The continuing deterioration in being able to provide individuals protection in war-torn Afghanistan has resulted in some Japanese organizations suspending their relief activities in order to protect personnel. The Basic Human Needs Association which has been active in developing telecommunications systems in that nation have pulled out its personnel after the death of a Japanese […]

[Read more →]

The Japanese government in a new report to the United Nations claims it has made “every conceivable” effort over the past seven years to rid the nation of any form of racial discrimination. Human rights groups, and Doudou Diene, the UN special rapporteur on racism, have called for passage of legislation which would make clear […]

[Read more →]

Throughout history, Jews have relied on humor to allay problems and concerns, but an Israeli ad has upset Japan’s Nissan corporation. An Israeli television commercial advertising Nissan cars in Israel depicted a group of Arab oil barons angered at the high fuel efficiency of a Nissan car. They become so enraged at a fuel-efficient […]

[Read more →]

Hiroshima marked the 63rd anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb on the city, but the impact of that event continues to impact the lives of many Japanese citizens. Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba has initiated a two year study aimed at preparing a complete picture of the psychological damage caused by the […]

[Read more →]

Globalization increasingly is impacting nations that previously in history had not witnessed the presence of foreigners in their land. One out of 30 babies born in Japan in 2006 had at least one parent who originated from overseas. A survey by the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry, found that either one or both parents of […]

[Read more →]

Japan is among the world’s leading economic powers in the world and its people rank among the top in education, but failure on the part of Japan’s Education Ministry has held the nation up to ridicule. The people of China and Korea are particularly concerned over the refusal of Japanese educators to present the brutality […]

[Read more →]

He was an individual who people passed by while they were engaged in discussions with friends, a man who sat next to someone on the metro who was focusing on the day’s news, or the man who walked by you as you entered the apartment building. Tomohiro Kato, wrote online, “the clicking sound of my […]

[Read more →]

The Japanese government has been negligent in its presentation of World War II, particularly as it relates to actions of Japanese military forces and their brutality. Chie Miyagi, an English teacher in Okinawa has written, “A Letter From Okinawa” which depicts the battle of Okinawa during which the Japanese military ordered civilians to kill themselves […]

[Read more →]

A new proposal by 80 members of the Liberal Democratic Party will move Japan onto new roads in fostering the immigration of foreigners to their nation. The plan which is being submitted to Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda would witness the arrival of 10,000,000 foreigners over the coming fifty years which would result in a Japan […]

[Read more →]

The Japanese parliament finally got around to acknowledging the ongoing discrimination in their country against its original inhabitants– the Ainu. A resolution passed by parliament recognized the Ainu have their own language and language and will now be recognized as being in the category of an indigenous people. The resolution states: “As the Government, we […]

[Read more →]