February 20th, 2007 by James
This morning’s Japan-related news links:
Japan’s foreign minister Taro Aso has denounced a resolution before the US Congress demanding that Tokyo make amends for forcing foreign women into sexual slavery during World War II. “Their action does not take into account the Japanese government’s response to the issue of comfort women,” he said in parliament. [Link]
Japanese researchers said on Sunday they had grown normal-looking teeth from single cells in lab dishes, and transplanted them into mice. [Link]
Yoshio Hosokawa, the mayor of Shika city in Ishikawa Prefecture, unsuccessfully attempted to kill himself by swallowing sleeping pills over the weekend after being questioned over a bid-rigging scandal, sources at the municipal government said Monday. [Link]
A female training intern from abroad agreed on an out-of-court settlement for an undisclosed amount Monday in a damages suit she filed against a construction firm executive over allegedly being sexually assaulted while working at the firm, her attorneys said. The woman came to Japan in November 2004 under the Japan International Training Cooperation Organization’s internship program to learn agriculture-related technologies. But she was assigned to perform household work at the company executive’s home, where she was sexually assaulted. [Link]
A new survey reveals that 55% of Japanese believe that increasing crime by foreigners is causing a worsening of public order in Japan. [Link]
A woman fell onto the tracks at a subway station in Osaka yesterday after she bumped into another commuter while using her mobile phone, but the driver of an incoming train managed to stop some 20 meters before her. [Link]
According to the Yomiuri Shinbun, a South Korean Supreme Court decision in November 2005 facilitating name changes has led to an increase in illegal entries into Japan by South Koreans. Immigration authorities have strengthened their measures to halt illegal entries in the country through such ruses. [Link]
Child molestor Alan Horowitz is now one of America’s most wanted criminals. He was sentenced to 10-to-20 years in prison, but was released two years ago. Officials say he broke parole and is now on the run in Japan. [Link]
Members of a Japanese delegation visiting R&R Partners’ headquarters last week questioned company officials about the nature of the ads it created to lure English-speaking tourists here. The 29 advertising executives frowned upon R&R’s sexually suggestive “What happens here, stays here,” Las Vegas tourism ads. [Link]
A new article in the Boston Herald about Daisuke Matsuzaka’s adjustments to life on the Boston Red Sox declares, “Here, halfway across the globe, Daisuke Matsuzaka is the gaijin.” [Link]
Hay fever sufferers in Japan have a new road to relief: the USB-powered face mask! [Link]
Afternoon Update:
- Public support for the Cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has fallen to 37 percent, its lowest point since he took office in September, a weekend survey by The Asahi Shimbun showed. [Link]
- Although it may be thought that the unusually warm winter could cause cherry blossoms to bloom earlier than usual, the flowers actually require the chill of winter if they are to bloom properly. The Meteorological Agency will issue forecasts on March 7 for the flowering, but experts have said cherry blossoms will appear later than usual in several regions. [Link]
- Bread and cake maker Yamazaki Baking Co. is considering making Fujiya Co. subject to its consolidated earnings as an additional step in supporting the scandal-plagued confectioner. Yamazaki is also studying whether to acquire a 15 percent or more stake in the confectioner. [Link]
- The Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry has questioned Japan Sumo Association officials over a weekly magazine’s report suggesting that Yokozuna Asashoryu was involved in bout-fixing. [Link]
- An unregistered nursing care facility in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, is suspected of locking up residents in a cage and subjecting them to other forms of abuse, prompting the prefectural and city governments to conduct on-site investigations. [Link]
- Prosecutors demanded the death penalty Tuesday for a man suspected of killing three people he got to know through a suicide website in 2005. Hiroshi Maeue, 38, pleaded guilty to the three murders during a hearing at the Osaka District Court, saying he is ready to be sentenced to death. [Link]
- Honda Motor Co. is notifying U.S. Honda and Acura owners they could get warranty extensions because their cars’ odometers rolled up miles too fast. [Link]
- The International Herald Tribune has run an article on the legacy of author Lafcadio Hearn, one of the most well known foreigners to have taken Japanese citizenship. Hearn’s books are treasured here as a trove of traditional legends and folk tales that otherwise might have vanished because no Japanese had bothered to record them. [Link]
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I’m not so sure about that cherry blossom story; we did have a nasty cold snap for a couple of weeks, but some of the cherry blossoms are out now, months early.
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