic State group jihadists and dozens of civilians, including foreigners, quit the last IS-held pocket in eastern Syria on Tuesday, U.S.-backed forces said. IS, which in 2014 declared a cross-border “caliphate” straddling Syria and Iraq, has been expelled from all the land it held except for a patch of Baghouz village. Backed by air strikes by the U.S.-led coalition, the Syrian Democratic Forces have already retaken most of the village. SDF spokesman Adnan Afrin said a convoy of trucks entered Baghouz on Tuesday to transfer jihadis and their relatives out to SDF-held territory. “Dozens of civilians and some fighters have handed themselves over to the SDF,” he told reporters at nearby Al-Omar oil field. The spokesman said foreigners were among leaving but did not specify their nationalities or if they were civilians or fighters. “This is the first time civilians will make it out in four days,” Afrin said. Thousands of people — mostly women and children related to IS members — have streamed out of IS turf in recent weeks, but no civilians had emerged this week. Afrin said some die-hard jihadis were still refusing to surrender and “many civilians remain” in the last IS pocket of less than half a square kilometer. The United Nations earlier expressed concern over “the situation of some 200 families, including many women and children, who are reportedly trapped” in the IS holdout. “Many of them are apparently being actively prevented from leaving by ISIL,” it said in a statement, using another acronym for IS.

islamic state
syria
baghouz
syrian democratic forces
conflict
u.s .
terrorism
refugees


U.S. doctors overprescribed deadly drug fentanyl to patients, researchers report

Abstract: WASHINGTON - Fentanyl, a highly dangerous painkiller at the heart of the U.S. opioid epidemic, has been overprescribed by doctors, according to a report Tuesday that accused health authorities and manufacturers of being too lax in their oversight. The drug is a synthetic opioid up to 100 times more powerful than morphine and which is largely sold on the black market. But it is prescribed in certain cases of cancer under what are supposed to be very tight restrictions, in the form of lozenges, lollipops or sprays under the tongue. It is supposed to be used only on cancer patients for whom other opioid painkillers have been insufficent. The report in Journal of the American Medical Association, or JAMA, said that this was not the case, however. The investigation, carried out by experts from Johns Hopkins University, said that of the thousands of patients who had been prescribed fentanyl, between a third and half of them should never have received the drug. One doctor in five did not know that fentanyl was only supposed to be used by opioid-tolerant cancer patients, the researchers found. As a result, it has been wrongly prescribed for far less serious conditions like lower back pain or chronic headaches. “The drug can kill you,” said one of the authors of the report Caleb Alexander, co-director at the Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness at Johns Hopkins. “There’s no question that individuals have died from inappropriate prescribing of these products,” he said. “The whole point of this program was to prevent exactly the use that commonly occurs,” he said of fentanyl, which has become the deadliest drug in an epidemic that killed 70,000 people in the United States in 2016. The team of researchers battled for four and a half years to get 5,000 pages of documents on the fentanyl program from the FDA. Legally, doctors are allowed to prescribe a drug for an ailment other than the one it is indicated for. The role of the FDA is to regulate the laboratories that make the drugs, not the doctors. But as part of their oversight responsibility, manufacturers “were supposed to monitor and potentially disenroll prescribers who violated the terms of the program. And yet not a single prescriber was identified and disenrolled,” said Alexander. An FDA spokesperson said the agency shared the concerns raised in the report. “The FDA will soon be sharing planned next steps … to make sure the program is working to mitigate the risks of these medicines and that they’re prescribed only to opioid-tolerant patients,” the spokesperson said.

drugs
fentanyl
opioids
jama
fda
medicine
u.s .


HPV vaccine could virtually eliminate cervical cancer in rich countries within 30 years, study says

Abstract: PARIS - The rapid scale-up of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine could virtually eliminate cervical cancer in a handful of rich countries within three decades, and in most other nations by century’s end, researchers said Wednesday. Without screening and HPV vaccination, more than 44 million women will likely be diagnosed with the disease over the next 50 years, they reported in The Lancet Oncology, a medical journal. Two thirds of these cases — and an estimated 15 million deaths — would occur in low- and medium-income countries. By contrast, the rapid deployment starting in 2020 of screening and vaccination could prevent more than 13 million cervical cancers by mid-century worldwide, and lower the number of cases to below 4 in 100,000 women, the study found. “This is a potential threshold for considering cervical cancer to be eliminated as a major public health problem,” the authors said in a statement. Earlier this month, the World Health Organization reported 570,000 new cases worldwide in 2018, making it the fourth most common cancer for women after breast, colon and lung cancer. The disease claims the lives of more than 300,000 women every year, mostly in lower income nations. “Despite the enormity of the problem, our findings suggest that global elimination is within reach,” said lead author Karen Canfell, a professor at the Cancer Council New South Wales, in Sydney. Achieving that goal, however, depends on “both high coverage of HPV vaccination and cervical screening,” she added. Transmitted sexually, HPV is extremely common and includes more than 100 types of virus, at least 14 of them cancer-causing. The viruses have also been linked to cancers of the anus, vulva, vagina and penis. It takes 15 to 20 years for cervical cancer to develop in women with normal immune systems. If the immune system is weak or compromised — by HIV infection, for example — the cancer can develop far more quickly. Clinical trials have shown that HPV vaccines are safe and effective against the two HPV strains — types 16 and 18 — responsible for 70 percent of cervical cancer cases. The study’s projections presume the vaccination of 80 percent of girls 12 to 15 years old starting in 2020, and that at least 70 percent of women undergo screening twice in their lifetime. This would push the prevalence of the disease below the bar of 4/100,000 women in countries such as the United States, Canada, the U.K. and France by 2059, and in mid-income countries such as Brazil and China by 2069, the authors calculate.

