Features National
Ida Torres on Jun 19 2013
The
netouyo, that tiny but very vocal portion of Japanese netizens that mostly have strong right-wing views, have come out in full support of the
Zaitokukai ("Citizens Against Special Privilege of Zainichi") members who were arrested during a protest on Sunday, June 16. Four members, including their leader Makoto Sakurai, were arrested on suspicion of criminal assault after
getting into an altercation with members of another protest group who are opposing their principles.
K-pop superstar group
Girls' Generation has released a new single called
LOVE&GIRLS specifically for their Japanese market, where they have a huge fan base. The girl group is hoping to capitalize on the power of their previous releases like
Flower Power, which reached No. 6 in the Japan Hot 100 charts, and
Paparazzi,
which became No. 1.
Eight people were arrested on Sunday as an anti-Korean demonstration in the Shinjuku district of
Tokyo turned violent. 200 supporters of
Zaitokukai ("Citizens Against Special Privileges for Zainichi") showed up in Shinjuku Ward for their regular anti-Korean demonstration in an area heavily populated with
Korean citizens. Around 350 members of
Reishisuto wo Shibakitai ("Resistance Troops Against Those Who Discriminate"), a group who opposes their diatribe, made their presence felt as well.
The United States is set to meet with Japan and South Korea tomorrow and on Wednesday in Washington in response to
North Korea’s offer to hold high-level talks, a senior US official confirmed yesterday. Washington has stated that it wants "credible negotiations" with Pyongyang, hoping that these talks will ultimately lead to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.
The government of
South Korea is of the opinion that the facts about the disputed islands in the Sea of Japan, called Takeshima by the Japanese, and Dokdo by the Koreans, presented in Japanese history textbooks are distorted and their education ministry revealed on Friday that it plans to call on Japan to “correct” these problems.
Japan, the United States and South Korea are scheduled to hold senior-level meetings in Washington next week to put into perspective
North Korea’s continued efforts to further its nuclear weapons development program. The three nations, having taken the responsibility of guarding the security and stability of the region, will look to convene again after six months of not having talks at this level, this revealed by a Japanese government source on Thursday.
Jeffrey Bader, former senior adviser for Asian affairs of the National Security Council, criticized Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and other Japanese political leaders for their controversial views on history that have strained their relations with neighboring Asian countries. He also said that the
U.S. government could be more critical of Japan if they do revise their past statements and apologies for wartime crimes.
South Korean chemicals and insurance conglomerate Hanwha Group said that it is doubling its efforts to be able to tap Japan's growing need for solar energy. The Japanese government is looking into diversifying its energy sources since only 2 of the 50 existing nuclear reactors are currently online. The 2011 Fukushima plant accident raised concerns over nuclear power, leading to exploration of
renewable energy sources like solar and wind.
Lifestyle & Travel
Ida Torres on Jun 11 2013
Japanese tourists used to flock to
South Korea since the Tokyo and Seoul are just one hour away from each other by plane. But it seems that economic and political factors have drastically changed that scenario and now the Korean tourism industry is hurting because of the drop in visitors from its neighbor.
Nariaki Nakayama, a lawmaker of the
Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) from the Japan’s Lower House, has again put to question the reality of South Korean “
comfort women” – a term that has come to describe the over 200,000 women recorded in history as being recruited by the Japanese Imperial Army in the Second World War – saying that these Korean women were not coerced to work in brothels. This remark has come after his party leader, Osaka mayor
Toru Hashimoto, recently made statements justifying the wartime sex slavery system of Japan’s military.
