at 18:30 (JST), October 10

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/20231010183000_english_1.mp3


Key words : a man nhk
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20231010_01/

A man in his 30s says he was sexually abused multiple times by the late founder of Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates at NHK's broadcasting center in Tokyo about 20 years ago.

NHK says it is taking the man's statement seriously.

NHK has interviewed the individual. He says he was sexually abused by Johnny Kitagawa in a men's restroom at the NHK broadcasting center in Shibuya in the fall of 2002, when he was in high school.

He told NHK that he was taking dance lessons at NHK's building in Shibuya, as he wanted to perform in one of the broadcaster's music programs. Young pop stars from Johnny & Associates are featured on the show. The man said Kitagawa was also present during the lessons.
He said Kitagawa approached him during a break and took him to a men's restroom. He said Kitagawa took off his underwear and abused him sexually.

The man said he was deeply shocked. But he said he wanted to be a Johnny & Associates pop star so badly that he participated in the lessons on the weekends when he was contacted by the agency.

He said he was abused about five more times in men's restrooms at NHK.

Several months later, he refused for the first time. The agency stopped contacting him the following week.

He told NHK that he was upset when he realized that his dreams could not come true, unless he continued to endure the abuse. He said he seriously thought about what he should do next. When the sex abuse scandal involving the agency's late founder came to light this year, he said he realized that Kitagawa's actions were wrong. He said he is angry at the agency, as his dreams were destroyed.

NHK has broadcast the program, which is called "The Shonen Club," since April, 2000. The program features Johnny's Juniors, young entertainers dreaming of becoming one of the agency's stars. NHK says it will conduct a complete review of the program. It adds that it may change the title of the show.

The man also told NHK that he got in touch with Johnny & Associates, after the agency encouraged Kitagawa's victims to contact the firm. He added that he will meet with the agency.

NHK has stated that, as a responsible producer of programs, it cannot overlook such incidents or allow actions like that to happen. It says it will take further steps to protect the safety and the rights of everyone who appears in its programs.

Regarding the man's statement, the talent agency says it was not aware that such an incident happened at NHK.
It says an independent team has been tasked with preventing recurrences. It also says it has set up a committee to help the victims. The team and the committee will collect the facts about all of the alleged cases of sexual abuse.

The agency says it will continue to compensate the victims in accordance with the advice it received from the independent team.

Key words : search and rescue afghanistan trapped
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20231010_07/

Search and rescue operations continue after two powerful earthquakes struck western Afghanistan on Saturday.

The governing Taliban said the two magnitude-6.3 quakes killed at least 2,000 people and flattened more than 2,000 houses.

Taliban officials said that in the hardest-hit province of Herat, there are some communities where almost all buildings collapsed, leaving residents trapped. They said it's hard to determine how many were killed or remain missing in those areas.

Time was running out for survivors trapped under the rubble as rescue efforts near the crucial 72-hour mark. Experts say the chance of survival in a disaster drops substantially after the first 72 hours.
The father of a three-month-old girl said she was still trapped under his collapsed house. The Herat resident said he was digging through rubble by hand in search of the daughter, since rescuers had yet to arrive.

The man said he was deeply saddened by casualties, adding that many women and children were at home at the time of the quakes, while most men were working outside.

Key words : researcher discovered snail
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20231006_35/

A group of Japanese and Thai researchers have discovered five species of luminous land snails -- the first such find in 80 years.

Professor Oba Yuichi of the Department of Environmental Biology of Chubu University in Aichi Prefecture and researchers at a university in Thailand have published findings from their joint study.

The group says that there are about 30,000 known species of terrestrial snails around the world, but only one species which was discovered in Singapore in 1943 was previously known to be luminescent.

The researchers have studied land snails collected in Thailand and found the five species to be luminescent.

They say that the four of them belonging to the genus Phuphania produce a continuous greenish light, while one species of Quantula striata emits a blinking greenish luminescence from around its mouth while moving.

Professor Oba says that those snails may be mimicking other luminescent creatures that are venomous, such as fireflies, to protect themselves against their predators.

