Asian View
"Asian View" is a five-minute news segment broadcast by NHK WORLD-JAPAN. It features the latest news and deep analysis from Japan and the rest of Asia. Listen to "Asian View" and get the latest information from a region that's playing an increasingly important role in the world.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20230228183000_english_1.mp3
Key words : tomahawk budget
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230227_19/
The Japanese government plans to acquire up to 400 US-made Tomahawk cruise missiles to help boost counterstrike capabilities.
Members of the ruling coalition disclosed this during a directors' meeting of the Lower House budget committee on Monday.
They said 400 is the maximum number and the actual figure will be decided later.
The disclosure came after the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party urged the government last week to announce how many missiles it plans to buy.
Prime Minister Kishida Fumio replied that the matter attracts much public interest, and the government will decide whether to make an announcement.
The opposition party also requested that the government present concrete examples of cases in which the country would exercise its counterattack capabilities.
But the government declined, saying that disclosing such details could undermine national security.
Key words : growing number ukraine visit
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230228_02/
A growing number of Japanese lawmakers say they endorse a plan for Prime Minister Kishida Fumio to head to Ukraine without prior notice to the Diet.
The lawmakers, both from the ruling and opposition parties, see Kishida's possible trip to Ukraine as an exceptional case.
Such a plan goes against the standard practice of prime ministers telling the Diet about their travel plans before heading overseas.
But Motegi Toshimitsu, secretary general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, justified the plan, saying great precautions would need to be taken in order to respond to unexpected events and ensure Kishida's safety.
A senior opposition politician echoed that view, saying the Diet should not stand in the way of Kishida's possible visit to Ukraine.
The government has yet to make a decision on the plan and is carefully watching if more politicians are coming to support it as a key diplomatic move for Japan, which holds the G7 presidency this year.
Some experts, however, have pointed out that securing the prime minister's safety in the conflict-torn country isn't an easy task for Japan, which doesn't have any military troops or special-operations units.
Key words : china taiwan strait
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230228_16/
A US Navy patrol aircraft has flown through the Taiwan Strait -- the politically sensitive waterway between Taiwan and mainland China.
The US 7th Fleet said a P-8A Poseidon transited the strait in international airspace on Monday, local time.
The fleet noted that the aircraft operated in accordance with international law, and that the flight demonstrates the US commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Taiwan's defense ministry made a similar announcement.
The Eastern Theater Command of China's People's Liberation Army said its forces closely monitored the US plane as it transited the strait.
It released a statement, saying, "The US side's actions deliberately interfered with and disrupted the regional situation and endangered peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. We firmly oppose this."
Key words : border control from china random
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230227_24/
The Japanese government will ease its COVID-19 border controls on travelers arriving from China starting Wednesday.
The government imposed tighter measures on travelers from China in December last year, after the number of infections of the coronavirus soared in the country.
The current measures require all visitors from China to be PCR tested upon their arrival, as well as to show proof of a negative test result.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno Hirokazu on Monday told reporters that starting on March 1, the mandatory testing will be switched to random testing of a limited number of people.
He said Japan will also do away with limiting arrivals of direct flights connecting with China to four major airports, including Tokyo's Haneda.
Matsuno cited the need to ease restrictions in stages, saying entrants from China will still be required to submit negative test results.
Asked why the government decided to ease its measures, Matsuno said the rate of travelers from China testing positive for the coronavirus continues to drop.
He said new border controls will be in place for the time being, and the government will respond in a flexible manner, while assessing China's coronavirus situation and also other countries' border controls.
Key words : lawyer religious group
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230227_28/
A team of lawyers lodged a complaint with Japan's health ministry in Tokyo on Monday against the teachings of the Jehovah's Witnesses religious group. The complaint said the group's practices such as declining blood transfusions for their children could amount to child abuse.
The lawyers provide legal assistance to former followers of the group as well as to the children of group members.
About 100 people said in interviews with the team that they had been instructed by senior members of the religious group to refuse blood transfusions for their children.
Others said they were whipped by their Jehovah's Witness parents while growing up.
The lawyers say such practices may constitute child abuse.
Monday's action comes as the health ministry in December issued guidelines to municipalities stating that denying children necessary medical treatment, including blood transfusions, is neglect, a form of abuse.
The guidelines also state that resorting to such punishments as whipping a child constitutes physical abuse.
One of the lawyers, Tanaka Kotaro, noted that the team was able to hold meaningful discussions with ministry officials, as the two sides confirmed the need for cooperation in dealing with the problems.
The ministry has expressed its readiness to discuss what actions should be taken after scrutinizing the submitted report.
Jehovah's Witnesses maintains that the claims run counter to the facts.
Jehovah's Witnesses said it is heartbreaking that a wrong conclusion has been reached based on distorted reports from only those critical of the group.
They say they do not approve of blood transfusions for religious reasons.
The group maintains that medical decisions are made by individuals and their families, and should be made after sufficient discussion.
Key words : air self-defense plaintiff
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230227_25/
A member of Japan's Air Self-Defense Force has sued the state, alleging that the SDF failed to properly address her complaints that she was sexually harassed by a male colleague.
The female member filed the lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court. She is seeking more than 11 million yen, or about 80,000 dollars, in compensation for mental suffering.
Her lawyers say the male member repeatedly made sexually suggestive remarks, including making fun of her physical characteristics, from 2010 to 2013 when she was serving at Naha Air Base in Okinawa Prefecture.
The lawyers say the SDF failed to take proper corrective measures.
The plaintiff says she suffered mentally as she was forced to share a workplace with the man for a total of five years after she made the complaints. She said her case was used in a sexual harassment education seminar on the base, and her name was disclosed.
Her lawyer said at a news conference that the lawsuit will stress the seriousness of secondary damage resulting from sexual harassment.
The lawyer expressed the intention of pursuing the "organizational responsibility" of harassment as an issue for Japanese society as a whole, not just in the SDF.
The Defense Ministry says it will discuss the matter with relevant bodies and address it appropriately after receiving the complaint.
Key words : cedar pollen
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230227_31/
Japan's Environment Ministry warns that a massive amount of cedar pollen, an allergen that causes sneezing and running noses, is expected to be in the air this season in many parts of the country.
In order to estimate the amount of pollen that will be dispersed, the ministry counts the number of male flower buds on cedar trees in 34 prefectures.
The ministry found that this season the number of buds exceeds the average for the past 10 years in 23 prefectures from southern Tohoku to Kyushu.
The bud-counts were the highest in a decade in 12 prefectures: Fukushima, Tokyo, Kanagawa, Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, Kyoto, Hyogo, Okayama, Tottori, Hiroshima and Fukuoka.
The counts for Tottori, Toyama and Okayama were more than double the average, and almost double in some other prefectures.
The ministry says the areas with greater-than-average numbers of male buds had longer daylight hours and higher temperatures last summer.
The ministry says such measures as placing a gauze pad inside a face mask, drying laundry indoors and frequently mopping floors can be effective.
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