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Diet passes bill to take foreigners’ prints, pics
Despite strong criticism from the Japan Federation of Bar Associations and human rights organizations, the bill cleared the House of Councilors with a majority vote by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito. With the revision of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law, an estimated 6 million to 7 million foreigners entering Japan…
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Nova projects net loss as rapid expansion backfires
Nova Corp said Friday it expects its group net balance to have fallen into the red in the business year through last March with a loss of 3 billion yen as a result of competition for student enrollment among its own schools. The major English conversation school operator had projected a 200 million yen profit…
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Toyota lawsuit a reminder that changes in Japan are coming too slowly
Lawyers have said that over the past decade, firms in Japan have improved their policies against sexual harassment due to changes in the law and an increased awareness of their corporate social responsibility. However, they said companies are not doing enough to educate their male employees that their behavior victimizes women and has serious consequences,…
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Universal access — if you speak Japanese
Despite 2 million foreign residents and calls for internationalization from within, Japan has a long way to go before becoming a multilingual society. The current state of health care is no exception. Be it university hospitals with cutting-edge research facilities or your neighborhood dental clinic, few medical institutions in Japan are capable of serving patients…
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Japan rethinks immigration policy
“Whether we like it or not, there are many foreigners who want to come to Japan. We must think about how we can accept those who want to work or settle in Japanese society, without friction,” Koizumi told members of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy, according to the publicized minutes. “If we accept…
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Media oppose self-censorship clause in national referendum bill
Media outlets are concerned a draft bill broadly agreed to by the three largest political parties to call on news organizations to censor themselves during a campaign for a proposed national referendum to revise the Constitution would undermine reporting and informed discussion of a constitutional amendment. http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20060504TDY01003.htm
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Constitution survey shows 77% oppose changing Article 9
Seventy-seven percent of the public is against revising the Constitution’s war-renouncing Article 9, according to the results of a street survey released Wednesday by a citizens group [led by Ryuzaburo Noda, professor emeritus of mathematics at Okayama University]. Of the 28,169 people polled, 21,652, or 77 percent, opposed revision, 3,270, or 12 percent, supported revision,…
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Tottori’s Human Rights Ordinance is a case study in alarmism
On Oct. 12, 2005, the Tottori Prefectural Assembly approved Japan’s first human rights ordinance, a local law forbidding and punishing racial discrimination. In a land where racial discrimination is not illegal, this is an historic occasion. Even a clarion call: If even rural Tottori can pass this, what’s stopping the rest of the country? But…
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Wave of retiring workers could force big changes
All over Japan, companies are bracing for a demographic wave that will wash away many of their most experienced employees. The Japanese call it their “2007 problem.” Beginning next year, members of what Japan considers its baby boom generation will start hitting 60 and dropping out of the workforce. Some might postpone retirement, but they…
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Immigration reform, political protests mark world May Day
About 300,000 people across Japan took part in various May Day events calling for better working conditions. In Tokyo, 44,000 people gathered in a park before marching through the city center, waving colorful banners to protest what they see as growing social inequalities between the rich and poor. http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2006/may/02/yehey/world/ 20060502wor1.html