Posted in: Tourists in Kyoto cause chaos at railway crossing near Fushimi Inari Taisha See in context
> Harry_GattoToday 04:38 pm JST
Stupid behaviour from people old enough to know better.
No it's the tour leaders vault not giving instructions to go in smaller groups and spread out and wait.
Group behaviour is not individual behaviour - people will do things in groups they would not do by themselves.
-11 ( +3 / -14 )
Posted in: Ex-lawmaker gets suspended sentence for raping junior high school girl See in context
More BBC documentaries are needed to further shame Japan into doing more to protect it's children and women from sexual assault.
-21 ( +17 / -38 )
Posted in: Record high 320 public school teachers in Japan disciplined for sexual offenses in fiscal 2023 See in context
Sadly, in Japan, no one is surprised by this.
The only school we'd let our kids go to is an international one.
-14 ( +11 / -25 )
Posted in: S Korea expresses regret to Japan over memorial for mine workers See in context
Can anyone explain the cause of this insensitive and seemingly immature behaviour from the Jp govt?
It seems obvious to the world that Japan should have acknowledged it enslaved SOuth Korea and expressed regret during this time. They are not stupid; they knew it would be insensitive to South Koreans.
What was the point in leaving out the apology and acknowledgment of wrongdoing?!
-18 ( +31 / -49 )
Posted in: S Korea holds memorial for forced laborers at Sado mines, a day after boycotting Japanese event See in context
kennyGToday 06:35 pm JST
*No, the 1965 Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and South Korea did not provide direct compensation to individual Korean forced laborers either, including those who worked in the Sado Island mines*
Read 1965 treaty again and come back
Seriously, where are you getting your facts from, Ken?!
This information is widely available and well-established as fact in books and papers and on the internet, and there is no dispute since it is all written down!
The Jp government gave a lump sum to the South Korean government with no mention of a direct payment to forced labour on Sado Island. There is no two ways about it bud.
Could you let me know where your proof is?! I have given you mine.
-12 ( +8 / -20 )
Posted in: S Korea holds memorial for forced laborers at Sado mines, a day after boycotting Japanese event See in context
> kennyGToday 06:10 pm JST
tut tut, trying to rewrite history are we Kenny?
They were given a pittance no different to what prisoners receive.
The wages were largely symbolic and did not compensate for the harsh conditions and exploitation they endured.
The whole purpose of the forced labor system was to extract wealth and resources for the Japanese Empire, rather than provide fair compensation to the Korean workers.
As if you were there. PROVE IT. Don't you even forget the salary level based on the the skills.
Lauguable. The kind of your ilk IS THE ignorant and most evil reason how come the two nations still cannot go along.
Sure, here you go:
Books and Articles:
"Japan's Wartime Empire, 1931-1945"
Edited by Peter Duus, Ramon H. Myers, and Mark R. Peattie
This collection examines Japan’s wartime policies, including the exploitation of forced laborers from Korea. It provides a context for understanding forced labor in Japan’s war economy.
"The Forced Labor of Koreans under Japanese Rule"
By Soon-Won Park
This work highlights the experiences of Korean forced laborers, including mistreatment and abuses during Japan’s occupation of Korea.
"Silent Memories, Traumatic Lives: Korean Forced Laborers under Japanese Rule"
By Hyung Gu Lynn
This study discusses the physical and psychological toll of forced labor on Korean workers, with a focus on industrial sites, including mines.
"Troubled Apologies Among Japan, Korea, and the United States"
By Alexis Dudden
This book explores historical accountability, focusing on forced labor and the broader atrocities Koreans faced under Japanese imperialism.
"From Osaka to Sado: Mapping Korea-Japan Forced Labor"
By Tessa Morris-Suzuki (Journal Article)
This article discusses forced labor flows, specifically mentioning labor in industrial and mining regions such as Sado Island.
Historians and Scholars:
Tessa Morris-Suzuki
A prominent historian of Japan and Korea, her works often highlight forced labor and the abuses suffered by Korean workers during Japan's imperial period.
