Latest news with #Abe
The Mainichi
17 hours ago
- Politics
- The Mainichi
Editorial: Tokyo metro assembly's LDP group irresponsible to sidestep slush fund scandal
The start of campaigning for the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election is impending, yet there has been no progress in unraveling a slush fund scandal involving the assembly's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) faction. With regard to political fundraising parties held by the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly LDP faction in 2019 and 2022, officials failed to record income exceeding the fundraising quotas set for members in financial reports, effectively creating a slush fund. This bears a resemblance to the slush fund scandal involving the LDP's former Abe faction. A total of around 35 million yen (about $245,000) went undeclared, leading to the summary indictment and conviction of a faction accountant. However, cases were not formed against 26 current and former members of the assembly who failed to declare the additional income. In February this year, a committee was set up within the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly to consider a political ethics ordinance in response to the scandal. Clarification of the truth would normally be a premise for establishing an ordinance, but the LDP's reluctant attitude has stood out. All 16 of the current metropolitan assembly members who failed to properly disclose the income responded in writing that they were not aware of any illegality. Two assembly members who were secretaries-general at the time were called as witnesses but only stated that creating slush funds was "a long-standing practice." They added that they "cannot confirm who gave the instructions or when" and that they had "never discussed whether or not to list" the additional income in financial reports. Such evasive explanations are unacceptable. In fact, contradictory testimony has newly emerged from a former faction staff member. In documents and responses to closed-door hearings, the former staffer explained that "the basic policy was set by the faction's executive board (assembly members) at the time." It was also revealed that the secretary-general at the time had said at the faction's general meeting, "Feel free to do as you please" regarding income exceeding the quota for party ticket sales. Regarding the accountant who was summarily indicted, the former worker expressed an understanding that, "He simply carried out tasks as instructed and was not in a position to direct or decide on the skimming." There is a discrepancy between the claims of the assembly members and the former staff member. The LDP must fulfill its responsibility to provide an explanation. Various opinion polls have shown that while public attention is focused on measures to address rising prices, interest in money in politics remains high. While there is little time left before the start of campaigning for the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election on June 13 and voting on June 22, a thorough investigation is necessary. It will not work for officials to turn their backs on clarification of the facts and wait for the issue to fade away. To contribute to the revival of political parties and politics as a whole, the LDP must demonstrate its self-cleansing abilities.
Los Angeles Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
‘Let's go': How media from Japan track down Shohei Ohtani's home-run balls
Shohei Ohtani was about halfway through his home-run trot when Taro Abe stood up from his second-row seat in the Vin Scully Press Box and tucked his green scorebook under his right arm. 'Let's go,' Abe said in Japanese. Abe, a writer for Japan's Chunichi Sports newspaper, was followed into the concourse of Dodger Stadium's suite level by four other reporters from his country. They were on a mission: Find the person who caught Ohtani's home-run ball. There was nothing special about this blast, which was Ohtani's second on Friday in an eventual 8-5 victory over the New York Yankees. The homer was Ohtani's 22nd of the season and reduced the Dodgers' deficit at the time from three to two. 'We have to do this every time,' Abe said. This practice started a couple of years ago, when Ohtani was still playing for the Angels. The appetite for Ohtani content was insatiable in Japan, but the two-way player started speaking to reporters only after games in which he pitched. Naoyuki Yanagihara of Sports Nippon and Masaya Kotani of Full Count figured out a solution for their problem: They started interviewing the fans who caught his home-run balls. The feature was received well by their readers and gradually spread to other publications. Now, besides the homers that land in bullpens or any other place inaccessible to fans, a group of Japanese reporters will be there to interview the person who snagged the prized souvenir. Neither Yanagihara nor Kotani was on this particular journey into the right-field pavilion, as Yanagihara was temporarily back in Japan and Kotani remained in the press box. Both of their publications were represented by other reporters. I was there too. One of the reporters, Michi Murayama of Sports Hochi, looked at me curiously. 'You're coming?' she asked. Abe joked: 'He's coming to write how ridiculous the Japanese media is.' As we walked down a carpeted hallway by the suites down the first-base line, Abe turned around and asked if anyone had seen who caught the ball. No one had. Before departing from the press box, reporters usually study replays of the homer to find identifying features of the ballhawk. But in this case, the scramble for the ball was obscured by a short barrier that divided a television cameraman from the crowd. Abe led the pack out of an exit near the Stadium Club. When we re-entered the ballpark at the loge level, we heard a familiar chant: 'Fre-ddie! Fre-ddie!' The reporters stopped to watch the game from behind the last row of seats. Freeman doubled in a run to reduce the Dodgers' deficit to one, and pandemonium ensued. A young woman clutching a beer danced. Strangers exchanged high-fives. Others performed the Freddie Dance. Yankees manager Aaron Boone removed Max Fried from the game, and called Jonathan Loáisiga from the bullpen. It was time for us to move on. Seniority heavily influences professional and personal interactions in Japanese culture, which was why when we reached the top of the right-field pavilion, the two-most-junior reporters were told to find the ball-catching fan and return with him. Iori Kobayashi of Sports Nippon, 25, and Akihiro Ueno of Full Count, 27, accepted their fates without question. However, the veteran Murayama noticed they weren't making any progress, and soon she was in the middle of the pavilion with them. She came back soon after to tell us we were in the wrong place. 