JAPAN: Homeless Eviction Order & more – 5th Dec 2024

Konnichiwa from BA! This is the Rorshok Japan Update from the 5th of December twenty twenty-four. A quick summary of what's going down in Japan.

Meanwhile, on Sunday the 1st of December, over 500 government officials and police officers carried out an eviction order in Osaka's Kamagasaki district in western Japan, removing homeless people living near the closed Airin General Center. They also removed residents, confiscated personal belongings, and cleared debris.

In twenty nineteen, Osaka closed the Airin General Center for demolition and rebuilding. However, people began squatting in the center, which was a long-time symbol of community support for day laborers in the district. The Sunday eviction followed a May court ruling that found that the Osaka prefectural government had a right to reclaim the land.

Administrative staff offered alternative shelter to those they evicted. However, many evictees declined because they didn’t trust the staff after the police removed them so abruptly. Support groups of homeless people protested the sudden eviction, saying they should have given more notice.

That’s not all the government is doing. On Monday the 2nd of December, it discontinued standalone health insurance cards and integrated them with My Number cards, the country’s national ID. People who currently hold health insurance cards will still be able to use them until the 1st of December, twenty twenty-five. To use a My Number card as a health insurance card, users can register through the government-run My Number Portal app, hospital card readers, or convenience store ATMs. Expired cards have to be renewed at local government offices.

The government introduced the My Number card in twenty sixteen. It links personal data, including taxes, social security, and, starting next March, driver’s license information. The integration will make it easier for medical facilities to keep track of patient data like prescriptions and improve treatment. However, the new scheme was put into question as the system’s data can leak and the difficult registration process can cause errors.

On Saturday the 30th of November, a bear broke into a supermarket in Akita Prefecture, northern Japan, and injured the face of a forty-seven-year-old male employee. The bear, which was one meter (or three feet) long, continued roaming the store, particularly the meat section. Authorities spent two days trying to capture the bear using food to lure it and even a drone to track it. They finally caught it on Monday the 2nd of December, and killed it.

Many comments on news websites and social media sympathized with the bear, asking why it had to be killed since it was so small. Others pointed out that the bear had already broken into a property and injured someone, and that killing it is better for public safety.

Speaking of public safety, Ken Kobayashi, the Chairman of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said he was concerned about Yoon Suk-yeol, the South Korean president, declaring martial law, even though he lifted it quickly. Kobayashi said it created political instability and could have put Japan–South Korea supply chains at risk. He also said it could have a strong impact on South Korea’s economy and possibly Japan’s as well.

Kobayashi said the countries’ relations had made a lot of progress in recent years thanks to Fumio Kishida, the former Japanese Prime Minister, and President Yoon. However, if South Korea is going through a lot of political turmoil, that could make it hard for Kishida's successor, Shigeru Ishiba, to establish diplomatic relations.

Next up, members of the Japan Innovation Party, Nippon Ishin, overwhelmingly elected Hirofumi Yoshimura, the Osaka governor, as the party’s new leader on Sunday the 1st of December. In his acceptance speech, Yoshimura said he wanted to work with other political parties to secure a majority in the Upper House election, taking place next summer. This comes after Nippon Ishin lost six seats in the recent Lower House election under its last leader.

Yoshimura said that he would work to make the party more stable and visible, and nominated Seiji Maehara, a veteran politician, as his co-representative to help make that possible.

Hiroshi Kamiwaki, a Kobe Academy University professor, submitted a letter of complaint with his lawyer on Monday the 2nd of December against Motohiko Saito, the Hyogo governor, and the manager of Merchu Inc., a public relations firm, for violating election law in the most recent election. They accused Saito of bribing the firm’s manager for campaign services, saying it’s illegal to offer financial benefits during elections.

Saito, who reclaimed his position despite prior allegations of power abuse, insists the payments were for lawful campaign activities such as producing posters. However, Merchu made a blog post on the 20th of November talking about its role in his campaign, and Kamiwaki said that the payments the firm talked about violated election law.

In health news, Japan's Health Ministry is reforming the organ transplant system to improve efficiency and reduce patient mortality rates. Patients awaiting organ transplants from donors who no longer have brain function will soon be allowed to register at more than one medical institution. This will increase patients’ chances of getting a transplant at an alternate facility even if their primary choice cannot perform the surgery. This change also addresses current issues like staff shortages and limited bed availability.

The ministry also plans to delegate some responsibilities of the Japan Organ Transplant Network, such as coordinating with donor families and managing organ harvesting, to more local entities. This will hopefully make the transplant process faster.

The ministry also wants to provide data on waiting lists and transplant numbers so patients can make more informed choices on where to apply for donors. These updates mark the first major overhaul since nineteen ninety-seven.

On a lighter note, Crown Prince Akishino and Princess Akishino of Japan flew to Turkey on a goodwill visit on Tuesday the 3rd of December for the 100th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two nations.

The couple met with the Turkish President and his wife in Ankara before traveling to Istanbul.

They will return to Japan on Sunday the 8th of December.

That’s not the only bit of positive international news. On Wednesday the 4th, during an intergovernmental committee meeting in Paraguay, UNESCO announced that it was registering three cultural traditions from different countries as Intangible Cultural Heritage. Among them was traditional sake-making in Japan. This addition brings Japan’s total Intangible Cultural Heritage registrations to twenty-three.

The traditional sake-making process involves manual techniques by master brewers and brewers using a mold called koji, which grows on rice or wheat. This method is over 500 years old. UNESCO recognized sake-making for its cultural significance; its role in festivals, weddings, and rites of passage; and its deep ties to Japanese regional traditions.

Finally, on Monday the 2nd of December, the Simose Art Museum in Otake City, Hiroshima Prefecture, western Japan, won the twenty twenty-four Prix Versailles, a prestigious architectural award, for the world's most beautiful museum. Designed by renowned Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, the museum opened in March twenty twenty-three and houses a collection of around 500 works of Japanese and Western modern art and crafts.

This award marks the first year the Prix Versailles included a museum category. Simose Art Museum officials hope the recognition will attract more visitors, with many already impressed by its unique architectural style and integration with the environment.

To learn more about the museum, check out its website with the link in the show notes!

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

Do you know that besides the Rorshok Japan Update, we also do others? Our latest ones are the Arctic Update, about the area north of the Arctic Circle, the Ocean Update, about the 70% of the world covered in salt water, and the Multilateral Update, about the world’s major multilateral institutions. The other ones are all country updates, we have a selection of countries from Africa, Asia, South America, and Europe. Check roroshok.com/updates for the full list, the link is in the show notes.

Mata Ne!