JAPAN: South Korea’s Boycott & more – 28th Nov 2024

Konnichiwa from BA! This is the Rorshok Japan Update from the 28th of November twenty twenty-four. A quick summary of what's going down in Japan.

On Sunday the 24th, Japan held an event for the 1,500 Koreans who were forced to work in the Sado Island Gold Mines in northern Japan during World War II. Recall that in previous shows, we reported that South Korea had protested the mines becoming a UNESCO World Heritage Site. They eventually agreed after Japan promised the site would acknowledge the Korean laborers' suffering. However, even though Japan thanked the workers, it never apologized or acknowledged the forced labor.

South Korea boycotted the event after hearing that Akiko Ikuina, the Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, would be there. In twenty twenty-two, Kyodo News, a Japanese news organization, reported that Ikuina visited Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, where there were, among other people, Japanese war criminals who committed atrocities in Korea. However, Ikuina said she never visited the shrine. Kyodo News then issued an apology and retracted their original article.

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry held its own memorial ceremony on Monday the 25th to honor the Korean workers at Sado’s mines.

At least some of Japan’s international relationships are doing well. On Monday the 25th, Takeshi Iwaya, Japan’s Foreign Minister, went to Rome to sign a defense cooperation agreement, known as the Acquisition and Cross-Service Agreement, alongside Guido Crosetto, the Italian Defense Minister.

According to the deal, Japan and Italy will help each other with military supplies and rapid mobilization for emergencies and natural disasters. The two countries, along with Britain, are also collaborating on the Global Combat Air Program to develop a next-generation fighter jet, set to finish in the mid-twenty thirties.

On that note about defense, Japan’s government is currently working on a system to improve its cyber security. The system will require the government to get approval from a third party before it can monitor certain conversations between domestic and foreign users as part of its active cyber defense strategy. The conversations the government plans to monitor include foreign countries talking to one another via Japan; foreign countries talking to Japanese infrastructure operators like power companies; and any communications using a server that was previously used for cyberattacks.

The government plans to analyze malicious data, enter attackers' servers, and neutralize threats if necessary, with the independent third party overseeing things to protect people’s constitutional right to privacy and ensure government monitoring is actually necessary. For cases that involve Japanese companies, the government will also ask for permission before monitoring any communications.

Tragedy struck on Wednesday the 27th when a fire broke out at a Tokyo condo, killing two people and damaging the sixth floor. The police believe the fire started at the home of Kuniko Inoguchi, an Upper House lawmaker and Liberal Democratic Party member, who lived in the sixth-floor unit with three family members.

It took the fire department over five hours to put out the fire. The police contacted Inoguchi, but have not yet been able to reach the lawmaker’s husband or adult daughter who livde with her. The police and firefighters are currently investigating the scene to figure out what started the fire.

In a follow-up to a story from last week’s show, Tokyo’s Toshimagaoka Cemetery hosted the funeral ceremony, Renso-no-Gi, for Princess Yuriko, the oldest member of Japan's imperial family and great-aunt of Emperor Naruhito, on Tuesday the 26th. Around 500 people attended the ceremony, including Crown Prince Fumihito, Crown Princess Kiko, and Princess Aiko. As per custom, the emperor, empress, and former imperial couple did not attend.

Yuriko outlived her husband, Prince Mikasa, the youngest brother of Emperor Hirohito, and three sons. After cremation, her ashes will be placed beside her husband's.

In central Japan, a moderate, magnitude-five earthquake hit Ishikawa Prefecture on Tuesday the 26th. The Meteorological Agency said that the epicenter of the quake was much stronger at magnitude six, but that it occurred in the Sea of Japan off the western coast of Ishikawa.

Fortunately, the earthquake did not cause any damage or injuries, nor did it create any problems at the nearest nuclear power plant in Shika Town, Ishikawa.

In science news, one of the Epsilon S rocket’s three engines exploded during a combustion test at the Tanegashima Space Center on Tuesday the 26th. The second-stage engine exploded and caught fire shortly after the test began, but did not injure anyone. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency or JAXA, created the rocket with IHI Aerospace. It is an upgraded version of Japan’s flagship solid-fuel rocket. This new one makes launching cheaper and more reliable.

This explosion follows a similar incident in July twenty twenty-three, when the second-stage engine exploded during a test in Akita Prefecture, northern Japan, from heat damage on the ignition device. JAXA tried to fix the issue by adding heat insulation, but they kept having problems, leading to the latest failure. JAXA is still looking into how to fix the problem, but it looks like they won’t be able to make the launch they originally scheduled for twenty twenty-four.

Speaking of schedules, the government wants to change its schedule to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Currently, it aims to reduce emissions by forty-six percent of twenty thirteen levels by twenty thirty, which is part of an overall goal to have net zero emissions by twenty fifty. On Monday the 25th, the government proposed a new target to reduce emissions by sixty percent by fiscal twenty thirty-five.

An expert panel meeting consisting of environment and industry ministries will review the new plan to prepare for the UN’s February deadline for countries to submit updated twenty thirty-five targets. Some panel members said they should reduce by an even higher percentage because they were worried about climate change, but others said they needed to keep goals realistic. Other nations, like Britain, set goals as high as eighty percent reduction from nineteen ninety levels by twenty thirty-five.

Meanwhile, the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization or NEDO recently announced a contest to solve social issues using quantum computing. They offered prize money of around 200 million yen, which is over one million dollars. Anyone can join the competition, including experts and those without quantum computing experience. The contest will start in March twenty twenty-five and final judging will be in August twenty twenty-six.

Recruitment and issue suggestions are open until the 13th of December. To learn more about the competition, check out NEDO’s official website with link in the show notes!

And to close this edition, some business news. Toyota is thinking of closing its Beijing sales base and consolidating with its Tianjin base amid intense competition from Chinese carmakers. However, Toyota does not plan to cut production and will continue launching new cars to maintain growth in China, where local brands like BYD dominate the automarket with affordable electric vehicles

Toyota's profits in China dropped over thirty percent in the first half of fiscal twenty twenty-four, with vehicle sales down almost fourteen percent. At an earnings press conference, the company’s chief financial officer said they need to customize the cars they make in China to suit Chinese consumers.

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

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Mata Ne!