vaccinations
cervical cancer
cancer
disease


Climate change an 'imminent' security threat fueling violence and terrorism, risk experts say

Abstract: THE HAGUE - Climate change threats — from worsening water shortages in Iraq and Pakistan to harsher hurricanes in the Caribbean — are a growing security risk and require concerted action to ensure they don’t spark new violence, security experts warned Tuesday. “Climate change is not about something in the far and distant future. We are discussing imminent threats to national security,” said Monika Sie Dhian Ho, general director of the Clingendael Institute, a Dutch think tank. The drying of Africa’s Lake Chad basin, for instance, has helped drive recruitment for Islamist militant group Boko Haram among young people unable to farm or find other work, said Haruna Kuje Ayuba of Nigeria’s Nasarawa State University. “People are already deprived of a basic livelihood,” the geography professor said at a conference on climate and security at The Hague. “If you give them a little money and tell them to destroy this or kill that, they are ready to do it.” Iraq, meanwhile, has seen its water supplies plunge as its upstream neighbors build dams and climate change brings hotter and dryer conditions to Baghdad, said Hisham Al-Alawi, Iraq’s ambassador to the Netherlands. “Overall we are getting less by nearly 40 percent of the waters we used to get,” he told the conference. Shoring up the country’s water security, largely by building more storage and cutting water losses, will take nearly $80 billion through 2035, he said. Faced with more heat and less rain, “we need to be wise and start planning for the future, as this trend is likely to continue,” he said. The threat of worsening violence related to climate change also extends to countries and regions not currently thought of as insecurity hot spots, climate and security analysts at the conference warned. The Caribbean, for instance, faces more destructive hurricanes, coral bleaching, sea-level rise and looming water shortages that threaten its main economic pillars, particularly tourism. “We’re facing an existential crisis in the Caribbean,” said Selwin Hart, the Barbados-born executive director of the Inter-American Development Bank. Ninety percent of the region’s economic activity — particularly tourism, fishing and port operations — takes place on the threatened coastline, he said. Hurricanes, in recent years, have flattened the economies of some Caribbean nations, with Hurricane Maria in 2017 costing Dominica about 225 percent of its GDP, according to World Bank estimates. But as the global emissions that drive climate change continue to rise, “there’s not a realistic chance of achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement,” Hart suggested. The agreement calls for a rapid shift away from fossil fuels to hold the global average temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius. The failure to cut emissions means the Caribbean, while doing what it can to become more resilient to the growing risks, also needs “to plan for the worst-case scenario,” Hart said. It is trying to do that by building coordination and assistance networks among Caribbean states and looking to shore up access to food and water, among other changes, said Ronald Jackson, of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency. Often that work requires persuading officials from very different ministries — finance, tourism, agriculture, water, energy and security, for instance — to sit down together and coordinate plans, said Jackson, the group’s executive director. And the work has to be done quickly, he said. Last October the world’s climate scientists warned that to hold global temperature hikes to 1.5 degrees C, global energy systems would have to dramatically shift in the next dozen years. “Before the 1.5 degree report came out we were looking at a much longer time frame” for change, Jackson said. “But now it’s the 2020s, early 2030s. We’re out of time. We have to act now.” Military officials around the world have increasingly recognized the risks associated with climate change, and moved to shore up bases against sea-level rise, curb military emissions, adopt clean energy and analyze changing risks. At the Planetary Security conference at The Hague on Tuesday, they announced the creation of a new International Military Council on Climate and Security, made up of senior military leaders from around the world. The panel aims to help build policy to address climate security risks at national, regional and international levels, backers said. “Climate change fuels the roots of conflict around the globe and poses a direct threat to populations and installations in coastal areas and small islands,” said Gen. Tom Middendorp, a former Dutch defense chief who will chair the new council. “It should therefore be taken very seriously as a major security issue that needs to be addressed. The military can and should be part of the solution,” he said.

climate
climate change
violence
terrorism
conflict