The top or most interesting stories from Japan for the weekend of January 17.
– Katsuya Okada was elected head of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) – the country’s leading opposition party – on Sunday, defeating two other candidates. The leadership election was sparked after the former head of the party, Banri Kaieda, lost in the December 14 snap election.
Okada now has to lead the DPJ against the dominate Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) but there are two problems; one being that Okada’s stance on ‘Abenomics’ and restarting Japan’s nuclear power plants seems to be in line with the LDP, offering voters little difference in leadership; and at the same December 14 election that prompted the leadership election, barely 50% of Japan’s population bothered to vote at all. (The Japan Times, The Japan News)
– The city of Kobe marked 20 years since the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in 1995, which killed over 6000 people; injured over 43,000; cost USD$82 billion in damages (judged off current market rates) and left tens of thousands homeless. (Wall Street Journal: Japan Real Time)
But still desolation of that quake reverberate in Japan’s national psyche today, echoed in the recent disaster of 3/11. The Wall Street Journal has compiled photographs of the destruction of the 1995 quake.
On Saturday though it was reported that residents living in public housing constructed to shelter those rendered homeless by the quake, will soon have to be evicted, with residents unaware that the government limited their lease to 20 years. (The Japan Times)
– The trial of Aum Shinrikyo (‘Supreme Truth) cult member, Katsuya Takahashi, began on Friday with the the defendant pleading not guilty to nearly all of the charges brought to him.
Aum Shinrikyo was the terrorist group responsible for the Tokyo subway sarin attacks in 1995 (coincidentally also seeing its 20th anniversary this year) and Takahashi has been accused of murder. Whilst not directly carrying out the attacks, the prosecution is seeking the murder charge as Takahashi acted as a getaway driver for several of Aum Shinrikyo’s attacks. (The Japan Times)
Australians may find it interesting that Aum Shinrikyo owned a remote station in Western Australia, which they sold a year before the subway attacks. On the station, sheep corpses that showed signs of sarin exposure were discovered.
– Southern All Stars singer, Keisuke Kuwata, who has stirred controversy in recent weeks with several politcally charged performances has come out to apologise and say there was no such thing intended. The controversy included one appearance on TV where Kuwata donned a Hitler-moustache whilst singing a politically-themed tune, ‘Peace and Hi-Lite‘; and another where, whilst singing at concert Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was attending, Kuwata suddenly changed lyrics to “A politician talking nonsense like dissolving the Diet”, a perceived swipe at Abe’s recent decision to dissolve the Diet.
However Kuwate, through a statement, denied there were any political messages at play. Not very rock and roll.
– Japan’s Muslim community condemns the new Charlie Hebdo cover. (The Japan Times)
– And a feature article in The Japan Times on Sunday documents the hardship faced by Japan’s refugee community. Only six refugee applications were approved in 2013.