Alexis Dudden
An expert in East Asian history, Dudden has extensively covered Japan's colonial rule over Korea, including forced labor practices.
Mark Selden
His research often discusses Japan’s wartime economy, including the exploitation of forced laborers in industrial settings.
Hyung Gu Lynn
A scholar specializing in Korean-Japanese relations, Lynn has documented the lived experiences of Korean forced laborers.
Hiroshi Tanaka
A Japanese historian who has written extensively about Japan’s wartime forced labor policies and their impact on Koreans.
Primary Sources and Testimonies:
Testimonies from surviving forced laborers:
Recorded in various projects, such as the Truth-Seeking Committee for Forced Labor Victims in South Korea, testimonies detail abuses, harsh working conditions, and deaths.
Reports by South Korea’s National Archives:
South Korea has declassified documents and reports about forced laborers, including their experiences on Sado Island and elsewhere.
Institutional Reports:
International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) Report (1994)
Discusses Japan's wartime responsibility, including forced labor and its human rights violations.
The Korean Forced Labor History Museum (Gwangju, South Korea)
Features research and exhibits on Korean forced labor during Japan’s colonial period, including mining sites like Sado Island.
-11 ( +10 / -21 )
Posted in: S Korea holds memorial for forced laborers at Sado mines, a day after boycotting Japanese event See in context
Right after the end of war, for all of those who failed to repatriate, whether they dead or alive, the total sum of their accumulated salary was fairly paid out in the 1965 agreement.
This is also totally false, I'm afraid, and easily verifiable with a quick search.
The Koreans who were forced to work in the Sado Island mines did not receive compensation in 1995. The Asian Women's Fund, established in that year, focused on providing compensation to the victims of sexual slavery, or "comfort women," during World War II not for the slave labour.
They have never received a cent or so much as a recognition of their slaervry by the Jp govt let alone compensation or an apology.
-16 ( +9 / -25 )
Posted in: S Korea holds memorial for forced laborers at Sado mines, a day after boycotting Japanese event See in context
kennyGToday 05:55 pm JST
Japan on Sunday held a memorial service for all workers at the Sado mines, including Koreans. It thanked them for their contributions at the mines but did not acknowledge their forced labor or issue an apology.
All workers does mean ALL, including ethnic Korean-Japanese. They WERE Japanese then. Did not acknowledge what? They were not forced labor, but paid labor based on the contract that they signed on their own will. Their salary was paid into their individual accounts during the contract for sure. Right after the end of war, for all of those who failed to repatriate, whether they dead or alive, the total sum of their accumulated salary was fairly paid out in the 1965 agreement.
tut tut, trying to rewrite history are we Kenny?
They were given a pittance no different to what prisoners receive.
The wages were largely symbolic and did not compensate for the harsh conditions and exploitation they endured.
The whole purpose of the forced labor system was to extract wealth and resources for the Japanese Empire, rather than provide fair compensation to the Korean workers.
-12 ( +13 / -25 )
Posted in: Man arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting sleeping elementary school girl See in context
My sister-in-law was 7 years old and on the way home from school in Tokyo, when a man grabbed her, led her to some trees pulled down her underwear and .. it's too graphic to continue. She never told anyone unlit she was in her 30's and has had trouble trusting and developing relationships with men her whole life due to this trauma.
All parents in Japan, do not believe the myth of 'safety Japan' and let your children be alone in public because you might never know something has happened to your child.
-9 ( +16 / -25 )
Posted in: Australian PM hits back at Musk after 'fascists' quip See in context
I get that a lot of you are Musk supporters and like the idea of freedom he’s pushing, but he’s starting to take it too far. His version of free speech seems to mean literally anything goes—like videos of murder, suicide, rape, or hate speech encouraging violence and mass killings against minorities.
I get that it's tricky, but there’s gotta be a line somewhere. Total freedom without limits can seriously hurt people, and it’s important to know when certain things cross that line.
-3 ( +31 / -34 )
Posted in: Sex assault case against Japanese soccer player Ito dropped See in context
Hervé L'EisaToday 08:59 am JST
If he was falsely accused, then the two women should be PROSECUTED for defamation, at least civilly if not criminally. And their names should also be made known.
