Kyodo News Digest: July 26, 2025
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Over 50% of Japan's upper house lawmakers oppose LDP-led government
TOKYO - A postelection survey conducted by Kyodo News showed Friday that 56.4 percent of House of Councillors members do not favor a ruling coalition led by the Liberal Democratic Party and its junior partner Komeito party.
Asked about the preferred form of government after the election, 23.3 percent supported an opposition-led coalition, while 33.1 percent called for a new political framework through realignment, indicating a desire for change from the current ruling structure.
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China lodges protest with Japan over Taiwan foreign minister's visit
BEIJING - China has lodged a strong protest with Japan over a recent visit by Taiwan's Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung, criticizing it as an opportunity for the self-ruled island to engage in separatist activities.
The protest was made by Liu Jinsong, head of the Chinese Foreign Ministry's Asian Affairs Department, in a meeting with Akira Yokochi, chief minister at the Japanese Embassy in Beijing, on Friday. Liu criticized Japan for allowing Lin to visit as it sends a "wrong signal," according to China's Foreign Ministry.
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Hundreds gather to support Japan PM Ishiba amid calls for resignation
TOKYO - Hundreds of people filled the streets outside Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's office on Friday, urging him not to step down in a rare show of support for the embattled leader, who is facing growing pressure from within his own party to resign following a crushing election loss.
The hour-long rally in the sweltering summer heat in Tokyo was marked by a crowd of people holding up placards, chanting "Hang in there!" and "Don't quit!"
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Tokyo sushi worker killed at restaurant, allegedly by colleague
TOKYO - A 32-year-old man was fatally stabbed Friday, allegedly by his colleague, at a sushi restaurant in Tokyo's busy Ikebukuro area where he worked, police said.
The police arrested Masahito Ishioka on suspicion of murdering Tomoyuki Iwata at around 4:30 p.m., before opening time, they said, adding that the 56-year-old admitted to having killed him due to an interpersonal problem.
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Japan raises travel alert for Thailand, Cambodia border, amid clashes
TOKYO - Japan's Foreign Ministry on Friday raised its travel alert for the Thailand-Cambodia border area following recent armed clashes between the two Southeast Asian countries, advising citizens not to visit the region.
Under the updated travel advisory, the designated area has been placed under a level 3 alert, the second-highest on the four-point scale, urging nationals to "avoid all travel."
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Latvian staffer at Osaka expo goes viral with love of Japan
OSAKA - A Latvian staff member at the World Exposition in Osaka has drawn over half a million social media followers after posting about his experience of engaging with Japanese language and culture as a foreigner.
Artur Galata, 31, who has been posting on X and Instagram, said he was "very happy to work in my favorite country" after having visited 11 times since April 2017, traveling to more than 40 of the 47 prefectures.
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Kirin launches 20-yr whisky aging service for life milestones
TOKYO - A new service launched by Kirin Brewery Co. lets customers purchase malt whisky at key life moments and age it for 20 years, offering tasting samples along the way to experience the flavor's evolution.
The initial offering, launched June 6 on the crowdfunding platform Makuake, sold out the same day. The major Japanese brewer hopes to roll out the service on a larger scale next year.
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Baseball: Ohtani's homer streak ends, Imanaga roughed up
BOSTON - Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani had his homer streak snapped at five games Friday, while Chicago Cubs pitcher Shota Imanaga had his worst outing of the season.
Ohtani went 1-for-4 with a single, a walk and two strikeouts in the Dodgers' 5-2 win over the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. His five-game home run streak equals six other players in Dodgers history, most recently Max Muncy in 2019.
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Video: "Yamahoko" parade in Kyoto's Gion Festival
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In a Facebook post quoted by Reuters, Cambodia's influential former Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has played a prominent role in the conflict over the past few months, thanked 'the armies of both Cambodia and Thailand for respecting and implementing this agreement.' As I noted yesterday, these claims and counterclaims – surrounded by a blizzard of one-sided and (often AI-generated) articles in the Cambodian and Thai press – point to just how far bilateral trust has been harmed by the mutual escalation that preceded the outbreak of fighting last week. Whether the ceasefire holds over the longer term depends on the extent to which domestic political constituencies in both countries, including their respective armies, are committed to peace. 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Mahathir reshaped Malaysia's politics and modernized its economy. He is also the source of many of the contradictions that continue to define the country today. Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, who turned 100 on July 10, stands as a political titan who casts a long shadow over Malaysia's modern history. A physician from a modest background, he joined politics in the 1960s, and thereby embarked on an extraordinary trajectory. Mahathir was the founding father of modern Malaysia, its most enduring political figure, and, arguably, the architect of many of the contradictions that continue to define – and divide – the country. From his first stint as prime minister from 1981 until 2003, and again in a stunning political comeback from 2018 to 2020, Mahathir reshaped Malaysia's economy, identity, and politics. His legacy is both vertiginous and deeply contested. Central to Mahathir's worldview is the 'Malay Dilemma,' an idea that he articulated in his 1970 book of the same name. Drawing from colonial narratives – notably those later critiqued by sociologist Syed Hussein Alatas in his study 'The Myth of The Lazy Native' – Mahathir internalized and reinterpreted British stereotypes of the 'lazy' or 'nonchalant' Malay. Rather than rejecting these views outright, he reframed them as an urgent national problem: the Malays, the 'sons of the soil,' were being left behind by the economically dominant Chinese minority, highlighting that the traditions of 'forced marriage of the unfit' and 'inbreeding' which, according to Mahathir, had produced 'a much greater percentage of human failures among the Malay as compared with other races.' This book aimed to explain the ethnic tensions between Malays and Chinese during the politically orchestrated ethnic riots of May 1969. In a preface to a new edition of 'The Malay Dilemma' published in 2008, Mahathir revised his view over the extent to which hereditary factors had contributed to the socio-economic status of the Malay, but the idea continues to haunt the Malaysian national psyche to the present. Mahathir's diagnosis of Malay social pathologies laid the groundwork for Malaysia's affirmative action policies, most notably the New Economic Policy (NEP), which privileged Malays in areas ranging from education to business and the civil service. Under Mahathir, these policies were not only expanded but entrenched in the country's corporate, social, and political cultures. During this time, Mahathir's management of the economy was widely praised. He prioritized fiscal discipline, maintained a relatively open market, focused on infrastructure development, and actively encouraged foreign direct investment. These efforts contributed to a consistent annual growth rate of around 6-7 percent during most of his tenure. His rule also cultivated a new confident Malay urban elite, who benefited greatly from his state-sponsored contracts and quotas. But in doing so, he also locked the Malay community into a framework of entitlement and dependency. What began as protectionism morphed into institutionalized favoritism, with political patronage and crony capitalism feeding a system that ultimately undermined the very self-reliance Mahathir hoped to instill. While intended to uplift the Malay majority, these policies deepened Malaysia's racial fractures. By encoding ethnic identity into economic opportunity, Mahathir's policies helped formalize a structural racial divide that persists today. Each election cycle has seen politicians – especially those from the dominant Malay parties – doubling down on the rhetoric of racial entitlement and fear. Instead of fostering national cohesion, the policies seeded mistrust and resentment between communities. Ironically, in his later years, Mahathir seemed to recognize the limitations and unintended consequences of this strategy. In his last term, he tried to reform the system, acknowledging that the quota-based policies no longer gave Malays a real advantage. But rather than blaming the outdated structures he helped build, Mahathir often turned his criticism inward, accusing the Malay community of complacency and failure to seize the opportunities offered to them. Paradoxically, the father of Malay empowerment chastised his own people for not thriving within the very system he contributed to designing. During his brief second term as prime minister, Mahathir took bold steps to tackle corruption, a move many saw as a long-overdue attempt to redeem his legacy. He appointed Latheefa Koya, a respected human rights lawyer and fierce critic of institutional corruption, to head Malaysia's anti-graft agency. Yet, skeptics questioned the sincerity of these reforms. The infamous 1MDB scandal, which exploded under Prime Minister Najib Razak's 2009-2018 tenure, is a symptom of the system that was created during Mahathir's earlier tenure: the building of the new United Malays National Organization (UMNO) and a Malay elite. His critics accused him of using anti-corruption efforts selectively, targeting rivals rather than genuinely dismantling the structures that enabled graft. In 2018, Mahathir's return to power against all odds was historical. At 93, he led the opposition coalition to an unexpected victory, toppling UMNO, the party he once led, for the first time since the country's independence. It was a masterclass in political reinvention: from autocratic strongman to democratic savior. Mahathir managed the impossible feat of rewriting his legacy in real time. But his second act ended in chaos. Misreading the fragile alliances that brought him back to power, Mahathir resigned in 2020, believing, as he often had before, that the nation would call him back to stabilize the government. Instead, his former deputy, Muhyiddin Yassin, seized the moment and formed a new coalition without him. This miscalculation echoed an earlier one. In the late 1990s, Mahathir dismissed Anwar Ibrahim, then his heir apparent, triggering a political crisis that would shape Malaysia for two decades. Mahathir underestimated his allies both times and paid the price. In his last attempt to run for an election, Mahathir's newly formed party, the Parti Pejuang Tanah Air (Homeland Fighter's Party) or Pejuang, had disastrous results; all candidates, including Mahathir, performed so poorly that they lost their election deposits. Mahathir now refers to himself, often sarcastically, as a 'dictator' who resigned twice. His long career has made him both a living relic and a reference point for a generation of strongmen. His friendships with controversial figures like Fidel Castro and Robert Mugabe, and admiration for figures such as Nelson Mandela, whose first political campaign he quietly funded, paint a portrait of a leader who was adept at operating on both the world stage and in the maze of domestic politics. Today, as global politics witnesses a resurgence of autocrats claiming democratic legitimacy, Mahathir offers a cautionary tale. His criticisms of leaders like Donald Trump are laced with irony, given his own long flirtation with authoritarianism. And yet, unlike many of his peers, Mahathir walked away, not once, but twice, from power. Whether that was courage, hubris, or simply miscalculation is a question my academic colleagues will debate. But there's no denying his impact. Mahathir built Malaysia's modern foundation, and created its political fault lines. Understanding his career is not just about understanding one man's journey, but the story of an entire nation navigating the promises and perils of leadership, identity, and ambition.
