Latest news with #Minamata
The Mainichi
2 days ago
- Health
- The Mainichi
Japan's Niigata governor criticizes incorrect 'hereditary' description of Minamata disease
NIIGATA -- Niigata Gov. Hideyo Hanazumi expressed his displeasure over an incorrect description of Minamata disease mercury poisoning in an online teaching material by a major home tutoring operator, which stated, "The terrifying fact about Minamata disease is that it's hereditary." Hanazumi called the account in the material published by Trygroup Inc. "a clear mistake and extremely regrettable" during a regular news conference May 28. Although the company has acknowledged the error and taken down the material, the prefectural government plans to address the issue while working with Kumamoto Prefecture, home to the first reported case of the industrial pollution-derived disease and where patients and victims are located. The teaching material, aimed at junior high school students, described cases in which children developed Minamata disease at birth after being affected through their mother's placenta as "hereditary." On May 14, the Ministry of the Environment pointed out the error to the company, and the material was removed May 22. Hanazumi called the mistake "a case that must not happen" and stated that he would closely monitor the Environment Ministry's response, including reports on how the error occurred and measures to prevent a recurrence. Touching on that this year marks the 60th anniversary of the official recognition of Niigata Minamata disease, the governor added, "It is important to convey the facts, history and lessons of Minamata disease. Renewed efforts are necessary." (Japanese original by Noriaki Kinoshita, Niigata Bureau)
Asahi Shimbun
5 days ago
- Health
- Asahi Shimbun
Apology issued over false lesson on Minamata disease ‘gene'
Trygroup Inc. has removed this false information about Minamata disease. (Captured from Trygroup Inc.'s online education material) After repeated government requests, a home tutoring company apologized for wrongly teaching children that Minamata disease, a neurological disorder caused by mercury poisoning, is hereditary. Trygroup Inc., known for its 'Katei Kyoushi no Try' education service, issued the apology on its website and removed the false information that was presented during an online lecture for junior high school students. 'Minamata-byou Higaisha, Shiensha Renraku Kai,' a group of Minamata disease patients and their supporters, learned about erroneous lecture at the end of April. The group, saying such false information promotes discrimination against Minamata disease victims, asked the Environment Ministry to take action. The group also sent a request to Trygroup to correct its educational materials. According to the group, Trygroup's video lecture was for a junior high school history class as part of its 'Try I' service. The topics in the lecture were the four major pollution-caused illnesses in Japan. 'The most horrible aspect of this (Minamata) disease is its hereditary nature,' the lecture said. 'Pregnant women who developed the disease often passed it on to their babies.' Minamata disease was discovered in the 1950s among residents who consumed marine products tainted with organic mercury discharged from a chemical factory into Minamata Bay, Kumamoto Prefecture. Babies born with the disease were affected by the mercury while in the wombs of their mothers. The disease is not passed down through genes. However, incorrect beliefs about the disease have spread, leading to discrimination against victims of the poisoning and their relatives. Some have been rejected for marriage based only on where they were born. 'There are still patients who suffer from misconceptions and discrimination,' said Ichiro Motoshima, an official of the patients and supporters group. 'The central government should thoroughly educate people to understand the facts.' The Environment Ministry said it sent a request for a correction to Trygroup on May 14, and the company partly corrected the lecture. But the ministry deemed that measure was insufficient and had continued contacting Trygroup until it issued the apology for its false lecture. 'There is no fact that Minamata disease is hereditary. We apologize for the incorrect expression and have corrected that part,' the company said on its website on May 23. The ministry intends to continue seeking an explanation from the company. Similar false information was also spread earlier this year by the city government of Uki in Kumamoto Prefecture A calendar that the municipality distributed to all 23,000 households in Uki at the end of February contained a description that could be interpreted as: 'Minamata and Hansen's diseases are infectious.' The city has since circulated a correction seal for the description to all households and apologized. Minamata disease is not infectious. But in the initial period after its discovery, the cause of the disease was unknown, leading to the mistaken belief that it could be spread from human to human. Hansen's disease, more commonly known as leprosy, has an extremely low level of contagiousness. Currently, it is very rare for a person to become infected with and develop Hansen's disease.
Kyodo News
6 days ago
- Health
- Kyodo News
Kyodo News Digest: May 25, 2025
KYODO NEWS - 1 hour ago - 15:03 | All, World, Japan The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News. ---------- 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." ---------- 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. ---------- 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." ---------- 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. ---------- 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. ---------- 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. ---------- 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. ---------- 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
Japan Times
01-05-2025
- Health
- Japan Times
Victims mourned 69 years after Minamata disease recognition
Hundreds of people prayed for the victims of Minamata disease in a ceremony in southwestern Japan on Thursday, 69 years after the neurological disorder caused by polluted industrial wastewater was officially recognized. Some 660 people, including patients, bereaved families, Environment Minister Keiichiro Asao and Keizo Yamada, president of Chisso Corp., which released the wastewater, attended the ceremony in Minamata, a city in Kumamoto Prefecture. Minoru Sugimoto, a 58-year-old local resident whose grandparents and parents were recognized as patients, said in a speech that they did not hate people or look sad even when they were discriminated against after developing symptoms. "The whole family must have overcome the suffering and sorrow together," he said, voicing hope that his grandchildren will remember happy memories about the sea when they grow up. "We once again apologize for not being able to prevent the spread of Minamata disease," Asao said in the ceremony. "We should not repeat the disastrous pollution like Minamata disease again." At a meeting last year, an Environment Ministry official cut off the microphone to interrupt patients' remarks, causing an uproar. The then-environment minister traveled to Minamata later again to apologize. There were 2,284 certified patients of Minamata disease in Kumamoto Prefecture and neighboring Kagoshima Prefecture as of the end of March, while 1,271 others had applied for certification.