'We have to go down to the Home Run Seats,' she said, referring to seats directly behind the right-field wall that are in a separate section as the rest of the pavilion. The ushers there were helpful, describing how the ball struck the portable plastic wall behind the cameraman, rolled under the barrier, and was taken by a boy in a gray jersey. Murayama found the boy and said he would speak to the group when the inning was over. 'They usually come after the inning because they want to watch the game too,' Abe said. While we waited, Eriko Takehama of Sankei Sports approached Abe and showed him a picture of a fan holding up a piece of the plastic wall that was struck by Ohtani's homer. The piece had broken off, and the fan told Takehama that he was taking it home. 'Do you want to talk to him?' Takehama asked Abe. 'He said he caught a ball three years ago.' Abe declined. While watching Max Muncy taking first base on an intentional walk, Abe said, 'Everyone has a story. You ask them where they live, where they work and there's usually something interesting. We're writing human-interest stories with Ohtani as a cover.' This story would be about a 14-year-old eighth-grader from Monrovia named Fisher Luginvuhl. With his mother standing nearby, the Little League catcher gushed, 'It's like the best thing that's ever happened to me.' The reporters circled the boy and photographed him holding up the ball. They exchanged numbers with Luginvuhl's father so they could send him links to the stories they produced. While the reporters worked together to locate Luginvuhl, they were also in competition with each other to post the story first. Murayama wrote hers on her phone as she walked. Ueno sent audio of the six-minute interview to the Full Count offices in Japan, where the recording was transcribed by an English-speaking reporter, who then used the quotes to write a story. Walking to the right-field pavilion and back was exhausting. I mentioned this to Abe, and he reminded me, 'This was my second time doing this today.' Abe wrote 13 stories on Friday night, 10 of them about Ohtani, including two on fans who caught his homers. Just as we returned to the press box, the next hitter was announced over the public-address system: 'Shohei Ohtani!' Abe laughed and braced for another long walk.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Rare! Putin Tears Up & Chokes During Diplomatic Meet At Kremlin; Abe's Widow Weeps On Cam
Rare! Putin Tears Up & Chokes During Diplomatic Meet At Kremlin; Abe's Widow Weeps On Cam | Watch Source: Russian President Vladimir Putin met the widow of Japan's ex-PM Shinzo Abe in Moscow. Putin called Abe a sincere leader who truly wanted peace with Russia. He said Abe dreamed of signing a Russia-Japan peace treaty and had made real progress. The meeting was emotional, with Abe's widow holding back tears in the Kremlin.#putin #shinzoabe #russia #japan #russiajapan #shinzoabeassassination #moscow #tokyo
The Sun
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Russia's Putin praises Abe, says late Japanese PM wanted peace treaty
RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin paid tribute to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday, saying he knew the slain Japanese leader had dreamt of finally concluding a post-World War Two peace treaty. No treaty was ever signed as the two countries could not resolve a dispute over the then-Soviet Union's seizure at the end of the war of four islands in the Southern Kuril chain, known in Japan as the Northern Territories. Russian media said Abe and Putin met altogether 27 times during the nearly nine years the Japanese leader was in office. Abe left office in 2020 and was assassinated two years later while making an election campaign speech. 'I know that his dream - and he truly strived to achieve this - was to conclude a peace treaty between our two countries. The situation is different now,' the Russian leader said. Putin, whose comments to Abe's widow in the Kremlin were reported by Russian news agencies, also said fulfilling that dream was not possible in the current international situation given the conflict in Ukraine. 'Your husband did a great deal for the development of Russian-Japanese relations. We had very good personal relations,' Putin was quoted as telling Akie Abe. Russia's relations with Japan have been strained by Tokyo's support for sanctions imposed by Ukraine's Western allies over Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. All negotiations on clinching a peace treaty have been suspended. Akie Abe told Putin, according to the agencies, that her husband had wanted to meet Putin even after the start of the Ukraine conflict 'but unfortunately circumstances were such that he was no longer able to meet you. His life was cut short.'
The Sun
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Putin praises Abe, says late Japanese PM wanted peace treaty
RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin paid tribute to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday, saying he knew the slain Japanese leader had dreamt of finally concluding a post-World War Two peace treaty. No treaty was ever signed as the two countries could not resolve a dispute over the then-Soviet Union's seizure at the end of the war of four islands in the Southern Kuril chain, known in Japan as the Northern Territories. Russian media said Abe and Putin met altogether 27 times during the nearly nine years the Japanese leader was in office. Abe left office in 2020 and was assassinated two years later while making an election campaign speech. 'I know that his dream - and he truly strived to achieve this - was to conclude a peace treaty between our two countries. The situation is different now,' the Russian leader said. Putin, whose comments to Abe's widow in the Kremlin were reported by Russian news agencies, also said fulfilling that dream was not possible in the current international situation given the conflict in Ukraine. 'Your husband did a great deal for the development of Russian-Japanese relations. We had very good personal relations,' Putin was quoted as telling Akie Abe. Russia's relations with Japan have been strained by Tokyo's support for sanctions imposed by Ukraine's Western allies over Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. All negotiations on clinching a peace treaty have been suspended. Akie Abe told Putin, according to the agencies, that her husband had wanted to meet Putin even after the start of the Ukraine conflict 'but unfortunately circumstances were such that he was no longer able to meet you. His life was cut short.'
