Japan's main ruling Liberal Democratic Party has decided that voting for its leadership election will take place on September 20th.
A senior official of the International Committee of the Red Cross has urged Japan to join a UN treaty banning nuclear weapons.
Japan's Maritime Defense Force have announced a plan to conduct joint drills with navies countries' around the South China Sea and Indian Ocean.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20180821200000_english_1.mp3
Key words : Japan main democratic
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_16/
Japan's main ruling Liberal Democratic Party has decided that voting for its leadership election will take place on September 20th.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's term as party president is set to expire at the end of September.
The party's presidential election committee met on Tuesday and officially decided that notices for the election will go out on September 7th.
The committee also decided to lower the voting age for LDP members from 20 to 18. This is in line with amendments to the national election law which give 18 year olds the right to vote.
It also decided to allow party members who have paid dues for only last year to vote. Until now, to cast a ballot, party members have had to pay dues for the 2 previous years.
LDP former Secretary-General Shigeru Ishiba has already announced his candidacy. Prime Minister Abe is eager to be re-elected again for his 3rd term.
It will be the first time in 6 years that the party has held a leadership campaign. The committee will begin arranging schedules for public debates and campaign speeches.
Key words : Abe challenger
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_19/
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his challenger Shigeru Ishiba have expressed their resolve to win next month's leadership election of the Liberal Democratic Party.
Abe is now spending summer vacation near Tokyo. Asked by reporters about his physical and mental condition ahead of the vote, Abe replied he feels more motivated every day.
Challenger Ishiba told reporters on Tuesday that the election effectively decides who will be prime minister.
He stressed the party should provide opportunities to publicly discuss candidates' policy viewpoints on every issue, including constitutional amendments, economy, diplomacy and security.
Key words : senior official red cross
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_02/
A senior official of the International Committee of the Red Cross has urged Japan to join a UN treaty banning nuclear weapons.
In an interview with NHK on Monday, the ICRC's Director of International Law and Policy, Helen Durham, said Japan has an important role to play.
She said it's regrettable that many countries appear to see the atomic bombings as something from the distant past that will never happen again.
Durham added that Japan should call for the abolishment of nuclear arms by joining the treaty.
The treaty, adopted by the UN last year, requires 50 members to ratify it before coming into force. As of now only 14 countries and territories have done so.
The Japanese government says it has a different approach to the issue and is sitting out this treaty.
Key words : maritime defense drill
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_27/
Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force will hold joint drills with other Asian countries' navies in the South China Sea and Indian Ocean.
The MSDF announced on Tuesday that its largest destroyer, the Kaga, and other vessels will visit 5 countries, including the Philippines, Indonesia and India, from Sunday through the end of October.
The vessels will take part in joint exercises with the navies of the 5 nations, as well as with the US Navy operating in the region.
The US military's Pacific Command has been renamed the Indo-Pacific Command to strengthen ties with Indian Ocean countries, amid the growing military and economic presence of China.
It is rare for the MSDF to conduct long-term exercises in the South China Sea and Indian Ocean.
It apparently aims to work with the US military and others to push back against China's increasing maritime activities in the area.
MSDF Chief of Staff Yutaka Murakawa says the mission is in line with the Japanese government's "Free and Open Indo-Pacific Strategy," which aims to ensure peace and stability in the region.
Key words : chief of Roman Catholic
#N/A
Key words : new york times
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_22/
The New York Times is reporting that a prominent actress in the #MeToo movement reached a settlement with a young actor who said she had sexually assaulted him.
The paper says Italian actress Asia Argento quietly arranged to pay the actor who said she sexually assaulted him in 2013 when he was only 2 months past his 17th birthday. The age of consent in California, where the alleged incident occurred, is 18.
Argento is an outspoken advocate in the #MeToo movement and was among the first women in the movie industry to publicly accuse producer Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault.
The Times article on Sunday said Argento and the actor co-starred in a film in 2004.
The actor reportedly said his career went into a downward spiral after the incident. The paper said he asked for 3.5 million dollars in damages and that Argento agreed to pay him 380,000 dollars, starting with an initial payment in April.
Key words : muslim across the world
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_06/
Some 2.3 million Muslims from across the world are performing the annual Hajj rites in Saudi Arabia.
Muslims are required to take part in Hajj at least once in their lifetime if they are healthy and wealthy enough to make the pilgrimage.
The rites include a vigil at Mount Arafat, believed to be the place where the prophet Mohammed delivered his final sermon. On Monday, tens of thousands of pilgrims were offering prayers amid high temperatures.
A pilgrim from the US said he is physically exhausted but regained strength from visiting the holy site.
Several stampedes have occurred in past Hajj pilgrimages.
The Saudi government has deployed security forces to protect the pilgrims.
Key words : sleeping
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_24/
Sleeping capsules imported from Japan have been rolled out at the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia to allow people to take a break from the demanding rituals.
