Japan top court rules 3 A-bomb survivors not radiation disease sufferers
Kyodo -- Feb 26
Japan's Supreme Court rejected Tuesday calls by three survivors of 1945 U.S. atomic bombings to be recognized as sufferers of radiation diseases, which would cut their medical payments, ruling they do not meet the conditions for those in need of treatment.
The health of the three female plaintiffs, who have such conditions as cataract and thyroid inflammation, has been monitored but they were not actively treated for the illnesses. High court rulings were divided over whether to recognize them as radiation disease sufferers.
"To be recognized as a radiation disease sufferer, there must be a special condition, such as a high risk of an illness deteriorating or recurring," which makes the follow-up itself indispensable for treatment, the top court ruling said.
"I worry every day about when and where an illness may materialize," said plaintiff Tsutae Takai, 84, at a press conference in Nagoya. She was 9 years old in Nagasaki when the atomic bomb was dropped around 5.4 kilometers from her home.
Prosecutors will not file an appeal to top court in retrial of 1966 murder case
NHK - Mar 21
Tokyo prosecutors have decided not to appeal a Tokyo High Court decision ordering a retrial for an 87-year-old man convicted of killing a family nearly six decades ago.
Man arrested for arson after fire kills 3 at his family home in Nagano
Kyodo - Mar 19
A 32-year-old man was arrested Saturday for arson after a fire gutted the house where he lived in the central Japan prefecture of Nagano, apparently killing three of his family members, police said.
Doomsday prepping in Japan: Inside one woman’s living-room bunker
SBS - Mar 19
Tokyo residents are being told to prepare for X Day. That’s the day when a potential massive earthquake could strike the city.
Teenage girl arrested after saying she strangled man in central Japan
Kyodo - Mar 18
A teenage girl was arrested on Saturday for allegedly killing a man at a hotel in Toyama Prefecture in central Japan, police said.
How do so many endangered creatures end up in Japan’s animal cafes?
nytimes.com - Mar 18
Critically endangered species and ones banned from international trade are among the hundreds of types birds, reptiles and mammals that researchers identified at 142 animal cafes.
Japan prosecutors charge 3 ex-SDF officers with indecent assault
NHK - Mar 18
Japanese prosecutors have charged three former members of the Ground Self-Defense Force with indecent assault of a female colleague, reversing a previous decision not to indict them.
Former Tsukiji president arrested for selling 18 tons of frozen tuna without permission
TV Asahi News - Mar 16
The former president of a food processing company in Tsukiji, Tokyo, was arrested for selling about 18 tons of frozen tuna without permission.
Lamborghini stolen to punish cheating boyfriend
FNN - Mar 16
A 29-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of robbery causing injury after responding to a woman's request to punish her boyfriend who she believed was cheating on her.
Court orders Japan govt. to recognize lesbian Uganda refugee fleeing persecution
NHK - Mar 16
A district court in Osaka, western Japan, has ordered the central government to grant refugee status to a Ugandan woman who says she fled to Japan as she was persecuted for being homosexual.
The Dark Secret Behind Japan's 0% Homelessness Rate
Explained with Dom - Mar 15
In the many ways that Japan stands out, there is one particular thing that makes it completely unique. Despite having a population of 125 million people, it is the only country in the world that has a homeless population rate of almost 0%, something that was previously considered impossible.
The Cult Behind Japan’s Deadliest Terrorist Attack
VICE - Mar 14
Aum Shinrikyo. A doomsday cult responsible for one of the deadliest attacks in Japanese history.
Japanese woman groped in viral Holi video breaks silence: ‘I love everything about India’
yahoo.com - Mar 14
A Japanese woman at the center of a disturbing video that shows her being nonconsensually groped by a group of males in New Delhi, India, has spoken out after the terrifying encounter.
Japan grants long-term visa to gay U.S. man wed to Japanese
Japan Today - Mar 14
Japan has granted a long-term visa to an American man who married his same-sex Japanese partner in the United States, in what his representative called on Monday a "breakthrough" move in a country that does not recognize same-sex marriage.
Tokyo court orders retrial of 1966 quadruple murder case
Kyodo - Mar 13
A Tokyo court ordered Monday that the case against a former professional boxer, who was sentenced to death over a 1966 quadruple murder case in Shizuoka Prefecture in central Japan, be retried.
Kenzaburo Oe, Japanese Nobel literature laureate, dies at 88
Nikkei - Mar 13
Japanese novelist Kenzaburo Oe, winner of the 1994 Nobel Prize in Literature who was also known as a campaigner for the pacifist Constitution and against nuclear power, has died of old age, publisher Kodansha said Monday. He was 88.
70-year-old man arrested after menacing passenger with knife on bullet train
Japan Today - Mar 12
Police in Omiya, Saitama Prefecture, have arrested a 70-year-old man on suspicion of forcible obstruction of business after he menaced another passenger with a knife on a bullet train on Saturday.
