PM says relaxation will take effect from 11 October as Hong Kong scraps hotel quarantine measures for visitors
Japan has announced it will lift tough Covid restrictions on foreign tourists, reopening the borders after two and a half years.
The prime minister, Fumio Kishida, said on Thursday that the pandemic had interrupted the free flow of people, goods and capital that had helped the nation flourish.
Continue reading...Discovery offers new support for the theory that life may have been seeded from outer space
Specks of dust that a Japanese space probe retrieved from an asteroid about 186 million miles (300m kilometres) from Earth have revealed a surprising component: a drop of water.
The discovery offers new support for the theory that life on Earth may have been seeded from outer space.
Continue reading...Protester sustains widespread burns as Japan wrestles with legacy of leader whose death revealed scale of politicians’ links to Unification church
A man has set himself alight near the Japanese prime minister’s office, apparently in protest against next week’s state funeral for the country’s former prime minister, Shinzo Abe.
The man, who has not been named, was initially unconscious and sustained burns over his entire body after the incident in Tokyo on Wednesday morning, less than a week before the controversial send-off for Abe, who was shot dead in July.
Continue reading...Two dead and thousands without power as storm dumps heavy rain and authorities warn six million to evacuate
Two people have died and more than 100 were injured after Typhoon Nanmadol slammed into Japan on Monday, dumping heavy rain, paralysing traffic and leaving tens of thousands of homes without power.
The worst of the rainfall was seen in the southernmost island of Kyushu, where two people died, according to the fire and disaster management agency, before the typhoon was downgraded to a tropical storm as it made its way to the Pacific Ocean.
Continue reading...Ten people confirmed dead with three missing; Typhoon Nanmadol forces millions to flee homes in Japan
European countries around the Adriatic Sea were experiencing extreme flooding towards the end of last week.
The Italian region of Marche was particularly badly affected after a thunderstorm on Thursday afternoon strengthened into the night. Some areas faced more than 400mm of rain, with much of the deluge falling in a couple of hours.
Continue reading...More than 7 million people urged to take refuge as Typhoon Nanmadol hits south-west of country with 150mph winds
Typhoon Nanmadol made landfall in south-western Japan on Sunday night, with authorities urging millions of people to take shelter from the powerful storm’s high winds and torrential rain.
The storm officially made landfall at about 7pm local time (11am BST) as its eyewall – the region just outside the eye – arrived near Kagoshima, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said.
Continue reading...Authorities urge evacuations in Kyushu before arrival of storm that could cause flooding, landslides and collapse of houses
Two million people in Japan have been told to seek shelter before the arrival of Typhoon Nanmadol, the national broadcaster, NHK, said, as the weather agency issued a rare “special warning” about the powerful storm.
NHK, which compiles alerts issued by local authorities, said level four evacuation instructions – the second highest – were in place for people in Kagoshima, Kumamoto and Miyazaki in the southern Kyushu region.
Continue reading...Businesses want prime minister Fumio Kishida to loosen restrictions to help the world’s third-biggest economy recover from the pandemic
Japan could return to unfettered tourism by the end of next month as pressure builds on the government to end Covid-19 travel restrictions and cash in on a weak yen.
Officials are reportedly considering removing the current daily cap of 50,000 arrivals, which includes returning residents, and a return to visa-free travel. A rule requiring individual travellers to make bookings through travel agencies could also be lifted, according to media reports.
Continue reading...Kohei Saito’s book Capital in the Anthropocene has become an unlikely hit among young people and is about to be translated into English
The climate crisis will spiral out of control unless the world applies “emergency brakes” to capitalism and devises a “new way of living”, according to a Japanese academic whose book on Marxism and the environment has become a surprise bestseller.
The message from Kohei Saito, an associate professor at Tokyo University, is simple: capitalism’s demand for unlimited profits is destroying the planet and only “degrowth” can repair the damage by slowing down social production and sharing wealth.
Continue reading...New York Times says Elizabeth II ‘projected stability’; Japan’s Asahi Shimbun says she ‘cared about post-war reconciliation’
Newspapers in the Commonwealth and beyond have led with the death of Queen Elizabeth II, with many paying tribute to her accomplishments during seven decades on the throne. Some speculated on how the monarchy might change under King Charles III.
The Washington Post’s Twitter account followed the sober format preferred by newspapers in the UK, its front page showing a black-and-white portrait of a smiling Queen against a black background.