Japan's sexual violence laws are woefully inadequate, and when combined with the inept judicial process and cultural context, Japanese women stand to gain nothing but justice and dignity from pursuing these cases. The process is incredibly difficult anywhere, but in Japan, it is especially hellish for female claimants. With only 4% of sexual assault cases being reported, let alone prosecuted, the likelihood of a false accusation is infinitesimally small.
As Mr Kipling says, it is most likely that they reached an agreement outside of court, which is common practice in Japan.
-8 ( +60 / -68 )
Posted in: Swedish man arrested for assaulting common-law wife in Sapporo See in context
JROToday 02:18 pm JST
The main point she is making is if it was a person from a third world country you all would say "immigrant this immigrant that blah blah blah" And for that reason I think it is important to put their nationality. If the person that committed the crime didn't want to look bad to other foreigners and Japanese maybe he shouldn't have done anything bad
Absolutely no one is saying that, we are all foreigners here no matter our color or origin. When they make news about a crime that happens hundreds of times a day only because the villain is a foreigner it hurts us all, no matter how he looks or where he is from. The news do this very often and it has set it's marks. The Japanese around me thinks that foreigners on average do a lot more crime in Japan than Japanese do, while the reality is that a foreigner is less likely to commit a crime then a Japanese based on the stats, but that's not what they see, they see all these cherry picked cases that news likes to highlight.
Yes, that's why there are global ethical standards in news reporting.
Reporting the geographical origin or ethnicity of a crime suspect is not important information in this case and only stokes these xenophobic falshoods that affect all of us in Japan.
Good to see some folks bother to educate themselves about the issues.
-2 ( +5 / -7 )
Posted in: 10% of young people in Japan have experienced being groped: survey See in context
girl_in_tokyoToday 08:24 am JST
spidersensesToday 07:27 am JST
*Mainichi Shimbun (2018) reported that in a Cabinet Office of Japan survey, 70% of women in Japan stated they had experienced groping and molestation while using public transportation.*
This number is far more likely to be accurate.
But I don't know a single woman who hasn't been groped, either on the train or on the street, in a bar, or somewhere else.
All the women I know have experienced some form of sexual assault.
Same here. All the women I dated in Japan had been sexually assaulted on a train in Japan at least once some more - one girl while I was with her and another who said it happened every day on the way to work.
-8 ( +37 / -45 )
Posted in: 10% of young people in Japan have experienced being groped: survey See in context
spidersensesToday 07:27 am JST
Very dubious results.
How come all previous research shows far higher percentages, ranging from 50 - 70%.
E.g.
Mainichi Shimbun (2018) reported that in a Cabinet Office of Japan survey, 70% of women in Japan stated they had experienced groping and molestation while using public transportation.
https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20180330/p2a/00m/0na/005000c
Yeah, it's lower than I've seen.
46% of women and 20% of men in this one. Maybe the way they word the questions - that can make a big diffrence to results.
Tokyo, Japan | 5 | Transit Crime and Sexual Violence in Cities | Seiji (taylorfrancis.com)
https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9780429290244-5/tokyo-japan-seiji-shibata
-8 ( +33 / -41 )
Posted in: Foreign Ministry worker arrested for trying to photograph bathing women See in context
AlbertToday 07:53 am JST
This is not only Japan.
This happens every, just it is more often mentioned in domestic news.
The question is not whether it exists in other countries but whether it is as pervasive as it is in Japan.
Given the unofficial statistics, the news reports we do see and the knowledge that underreporting it is higher in Japan due to cultural difference then we can assume that it is potentially a more serious problem and worth doing more about.
-7 ( +36 / -43 )
Posted in: Ex-chief public prosecutor indicted over rape of colleague in Osaka See in context
timeonJuly 13 07:00 pm JST
This is a difficult trial, as the jury has to decide the borderline between consensual sex after a few drinks (his story) vs sexual assault while being too drunk to consent (her story). This took place 6 years ago, so impossible to prove anything.
