Japan’s new justice minister defends death penalty amid debate over wrongful convictions
“I do not believe it is appropriate to abolish the death penalty, although we will think about employing it carefully and with great sincerity,” he said.
Ken Kato in asian news
More Japanese open to foreign workers as labour crunch bites, despite concerns of ‘different values’
The Japanese public appears to have come around to the conclusion that more foreign workers are needed to keep the country functioning, with a new poll indicating 62 per cent of respondents support the government’s policy of granting more visas for skilled personnel.
China seen as security threat by over 90% of Japanese, new survey shows
“I do not think these numbers come as any great surprise,” said Sumie Kawakami, a lecturer at Yamanashi Gakuin University southwest of Tokyo. “North Korea has been firing a lot of missiles recently, and I find it interesting that [national broadcaster] NHK used to refer to these launches as of ‘projectiles’, but now they are simply calling them missiles.”
It’s the cost that counts: more Japanese men ‘fed up’ with splurging for obligatory White Day gifts
Like an increasing number of Japanese men, Ken Kato will not be shelling out for chocolates, a bottle of nice wine or a meal out with his wife for “White Day” on Thursday. Kato says he is tired of “manufactured” occasions designed to guilt people into buying gifts.
Most Japanese do not have ‘friendly feelings’ towards China amid Beijing’s aggression in South China Sea, Taiwan: poll
Survey respondents that spoke to This Week in Asia, however, emphasised that they did not dislike the Chinese people and that they held largely positive feelings towards Chinese cuisine, history, art and culture. Their dislike was aimed primarily at the government in Beijing and the Communist Party.