News On Japan

Japan's public broadcaster leaving threatening notes on people's doorsteps

Feb 18 (soranews24.com) - NHK is a great source of shogi, kabuki, and intimidation.

Many people in Japan have long had a tumultuous relationship with the country's public broadcaster, NHK. Ever since the government decided it was the station's own responsibility to collect funding from the public, the troubles began.

Every country has its own way of generating money for their public broadcasters but in Japan, NHK is largely left to fend for themselves and have outsourced a team of bill collectors to do the dirty work for them.

On one hand, they largely get the job done. Recent estimates say over 80 percent of Japanese residents pay their monthly TV license fees – although this rate shot up after the Japanese Supreme Courts backed NHK's right to demand money from virtually anyone, even if they don't watch NHK.

On the other hand, in many instances the conduct of these collectors has been compared to that of an organized crime group. Homes have been vandalized, and sexual assaults have occurred. As a result, many people never answer their door out of fear that it's an NHK collector on the other side.

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

As of 7:30 a.m. on October 7th, satellite images showed Typhoon No. 22 (Halong) rapidly developing as it moved northward, with its eye becoming increasingly distinct. Earlier in the morning, dry air had surrounded the center, but by this time the area was fully covered by thick cloud bands, indicating significant strengthening. By 9 a.m., the typhoon had reached “strong” intensity, with maximum sustained winds near the center reaching 35 meters per second and a central pressure of 975 hectopascals. The system was moving due north at around 15 kilometers per hour.

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake occurred off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture around 9:30 a.m. on October 7th, registering a maximum intensity of 4 on the Japanese seismic scale. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, there is no risk of a tsunami caused by this tremor.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump took to social media to congratulate Japan following the selection of its first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, writing that "Japan has just elected its first female Prime Minister, a highly respected person of great wisdom and strength.” While Trump did not name Takaichi directly, his post came as she assumed leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and was set to be formally elected as prime minister.

Osaka University’s Shimon Sakaguchi, a specially appointed professor, has been awarded this year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his groundbreaking work in immunology. Sakaguchi is best known for discovering “regulatory T cells,” a type of immune cell that suppresses excessive immune responses, a finding that has had far-reaching implications in medical science.

A collision occurred on the Tokyu Den-en-toshi Line on the night of October 5th when a local train attempting to arrive at Kajigaya Station in Kawasaki City struck a stationary out-of-service train, causing several cars of the latter to derail. Investigators from the Japan Transport Safety Board arrived at the scene on the morning of October 6th to begin examining the cause of the accident.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Society NEWS

The Naha District Court’s Okinawa branch has ordered a group of former youths and their parents to pay more than 4 million yen in damages to Okinawa Prefecture over a riot that took place three years ago when a crowd surrounded the Okinawa Police Station and destroyed vehicles and other property.

A hotel construction plan in the rural wasabi-growing area of Azumino City, Nagano Prefecture, has sparked strong opposition from local residents who fear it will damage the landscape and threaten the region’s iconic wasabi fields.

A mobile battery caught fire inside a train on the Osaka Metro Midosuji Line on October 4th, injuring two women and disrupting operations on both northbound and southbound tracks.

A man in his twenties who was abducted in Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture, in June and later killed has been confirmed dead after his remains were found as bones in the mountains of Kochi Prefecture.

A string of so-called “honey trap” cases is drawing attention across Japan as schemes once limited to extortion have become increasingly violent, involving physical assaults and life-threatening intimidation.

Police have revealed that a woman killed by her former partner in Higashi-Osaka had sustained dozens of stab wounds across her body, including injuries that pierced internal organs.

Right now in big cities in Japan, there are more and more protests by Japanese people against the government's immigration policies. (Japanese Comedian Meshida)

Princess Aiko, the daughter of the Emperor and Empress, has tested positive for Covid-19, the Imperial Household Agency announced on October 2nd, cancelling her scheduled trip to Shiga Prefecture on October 5th and 6th to observe the National Sports Festival.