About 2.3 million Muslims from around the world are in Mecca and surrounding areas on the annual Hajj, which started on Sunday. Pilgrims need to walk considerable distances in intense heat while performing the rituals.
The Saudi charity that imported around 20 of the capsule beds is offering them for free for up to 3 hours.
The futuristic-looking capsules are each about 3 meters long by one meter tall, and have their own air-conditioning.
A charity spokesperson says they hope the sleep pods can make pilgrims more comfortable.
Key words : people in Japan
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_29/
People in Japan are on the lookout for 2 strong typhoons that could bring heavy rains and strong winds across wide areas of the country.
The Meteorological Agency says that as of 5 PM on Tuesday, Japan time, Typhoon Soulik was located 110 kilometers east of the Amami Islands in Kagoshima Prefecture.
Officials predict the typhoon will head northwest and come close to southern Kyushu and the Amami Islands from Tuesday night to Wednesday morning while maintaining its strength.
The Amami area has already been hit by strong winds and almost 8,000 homes are without power.
People are also tracking Typhoon Cimaron. It's moving across the Pacific Ocean and may approach Japan's main islands in the latter half of the week.
Key words : scientist
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_23/
Scientists deep under a mountain in central Japan have hailed an advance in their study of gravitational waves. Researchers in Gifu Prefecture on Tuesday welcomed the unveiling of a specialized mirror that forms a key part of a gravitational wave detector.
The researchers say when fully operational the system will identify ripples in space-time curvature caused by the motions of black holes and other massive objects.
The facility, called KAGRA, consists of 2 three-kilometer-long pipes linked in an L shape.
It measures minute differences in the time taken for laser beams to travel the pipes. The results reveal tiny distortions in space created by gravitational waves.
The system will ultimately use 4 mirrors. The component unveiled by the University of Tokyo is made of sapphire and measures 22 centimeters across and 15 centimeters thick.
Scientists developed a world-first procedure to minimize errors and noise by cooling the mirror to about minus 250 degrees Celsius.
Eiichi Hirose of the University of Tokyo's Institute for Cosmic Ray Research says the team is looking forward to chasing the mysteries of the universe.
Physicist Albert Einstein predicted the existence of gravitational waves more than 100 years ago. Facilities in the US and Europe have successfully detected them.
Engineers plan to begin observations with the KAGRA next year.
Key words : government panel
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_14/
A government panel has decided not to regulate some genome editing procedures.
The latest technology involves changing an organism's genomes by targeting a specific location in the DNA sequence and causing a mutation.
The method of inserting new genes into an intended site is spreading quickly as it allows efficient selective breeding of plants and animals.
The panel decided that the regulation governing genetic recombination would apply to organisms that have had new genes inserted into a targeted location.
However, the panel says the regulation will not apply to genome editing in which mutations are produced at a targeted site without new genes inserted.
It will also not apply to cases in which nothing remains of the inserted gene and its derivative in the final products, even if the organism is genetically recombined temporarily.
The panel, however, has set a condition for these cases to which the regulation will not be applied. It says if organisms are kept or grown outdoors in the beginning, researchers will be required to provide data to the government about how the genes were altered.
In other countries, the United States has decided not to particularly restrict any of the methods of genome editing. But in Europe, the EU's court of justice calls for the application of the same rules governing genetic recombination to genome editing.
Japan's government plans to convene a meeting of experts including lawyers to continue looking into the panel's conclusion.
Hideharu Anazawa of the Japan Bioindustry Association says there are few risks associated with genome editing and that stricter regulations are unthinkable. He says the panel's conclusion appropriately reflects the risks of genome editing.
The secretary-general of the Consumers Union of Japan, Michiyo Koketsu, says the quantity and quality of genome editing is absolutely different from sudden mutations that occur in nature. She says even though the latest technology is said to be able to make intended alternations, unintended changes may occur, and that the panel has underestimated such risks. She says more careful discussions are needed taking the point of view of consumers into consideration.
Key words : Japanese US student
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180821_17/
Japanese and US students have exchanged views on the role of soft power in diplomacy at a panel discussion in Washington. Soft power refers to using culture, values and other attractions to influence others.
The event on Monday is part of the 70th Japan-America Student Conference underway in several locations in the United States in August.
More than 60 students are lodging together for nearly a month to deepen mutual understanding through discussions.
The conference started in 1934 and has been held annually except for two interruptions--one during World War Two.
The Monday session, joined by a US State Department official in charge of Japan affairs, discussed the use of soft power, rather than military and economic might.
Some American participants said greater emphasis must be put on soft power at a time when the Trump administration is using higher tariffs and other hardline measures to win concessions from other nations.
Japanese students also stressed the importance of promoting grass-roots cultural exchanges and pursuing peace through soft power.
A University of Tokyo student, Soichiro Unami, said the discussion was very useful in thinking about Japan's ability to send out messages.
He said however attractive a culture and customs a country has, they would be wasted if the message doesn't reach people.
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