Mainichi reported that on account of poor coordination between the Kantei and the ruling coalition, no GOJ-sponsored legislation has been enacted yet during the ongoing extraordinary Diet session even though one-third of the 69-day term has already elapsed. The ruling parties have also allowed the opposition bloc to gain the upper hand in managing Diet affairs. The administration decided to….Read more

Tokyo, Oct. 29 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government and the ruling coalition are considering the possibility of extending the ongoing session of the Diet, the country’s parliament, to ensure the enactment of a supplementary state budget and key bills.     Although the Diet has completed one-third of its current 69-day extraordinary session set to end on Dec. 10, it has started….Read more

Jiji highlighted the much-awaited start on Wednesday of full-scale parliamentary deliberations on key policy legislation, including a bill to amend the infectious diseases control act, saying that as one-third of the 69-day extraordinary Diet session has already elapsed, the Kishida administration and the ruling coalition are inclined to extend the term by about one week through Dec. 17 to ensure….Read more

The following is the gist of the interpellations at the Lower House plenary session over the resignation of former Minister in charge of Economic Revitalization Yamagiwa Daishiro on Oct. 25, 2022:   Prime Minister Kishida Fumio: On Oct. 24, Yamagiwa told me that he wanted to resign from his post because it was not his intention to prevent key issues….Read more

All national dailies reported on a eulogy delivered by former Prime Minister Noda Yoshihiko at a Lower House plenary session on Tuesday for his immediate successor Abe Shinzo. In the speech, Noda said he wished he could engage in a fierce battle of words with Abe again on the Diet floor and how disappointing it must have been for Abe….Read more

Tokyo, Oct. 24 (Jiji Press)–A Japanese government panel on Monday proposed raising the minimum age of sexual consent, stipulated under the criminal code, to 16 from the current 13.     In its draft recommendations, the subdivision of the Legislative Council, which advises the justice minister, proposed keeping sexual intercourse with a person aged 12 or younger illegal without exception, as….Read more

By Tomoyuki Tachikawa   TOKYO – Japanese Prime Minster Fumio Kishida was apparently forced to accept the resignation of the scandal-tainted economy minister who was accused of having close ties with the contentious Unification Church, as the approval ratings for his Cabinet show little sign of improving.   Daishiro Yamagiwa resigned on Monday after he was bashed for failing to explain his….Read more

All national papers highlighted yesterday’s Tokyo High Court decision overturning a lower court ruling dismissing the alleged defamation of a female journalist by LDP Diet member Sugita Mio for repeatedly “liking” two dozen tweets ridiculing her posted by anonymous Twitter users. Freelance journalist Ito Shiori, who filed a sexual assault suit against a male TBS reporter close to former Prime….Read more

The following is the gist of basic interpellations at the Upper House budget committee meeting on Oct. 20, 2022:   Relaxation of mask requirements   Inose Naoki [Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party)]: Why are only Japanese wearing masks? Because we wear masks in this day and age, foreigners compare us to [samurai] wearing our hair in a “topknot.” So let….Read more