Abandoned luggage and survival school for kids: Our 5 most-read stories from last week
Inbound tourists abandoning luggage amid Osaka Expo trips causes disposal problems
OSAKA -- Suitcases believed to have been abandoned mainly by foreign travelers are piling up across this city as it hosts Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, putting pressure on local accommodation providers as to how to respond. Full story.
Japan group under fire for holding 'junior survival school' combat training for children
TOKYO -- An organization in Saitama Prefecture has drawn criticism for holding "junior survival school" events featuring combat drills for elementary and junior high school children at public facilities in Tokyo's Itabashi and Suginami wards, sources have told the Mainichi Shimbun. Full story.
What is the controversy surrounding Japan's Yasukuni shrine?
Amid calls that Self-Defense Force members be honored at Tokyo's Yasukuni Jinja shrine if they die in war, some have questioned the legitimacy of such a move in light of the Japanese Constitution, which stipulates the separation of religion and state. The Mainichi Shimbun answers some common questions readers may have about the controversial shrine where Class-A war criminals are enshrined. Full story.
Japan ruling parties mull cash handouts without income limit ahead of upper house race
TOKYO -- The government and ruling coalition parties in Japan are considering using the surplus in national tax revenue for public cash handouts to counter soaring prices. A uniform handout in the range of tens of thousands of yen per person with no income restrictions has been proposed. Full story.
TOKYO -- A Cabinet Office survey has found that 42.7% of seniors in Japan reported carrying out paid work, surpassing 40% for the first time. Full story.
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Asahi Shimbun
3 hours ago
- Asahi Shimbun
Citing manpower shortage, SDF to end annual review ceremony
The review ceremony held at the Ground Self-Defense Force's Asaka training field in Asaka, Saitama Prefecture, on Oct. 14, 2018, involved amphibious vehicles from Japanese and U.S. forces. The ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. (Asahi Shimbun file photo) The Defense Ministry said it will no longer hold an annual Self-Defense Forces review ceremony held in the presence of the prime minister because personnel are too busy trying to keep Japan safe from outside threats. In its July 30 announcement, the ministry also cited a severe manpower shortage as adding to the burden of hosting the parade. The annual ceremony was the most prestigious event on the SDF calendar. It had been hosted in turns by the Ground, Maritime and Air arms of the SDF and was attended by the prime minister in his capacity as the supreme commander. Ministry officials had been weighing the decision for more than six months. At the beginning of the year when Kazuo Masuda served as vice defense minister, he broached scrapping the review ceremony during a meeting with Gen Nakatani in the defense minister's office in Tokyo's Ichigaya district. 'With the MSDF increasingly busy with training exercises and missions in and outside the country, I think it will be difficult to continue the fleet review in the way it has been held to date,' Masuda told him. Gen. Yoshihide Yoshida, then chief of staff of the SDF's Joint Staff and top uniformed officer, later joined the discussions along with other senior officials. Eventually, Nakatani confirmed the intentions of the chiefs of staff of the Ground, Maritime and Air units and decided to end the review ceremony. 'It is difficult to maintain a seamless defense system if we have to hold the ceremony every year,' Nakatani said during a news conference on Aug. 1. NO AUDIENCE SINCE 2020 Like military parades everywhere, the ceremony featured the latest defense equipment and a strong turnout of SDF members, placing a heavy burden on personnel due to a chronic manpower shortage. The ceremony had been held on a reduced scale after the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and with no audience since 2020. A senior ministry official called the decision a 'wise one.' The MSDF pushed to discontinue the ceremony. 'We have been asking for it to be discontinued for the past 10 years,' a senior official said. MSDF warning and surveillance missions have sharply increased in recent years due to China's growing maritime assertiveness. To deal with increased surveillance missions, the MSDF had to deploy minesweepers because destroyers alone were not up to the task without help. Bringing in key vessels for the event ties them up for nearly one month if they come from distant waters for the review held in Sagami Bay on the Pacific coast. The MSDF had to gather its ships from across the country to use them as lookout vessels to prevent fishing boats from entering the zone during the event. 'The fleet review could reveal shortcomings in our maritime defense,' a senior MSDF official said. While the full quota of the SDF is about 247,000, the ratio of personnel to the staffing goal stood at 89.1 percent at the end of fiscal 2024, falling short of 90 percent for the first time in 25 years. SDF recruitment in fiscal 2024, which ended in March, came to 9,724, or just 65 percent of its target. The staffing ratio of low-ranking personnel was 60.7 percent. 'We are having a hard time recruiting young people,' said a ministry source, blaming the falling birthrate. The review ceremony had been held annually since 1951, hosted by the SDF's predecessor, the National Police Reserve. It was aimed at promoting a deeper understanding of the SDF among the public through general visitors. However, a Cabinet Office survey showed that in recent years, about 90 percent of the public harbors a favorable impression of the SDF. 'PR is important, but national defense missions must be the priority,' said a senior official, sharing a widespread view in the ministry. SAPPORO SNOW FESTIVAL In another change, it was announced in May that the GSDF will have a smaller presence at the renowned Sapporo Snow Festival in Hokkaido, where its members traditionally created two massive ice statues. From now on, they will carve only one statue. Officials explained that an accumulative total of 8,000 GSDF members were tied up for more than a month to complete two statues. 'It was a difficult decision to make,' said a senior GSDF member. 'But it is a case of putting the cart before the horse when the members can't receive training because they're too busy building snow statues.' (This article was written by Mizuki Sato and Daisuke Yajima.)
