Tokyo, 28 April, /AJMEDIA/
Voting underway for 3 by-elections in Japan’s lower house
TOKYO – Voting got underway on Sunday for by-elections to fill three vacant seats in Japan’s House of Representatives, with the popularity of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida having plunged due to a slush funds scandal that has eroded public trust in his Liberal Democratic Party.
Up for grabs in the first national elections since the scandal came to light late last year are seats in Shimane and Nagasaki prefectures as well as one in Tokyo, all of which were previously held by the LDP before becoming vacant.
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90% in Japan support idea of reigning empress: survey
TOKYO – A total of 90 percent of respondents in a recent Kyodo News poll said they would support the idea of a reigning empress, as Japan’s imperial family struggles with a shrinking number of male heirs.
The results of the mail survey, conducted in March and April ahead of the fifth anniversary of Emperor Naruhito’s ascension to the throne, demonstrate how the majority of the public approves of expanding the right to rule to women, given imperial succession is currently limited to men from the paternal line.
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Nearly 30% of municipalities in Japan have no physical bookstores
TOKYO – Nearly 30 percent of municipalities in Japan have no physical bookstores due to the impact of population shrinkage and the prevalence of online stores, according to a survey by a publishing industry association.
Of the country’s 1,741 municipalities, 482 cities, towns and villages, or 27.7 percent of the total, had no bookstores as of March, with the rate increasing from 26.2 percent in the previous survey in September 2022, according to data released by the Japan Publishing Industry Foundation for Culture.
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China’s No. 4 leader meets Taiwan lawmakers, opposes independence
BEIJING – Wang Huning, who is ranked No. 4 in the ruling Chinese Communist Party’s top leadership, met Saturday with a group of 17 Taiwan opposition lawmakers in Beijing, expressing disapproval of separatist activities by advocates of the self-ruled island’s independence, according to Taiwanese media.
Wang, who heads China’s top political advisory body, called for frequent exchanges across the Taiwan Strait during his talks with the Nationalist Party delegation. Their meeting came ahead of the May 20 inauguration of Taiwan’s President-elect Lai Ching-te, whom Beijing views as a separatist.
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Electric scooter accidents in Japan surge after rules eased
OSAKA – The average number of monthly accidents involving electric scooters has shown a six-fold rise in Japan after the country started allowing users to ride the vehicles without a driver’s license in July, recent data by the National Police Agency showed.
Traffic experts have warned of the risks of fatal accidents as the number of scooter users increases, and public awareness regarding the traffic rules associated with this relatively new form of transport seems to be low.
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Japan Akita dog society issues digital pedigrees to combat forgery
AKITA, Japan – A Japan-based society for Akita dogs has begun issuing digital pedigree certificates for the highly popular breed in an effort to combat forgery and people losing their paper-form documents.
The Akita Inu Preservation Society based in Odate, Akita Prefecture, is employing highly secure blockchain technology to issue pedigree certificates, which until now had only been issued in paper form and had suffered logistical problems, including documents getting lost in transit when being shipped to overseas recipients.
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Baseball: Yoshida goes 4-for-5 as Red Sox clobber Cubs 17-0
BOSTON – Masataka Yoshida went 4-for-5 with one RBI in his first appearance in six games as the Boston Red Sox trounced the Chicago Cubs 17-0 on Saturday.
Batting sixth as the designated hitter, Yoshida singled in the second, fourth and seventh innings at Fenway Park, before sparking a six-run eighth by doubling in a run with two outs for a 12-0 lead.
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Golf: Hataoka 2 shots off pace after 3 rounds at LPGA L.A. C’Ship
LOS ANGELES – Japan’s Nasa Hataoka shot a third-round 7-under 64 to move into sixth place, two shots off the pace at the LPGA’s L.A. Championship on Saturday.
Hataoka carded one eagle and seven birdies against two bogeys at Wilshire Country Club in Los Angeles for a 5-under total of 208 as Australians Hannah Green and Grace Kim share top spot on the leaderboard.