Continue reading...Public opposition to ceremony grows over cost to taxpayer and ex-PM’s ties to Unification church
Japan will spend about 1.65bn yen (£10.1m) on the increasingly controversial state funeral for the former prime minister Shinzo Abe, who was shot dead during a campaign speech in July, amid growing public opposition to the plan.
The government has come under pressure to cancel the ceremony, with opinion polls showing that a majority of voters oppose it due to the cost to the taxpayer and revelations about ruling party politicians’ ties to the Unification church.
Continue reading...Strongest tropical storm of the year also forecast to hit China’s mainland this weekend after winds reach 160mph
Destruction is imminent across southern Japan and South Korea as super typhoon Hinnamnor barrels northwards through the East China Sea this weekend.
The typhoon is so far the strongest tropical storm of the 2022 hurricane season and developed gradually this week out in the Pacific, edging towards the Philippines and Taiwan. By Thursday, maximum sustained winds had reached 160mph, leading to classification as a category 5 tropical cyclone, or a super typhoon.
Continue reading...After an increase in the number of days when the mercury rose to at least 35C, 9,000 yellow fibreglass umbrellas will be handed out to children in Kumagaya
Children living in Japan’s hottest city will be given specially designed umbrellas to protect them from the heat, after a summer that saw record-breaking temperatures in many parts of the country.
Local authorities in Kumagaya in Saitama prefecture have devised an umbrella that keeps out the rain and doubles as a parasol, the Mainichi Shimbun reported.
Continue reading...The church had built close ties with Fumio Kishida’s ruling party and a host of conservative lawmakers
Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida, has announced that his ruling party will cut ties with the Unification church after a widening scandal caused by the assassination of the party’s former leader Shinzo Abe last month. Kishida also apologised for causing the loss of public trust in politics.
Cozy ties between members of Kishida’s governing Liberal Democratic party, many of them belonging to Abe’s faction, and the South Korean-born church have surfaced since Abe was shot to death while giving a campaign speech in July.
Continue reading...Itaru Nakamura says fresh start needed after assassination ‘to ensure this never happens again’
Japan’s most senior police officer has said he will resign to take responsibility for security lapses leading up to the fatal shooting last month of the former prime minister, Shinzo Abe.
Itaru Nakamura said on Thursday that he intended to step down as head of the national police agency to give the organisation a “fresh start”, weeks after Abe was gunned down while making an election campaign speech.
Continue reading...Move designed to secure energy supplies would mark a dramatic shift in Japan’s policy stance held since 2011 reactor meltdown
Japan is considering building next-generation nuclear reactors and restarting idled plants in a major policy shift, 11 years after the triple meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant rocked the country’s dependence on atomic energy.
The prime minister, Fumio Kishida, said he had directed a government panel to look into how “next-generation nuclear reactors equipped with new safety mechanisms” could be used to help Japan achieve its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. His “green transformation” council is expected to report back by the end of the year, he said on Wednesday.
Continue reading...Church has been in the spotlight since the shooting of Abe Shinzo, but Fumio Kishida insists no relationship exists between the LDP and the group
Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida, has urged senior members of his party to sever their ties with a controversial religious group after his approval ratings nosedived to their lowest level since he took office last year.
Kishida and his Liberal Democratic party (LDP) have been rocked by revelations that dozens of party members have connections to the Unification church. Media reports say they have attended events organised by its affiliates, paid fees or received support during election campaigns.
Continue reading...Consumers complained the homeware and electronics company was not supporting its national roots
A Chinese retail company has apologised for styling itself as a Japanese store, saying it made “serious mistakes”.
Miniso, which sells homeware and electronics, used a logo and branding that appeared similar to that of the Japanese clothing firm Uniqlo. It has been under criticism from Chinese consumers who believed it was not supporting its Chinese roots.
Continue reading...Tokyo high court rules that child born after woman’s legal gender change should not be recognised as her daughter
A Japanese court has ruled that a child born after a transgender woman went through her surgical and legal transition should not be recognised legally as her child, according to local media.
Japan requires that anyone who wants to legally change their gender have surgery to remove the sexual organs they were born with, a practice sharply criticised by human rights groups.
Continue reading...Contest asks young adults for ideas to revitalise popularity of alcoholic drinks after big fall in tax revenues
The Japanese government has launched a nationwide competition calling for ideas to encourage people to drink more alcohol after a change in attitudes among the young resulted in a slide in tax revenues.
The Sake Viva! campaign, which is being run by the National Tax Agency (NTA), asks 20- to 39-year-olds to come up with proposals to help revitalise the popularity of alcoholic drinks, which have fallen out of favour because of lifestyle changes during the coronavirus pandemic and among young people.
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