True, but since false reports are extremely rare (around 3% I think) and underreporting is extremely common (95% go unreported) what's your bet she's telling the truth?
4 ( +5 / -1 )
Posted in: Man arrested for filming up girl's skirt on escalator at Kobe Station See in context
LegrandeToday 09:48 am JST
Some day, perhaps on my death bed, I'll understand this behavior. What in the world is the charge these guys get out of this?
They can monetize the content by uploading to porn sites.
Correct. Many of the upskirt photographers sell their photos.
There was a BBC documentary about it a few years ago.
-1 ( +27 / -28 )
Posted in: 74-year-old man arrested for allegedly committing indecent acts against girl under 10 See in context
GuruMickToday 08:16 am JST
Kids can lie and more importantly an aging brain loses much of its functions that would prevent inappropriate behavior of all types.
Dont rush to judgement people. Especially the "jail him ! jail him " brigade.
Unreal
Why anyone would want to defend a sexual predator like this is highly suspicious and quite deplorable, to say the least.
-4 ( +27 / -31 )
Posted in: Chinese woman who tried to save Japanese family in knife attack dies See in context
Chinese people are among the kindest and bravest you will find.
-6 ( +31 / -37 )
Posted in: Tokyo nursery teacher arrested for assault after strongly pulling child’s hair See in context
sakurasukiToday 07:29 am JST
Labor shortage with low pay create really serious problem now in Japan. Japan now have unqualified people working in the wrong place.
There is very little regulation for child care in Japan.
There is no official training requirement or background or character checks and there is also no reference system in Japan.
-4 ( +5 / -9 )
Posted in: Costco Japan wages provide pathway to firing up nation's low pay, economy See in context
My wife worked at a local supermarket, getting 900 yen per hour. I thought that was slavery, as she is a very hard worker, so I asked her to ask for a raise.
The boss agreed to increase her hourly wage by 50yen.
-3 ( +10 / -13 )
Posted in: 23-year-old man gets 18 years in prison for murder of ex-girlfriend in Yokohama See in context
HawkToday 04:38 pm JST
Surely, his/her point is to reduce risk, not eliminate it completely.
Fair enough. Because that's impossible. Just putting them at higher risk of other dangers, though. Swings and roundabouts.
What 'other dangers' could be worse for girls and young women, though?
5 ( +11 / -6 )
Posted in: 23-year-old man gets 18 years in prison for murder of ex-girlfriend in Yokohama See in context
HawkToday 12:29 pm JST
dido,
We chose not to raise our daughters in Japan for safety reasons, among other reasons, but if we had, we would not let them travel alone at any time or meet anyone with whom we don't know until they are 18 or so
Did you raise them in a country where there is no stalking, and no domestic or sexual violence? I'd like to know where that is.
No such place.
These problems exist everywhere.
However, apart from the severe gender inequality and limited women's empowerment, Japan, particularly in the major cities, faces serious issues for females, including rampant sexual assault on public transport (chikan), stalking, upskirt photography, workplace sexual harassment, child pornography, and enjoy kōsai (compensated dating) etc.. There is also a weak societal and administrative response to these problems. And despite their prevalence, they are often hidden due to the high stigma and shame associated with being a victim (very low reporting rates) and the known ineffectiveness of the system to protect and support those girls and women affected.
It might be better in the more rural areas but our Japanese family and friends live in central Tokyo
2 ( +13 / -11 )
Posted in: 23-year-old man gets 18 years in prison for murder of ex-girlfriend in Yokohama See in context
HawkToday 10:07 am JST
This is a reminder to all the fathers in Japan that if your daughter finds herself in a similar position, it is better to take action yourself, rather than rely on police to help. I’d rather spend the rest of my life in jail if it means that my daughter can live her life.
What action would you take?
We chose not to raise our daughters in Japan for safety reasons, among other reasons, but if we had, we would not let them travel alone at any time or meet anyone with whom we don't know until they are 18 or so.
It's also essential to be close enough with them that they feel comfortable talking about their relationships. Any sign of violence in the relationship must end immediately, no questions asked.