Yomiuri Shimbun
14 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Japanese Self-Defense Forces' Base in Djibouti Becoming Increasingly Important for Situations Occurring in Middle East, Africa
The Self-Defense Forces' activity base in Djibouti in eastern Africa has become increasingly important because SDF units stationed there are responsible for transporting Japanese nationals from the Middle East and African regions, which tend to be instable in the event of an emergency, and undertaking Japan's efforts in international patrols against pirates. The base is also a key site for Japan to face off against China, which has been increasing its presence in those regions while Tokyo is eager to strengthen ties with African nations including Djibouti at the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9), which is held in Yokohama through Friday. After visiting the base on Monday, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani told reporters, 'The importance of the base is increasing overall.' In 2009, the SDF began joining the international patrols against pirates in the Gulf of Aden off Somalia and in 2011 established the base in Djibouti as the SDF's only activity base overseas. The SDF has used to base for destroyer and P-3C patrol plane operations, and about 400 SDF personnel work there. In December 2023, the base was given an additional mission of preparing for protecting and transporting Japanese nationals. The SDF have been contributing to the anti-piracy activities with other participating countries for about 16 years. As those efforts have been effective, the number of attacks on ships by pirates has fallen from 237 in 2011 to under 10 in recent years. The Ground Self-Defense Force's Col. Fumihito Tanaka, who is the top officer at the base and commander of the SDF's Deployment Support-Group for Counter Piracy Enforcement in Djibouti, told The Yomiuri Shimbun, 'This base contributes to Japan's economic activities as the nation relies on maritime transportation for many resources.' Regarding the transportation of Japanese nationals, SDF units at the base have accumulated achievements. For example, when Japanese nationals evacuated from Sudan in 2023, the SDF units transported 45 people to Djibouti. Tanaka, 42, said, 'Operating this base in a stable way has contributed to quick protection and transportation of Japanese nationals.' On the other hand, poverty in Somalia, which is the underlying cause of pirates' activities, has not been resolved. In the wake of a dangerous situation occurring in Iran since June, the SDF had C-2 transport planes dispatched from Japan stand by in Djibouti for the evacuation of Japanese nationals. As evidenced by this case, tensions in the regions have continued. 'Also from now on, we need to make utmost efforts to prepare for piracy incidents and emergency transportation of Japanese nationals,' Tanaka said with great focus. Japan is hosting TICAD 9 in Yokohama from Wednesday. Umio Otsuka, 65, a former Japanese ambassador to Djibouti, said, 'While Japan is shifting the important point of its policy toward Africa from development aid to investments, it is becoming increasingly important to secure safety, which is the major premise for economic activities by Japanese nationals and companies.' Otsuka is a former officer of the Maritime Self-Defense Force and now serves as chief priest of Yasukuni Shrine. Djibouti is a hub of maritime transportation connecting Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe, and thus it is a strategic place from a geopolitical perspective. Major countries including the United States, France, Italy and Spain have activity bases there, and China, which is deploying military forces to faraway places, established a base in Djibouti in 2017. Continuing to maintain the SDF base in Djibouti will make it smoother to share information with concerned Western countries as well as follow the moves of the Chinese military. 'By showing cooperation between Japan and Western countries there toward China, it can result in sending quiet messages of deterrence to China,' Otsuka said.
NHK
20 hours ago
- NHK
Philippine Navy inspects Japanese destroyer escort for possible acquisition
NHK has learned that officials from the Philippine Navy visited Japan this month to inspect a Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer escort. The Philippine Navy is considering acquiring destroyer escorts set to be retired by the MSDF. Sources say the officials visited the MSDF's Sasebo base in Nagasaki Prefecture to inspect the Jintsuu, an Abukuma-class ship. Abukuma-class vessels are 109 meters long and have a standard displacement of 2,000 tons. They are equipped with anti-ship missiles. Japan's Defense Ministry plans to retire all six of the MSDF's vessels of this type and introduce more manpower-efficient ships. The Phillippine Navy says Abukuma-class ships are suitable for operations in the country's waters. Sources say the Japanese side is also working to realize the plan. The move is seen as aimed at strengthening cooperation, with China in mind. Japan's three principles on the transfer of defense equipment and technology restrict the export of lethal weapons. But they allow exports in cases of joint development and production with other nations. Japan's Defense Ministry says it is studying whether the plan is consistent with these principles. Earlier this month, the Australian government selected a Japanese joint development proposal based on the MSDF's Mogami-class frigate.
