Asian View
Key words : Suga apologize son’s role
The ministry announced that 11 officials had violated its ethics code when they accepted dinners from the prime minister’s eldest son, Suga Seigo. Suga works for Tohoku Shinsha Film Corporation, a video production company whose satellite broadcasting arm would benefit from good relations with the ministry. The scandal was first reported on by weekly magazine Shukan Bunshun in February.
According to the probe, the officials attended 37 dinners hosted by Suga and other Tohoku Shinsha representatives over the past five years, costing more than $5,000 in total. They claim they did not consider the company to be a “stakeholder in ministry operations” at the time, and that they were not involved in any conversations calling for favors.
Yamada Makiko, the current Cabinet Public Relations Secretary, also attended a meal when she worked for the ministry. The dinner is said to have cost more than $700 per person and the ministry says she likely violated the ethics code by accepting an invitation.
The National Public Service Ethics Law, established in 2000, provides the basis for the ministry’s code of ethics. It prohibits civil servants from accepting meals, money, or gifts from parties considered to hold financial interests in government policy. Those found to have violated the law are subject to disciplinary action.
On Wednesday, the ministry announced seven of the officials would receive pay cuts. Two others were warned about their conduct, while another two were reprimanded.
Prime Minister Suga says he was surprised by his son’s actions and that he told him to keep away from the ministry when he joined the company.
The Liberal Democratic Party’s Secretary General, Nikai Toshihiro, has waved away concern that the scandal will derail the Suga administration, saying it will have only a limited impact on the government. But oppositions parties are maintaining pressure on the Prime Minister.
“I can't overlook the fact that a member of the Prime Minister's family was deeply involved in this scandal,” said Tsujimoto Kiyomi, Deputy Representative of the Constitutional Democratic Party. “The son may have been trying to use his father's position to gain an advantage at work. Nobody treats you to such an expensive dinner if they don't have a hidden motive.”
Nakaya Joji, professor at Kindai University and an expert on public service ethics, said the probe reveals a comprehensive failure of judgement on the part of the ministry officials.
“The number of times this happened and the number of people who were involved is very high,” he says. “These were senior officials, those who are not only expected to abide by ethical rules but also to set a standard within the workplace. This scandal will likely affect morale throughout the ministry.”
The government would have been hoping that the probe drew a line under the affair but the opposition parties are making sure it remains in the public eye. They say they will investigate the matter further and summon Yamada as a witness.
The longer the issue lingers, the worse for Suga, who can ill afford even the whiff of scandal at the moment. The embattled Prime Minister is already struggling with plummeting approval rates due to his coronavirus pandemic response, and allegations of cronyism could be a decisive blow for his administration.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210225_26/
Olympic preparations are ramping up in Tokyo with less than five months until the Games kick off. It's still unclear whether overseas spectators will be able to attend due to the coronavirus pandemic. But a senior International Olympic Committee official suggests a decision could be made in the coming months.
Following Wednesday's IOC executive board meeting, Olympic Games Executive Director Christophe Dubi suggested that a decision about allowing overseas fans into events could be made sometime around the end of April. He added that a separate decision may be applied to domestic spectators.
Meanwhile, the IOC named the Australian city of Brisbane as its preferred candidate to host the 2032 Summer Games. The move is part of the IOC's attempt to streamline what can become a costly selection process. IOC President Thomas Bach emphasized that it's just a preference and "not a decision against anybody."
China, Hungary and Indonesia have expressed interest in hosting the Games, but none have submitted a formal bid.
Key words : myanmar met
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210225_01/
Wunna Maung Lwin, who was appointed by Myanmar's military as foreign minister after the February 1 coup, has met with the Thai and Indonesian foreign ministers.
Wunna Maung Lwin arrived at an airport in Bangkok on Wednesday. It is the first time that a key figure from Myanmar has been confirmed to have visited a foreign country since the takeover.
Thai government officials said Wunna Maung Lwin met with Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai and Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi for about an hour at a military facility.
The officials also said Wunna Maung Lwin explained the political situation in Myanmar and the ongoing protests.
He is believed to have insisted on the legitimacy of the military's actions. He has already claimed that the military had no choice but to take action to maintain the country's peace and security.
Wunna Maung Lwin also held talks with Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha.
After the meeting, Prayut told reporters that members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations need to listen to one another and build cooperative ties.
Key words : seiko team
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210225_02/
The new chief of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee says it will launch a team to promote gender equality on Thursday.
Hashimoto Seiko spoke to reporters on Wednesday after attending a board meeting of the International Olympic Committee online.
Hashimoto said the team will be headed by the Tokyo organizing committee's sports director, Kotani Mikako, and that it will include members of its athletes committee and outside experts.
Hashimoto said she will do her utmost in the limited time before the games. She also said she hopes that looking back after the games, people will call the events a turning point for Japan to change significantly.
Kotani said she will work hard to deliver messages of diversity and harmony in a visible way.
Hashimoto noted she also told the IOC that the Tokyo Games organizer will hold the Olympic torch relay, which will start in late March, with safety as the top priority while taking thorough measures to prevent coronavirus infections.
Hashimoto became president of the Tokyo committee after former head Mori Yoshiro resigned over remarks that were seen as demeaning to women.
Key words : employee itochu
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210224_32/
An employee of major Japanese trading house Itochu Corporation is expected to return to Japan as early as Wednesday after serving a prison term in China for allegedly harming national security.
The male worker in his 40s was released from jail on Saturday.
Chinese state security authorities detained the man in the southern city of Guangzhou in February 2018. A court in the city handed down a three-year sentence for harming China's national security.
Sources with knowledge of Japan-China relations say the man will arrive in Japan on Wednesday night.
The employee had been working in Japan before he was detained during a visit to China. It is not clear what actions were deemed illegal.
Since 2015, Chinese authorities have detained a number of Japanese nationals for their alleged involvement in espionage. Eight people are still in China. Seven of them were found guilty and are in jail. One is on trial.
Key words : new data
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210224_27/
New data show that South Korea's fertility rate in 2020 dropped to a record low.
South Korean media say the country has entered an era of natural population decline as the number of deaths surpassed the number of births.
Statistics Korea said on Wednesday that the fertility rate, the average number of children born per woman, stood at 0.84 last year.
That's down 0.08 from the previous year, and the lowest since record keeping began in 1970.
The statistics agency says the decline is partly due to the falling number of people getting married.
The number of newborns stood at about 272,000, down 10 percent from a year earlier. The number of deaths was about 305,000.
The agency indicates the country's population will decline further.
It says fewer people are expected to get married due to the coronavirus pandemic, leading to fewer childbirths, while the number of deaths will likely increase due to the aging of society.
Key words : toyota fuji
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210224_16/
Toyota Motor has begun construction of a prototype smart city at the foot of Mt. Fuji in central Japan.
The automaker plans to develop a system that connects vehicles, infrastructure and homes through advanced networks.
The futuristic community named "Woven City" will be built on 700,000 square meters of land that was the site of a former Toyota factory.
Toyota President Toyoda Akio attended the ground-breaking ceremony on Tuesday.
Woven City will feature three types of streets: one for fully autonomous vehicles, one for pedestrians, and another for people using personal mobility vehicles.
The new community will have about 360 residents initially, including developers and senior citizens. It is expected to generate innovations to benefit society. The health data of residents recorded by sensors will be monitored using AI technology, and robots will support their daily lives.
Toyota calls Woven City a ''living laboratory" and has not specified how long the project will run.
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