As a youth of 19, I was living with my girlfriend of the same age, and we had an argument, and I hit her on the rear end. The next day, her mother came around to pick her daughter up, which ended the relationship.
She was a very good mother to do that.
0 ( +14 / -14 )
Posted in: Man arrested for scamming confectionery shop by lying about finding hair in cake See in context
I once found a piece of metal from a wire brush in my bento from a store in Shinjuku.
They were very eager to meet me and pay me about 30,000 yen compensation but they were adamant that I not go to the press or the government about it.
-5 ( +8 / -13 )
Posted in: Nintendo surprises fans by announcing new 'Zelda' game See in context
I could never understand the hype around Zelda games.
I'm bored within the first 10 minutes.
-8 ( +1 / -9 )
Posted in: Death penalty sought for man over murder, robbery of elderly woman, son in 2020 See in context
The fact that legal state murder is a thing in a 'developed' nation in 2024 is astounding.
10 ( +13 / -3 )
Posted in: Daiso to change Japanese closing-time music because foreign tourists aren’t taking the hint See in context
“Hotaru no Hikari” was written in 1881 by Chikai Inagaki and it copies the musical score of “Auld Lang Syne” note for note"
Well, copying note for note is not 'writing' now, is it?
-3 ( +7 / -10 )
Posted in: Japan ranks 118th in 2024 gender gap report See in context
ThonTaddeoToday 08:57 am JST
@Ilyas and Wolfshine -- your understanding of how flawed this survey is, and has always been, is correct. You can read it here:
https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GGGR_2024.pdf
...and the shamefully-flawed methodology is explained on page 64. I quote:
The third distinguishing feature of the Global Gender Gap Index is that it ranks countries according to their proximity to gender equality rather than to women’s empowerment. Our aim is to focus on whether the gap between women and men in the chosen indicators has declined, rather than whether women are winning the so-called “battle of the sexes”.
Sounds great. But the very next paragraph contradicts that:
Hence, the index rewards countries that reach the point where outcomes for women equal those for men, but it neither rewards nor penalizes cases in which women are outperforming men in particular indicators in some countries. **Thus, a country that has higher enrolment for girls rather than boys in secondary school will score equal to a country where boys’ and girls’ enrolment is the same**.
The last line tells the whole story: if a gap is in favor of women, there is no penalty, whereas if a gap is in favor of men, the country is penalized. A hypothetical country where boys were banned from going to school, could not vote or hold political office, and died a decade before women did would be a country with disgusting gender gaps... but it would get a perfect score on this survey. The quickest route to a higher score, if you're a dictator looking to move up on this list, is to start oppressing your boys and men, making sure they're never ahead of women in any field, but not paying any attention to areas where women are ahead.
The survey does the exact opposite of what it claims to do: it is a Women's Empowerment Index and not a gender gap index, because it looks only at gaps in one direction. Just call it the Women's Empowerment Index and be done with it. (Or, better yet, measure gaps in both directions so that the numbers will actually be meaningful and the name of the survey won't be so deceptive
Are you equally critical of international reports that show Japan in a more favourable light, or do you only scrutinise and discredit organisations when Japan does not rank highly in their reports?
Are you equally critical of the Nobel organisation, often seen as Western-centric and elitist, when a Japanese person wins a Nobel award?
You can't have it both ways. You can't attack reports that portray Japan favourably and criticise those that don't. That would be hypocritical.
5 ( +10 / -5 )
Posted in: Japan ranks 118th in 2024 gender gap report See in context
OliveToday 06:46 am JST
The standard of health care in Japan is well above that of Canada or the U.K. these days. 58th-very unlikely
Not for women, it isn't.
Read the report and stop being so defensive.
-5 ( +8 / -13 )
Posted in: Hong Kong officials denounce attack on ice hockey players at Asian Winter Games
Posted in: 2-week search ends for trapped driver inside sinkhole in Saitama
Posted in: Nutrition advice is rife with misinformation
Posted in: Google changes name of Gulf of Mexico to 'Gulf of America' for U.S. users