Kyodo News Digest: May 25, 2025
The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan PM vows better treatment of SDF staff amid security challenges
TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba pledged Sunday to improve the treatment and working conditions of Self-Defense Forces members tasked with serving in an increasingly challenging security climate.
During a roundtable with young personnel at a district-level command of the Maritime Self-Defense Force in Kyoto Prefecture, Ishiba said, "We must treat you appropriately as you strive to carry out your duties regardless of the risks."
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Japan sets rules on name readings to curb flashy "kirakira names"
TOKYO - Japan will impose rules on Monday on how children's names in Chinese characters are pronounced, amid growing concern over what are known as "kirakira names" -- flashy or unusual readings that have stirred debate.
The move is part of the enforcement of a revised law requiring all names in the national family registry to include phonetic readings, which will effectively ban interpretations considered too disconnected from the characters used.
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Major Japan tutoring firm sorry for false claim on Minamata disease
KUMAMOTO, Japan - A major Japanese tutoring company has recently apologized for inaccurately describing the Minamata mercury-poisoning disease as hereditary in its online study material, a description that drew strong public criticism.
The false claim appeared in a video lesson for junior high school students from the firm's "Try IT" online service, which explained cases of infants developing the disease via mercury exposure through the placenta but wrongly called the condition "inherited."
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Japan to increase salaries of chefs at diplomatic missions
TOKYO - Japan's government plans to improve working conditions for chefs at its overseas diplomatic missions due to intensifying competition for talent as the nation's cuisine grows in popularity worldwide.
More than 6 million yen ($41,000) will be paid annually to chefs under the new scheme slated to start in January, up from the current average of around 4 to 4.5 million yen, according to the Foreign Ministry.
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Octogenarians in Philippines given Japan citizenship meet Okinawa kin
LINAPACAN, Philippines - Two sisters in their 80s of Japanese descent in the Philippines who had been stateless before being granted citizenship from Japan last year met with their Japanese relatives for the first time Sunday.
The meeting between Esperanza Morine Cabrillos, 87, and Lydia Morine Galalan, 85, and their relatives from their Japanese father's side came as this year marked the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and eight months after they were recognized as Japanese nationals.
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Drug suspect attempts to flee police custody as officer dozes
YOKOHAMA - A man suspected of possessing stimulant drugs fled a police station in Kawasaki near Tokyo while a police officer dozed in an interrogation room on Saturday, but he was swiftly recaptured, police said.
Kohei Takai, 32, was caught after fleeing on a street about 200 meters from Kawasaki Police Station around at 9:35 a.m. He had been served an arrest warrant over the possession of stimulant drugs earlier.
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Baseball: Shohei Ohtani likely to return to mound after All-Star break
NEW YORK - Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani's return to the mound is likely to be after the All-Star break, manager Dave Roberts said Saturday.
Ohtani is scheduled to face batters Sunday for the first time since elbow surgery in September 2023.
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Swarming insects causing distress at World Exposition in Osaka
OSAKA - Swarms of midges have become a headache at the World Exposition in Osaka, causing visitors to cringe and raising concerns about possible health issues.
The small flies have been found on walls and the pillars of the wooden Grand Ring encircling many of the pavilions, with people forced to fight them off to avoid swallowing them.
Video: Festival to introduce Japanese sake takes place in Seoul
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SoraNews24
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Yomiuri Shimbun
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