Oba says he wants to learn more about how and why they emit light.

He says analyses of genes of luminous creatures could be used to make cancer cells emit luminescence and monitor their metastasis.

Key words : island nations meetng
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20231006_33/

Indonesia will welcome leaders of dozens of island nations next Wednesday for the first summit of the Archipelagic and Island State Forum to discuss challenges in protecting marine environments.

The forum was established in 2018 under Indonesia's initiative and has more than 50 countries as members.

Ministers from member countries have met each year. And the summit next week in Bali will address how to deal with rising sea levels, marine plastic waste and other issues.

The meeting is also expected to uphold the idea of "Blue Economies," or balancing preservation of the sea and economic activities.

The Indonesian government says delegates from over 25 countries, including Japan and the UK, are scheduled to join the summit. Heads of state will attend from Papua New Guinea, Madagascar and other five countries.

Ahead of the summit, Indonesian President Joko Widodo said that his country recognizes the importance of links between the ocean and climate change. He added, "Indonesia believes that, with international support, countries on archipelagos and small island nations can be part of the solution."

Jakarta hopes the summit will encourage emerging economies known as the Global South to strengthen their partnership.

The meeting comes as the US, China and other global powers are increasing their presence in the Asia-Pacific.

Last week, US President Joe Biden welcomed leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum back to Washington for the second meeting of its kind.

Key words : xi delegation met
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20231010_02/

Chinese President Xi Jinping has expressed a positive view on stabilizing ties between Beijing and Washington in a meeting with a US bipartisan delegation led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

The six-member group met with Xi in Beijing on Monday, following talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

Relations between the two countries have been at odds over issues of security and economy.

Xi said China-US relations are the most important bilateral relationship in the world, and how China and the US get along will determine the future and destiny of humanity, according to China's foreign ministry.

Xi also said China-US cooperation is required to address a range of global challenges, including post-pandemic recovery and climate change.

The US senators' visit to China comes as bilateral security cooperation remains stalled. The countries have also been in a feud over semiconductors and other advanced technologies.

Attention is on whether Xi and his US counterpart Joe Biden will hold a summit on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in San Francisco next month.

Key words : north 78th south
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20231010_03/

North Korea has reportedly held a celebratory event to mark the 78th anniversary of the founding of the country's ruling Workers' Party. But its neighbors are wary of a possible North Korean military spy satellite launch.

North Korea's state-run television reported that a ceremony would be held in central Pyongyang from Monday night until early Tuesday morning.

The ceremony may have featured dance performances by students, national flag waving, and fireworks in a bid to increase national dignity and strengthen unity.

Meanwhile, the country's National Aerospace Technology General Bureau tried to launch a military reconnaissance satellite in May and August, but both attempts failed.
The aerospace authorities have said that they will make a third attempt this month.
North Korea agreed to strengthen strategic ties with Russia, when its leader Kim Jong Un visited Russia's Far East for the first time in four years in September.
Kim held talks with President Vladimir Putin, and the leaders took a tour of the Vostochny spaceport. They inspected a rocket launch pad and other things.

South Korea's Yonhap News Agency says there is speculation that Russia may be providing Pyongyang with technological assistance in an effort to help the North make a third attempt to launch a military spy satellite.

Key words : panda
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20231009_21/

A giant panda born in Japan has been put on public view in the Chinese province of Sichuan.

Visitors to the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda have been able to view Xiang Xiang from Sunday.

Some visitors have reported that a signboard at her enclosure states her birthplace is Ueno Zoo in Tokyo.

She was born in June 2017, and her parents were loaned from China. Xiang Xiang was transferred to China in February this year under an ownership agreement between Japan and China.

Center officials initially prevented people other than her keepers from approaching her, saying she is shy and easily scared.

A video taken on Sunday shows Xiang Xiang walking slowly and appearing to sniff bamboo sticks she is holding.

The center also uploaded a video on a Chinese social media platform on Saturday showing the panda sitting on the ground and eating bamboo shoots.