at 18:30 (JST), May 16

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/20220516183000_english_1.mp3


Key words : okinawa marks 27 years
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220515_01/

Okinawa marks the 50th anniversary of its return to Japan from US rule on Sunday.

Commemorative ceremonies are scheduled to be held in the afternoon simultaneously by the prefecture and the central government at two venues in Okinawa and Tokyo, respectively.

The southern prefecture still faces many challenges after reversion, ranging from military base issues to economic disparities.

The Battle of Okinawa was one of the fiercest ground battles during the final stages of World War Two in 1945. The islands of Okinawa were under US control for 27 years after the war.

Most of the US military facilities in Japan are concentrated in Okinawa. The area occupied by those facilities has dropped to two-thirds of what it was at reversion, but Okinawa still hosts about 70 percent of all such installations. The prefecture accounts for only about 0.6 percent of the country's total land area.

The prefecture suffers from a number of incidents, accidents, and noise arising from the bases.

The central and prefectural governments remain at odds over the planned relocation, within Okinawa, of the US Futenma air station from Ginowan City to the less populated Henoko district of Nago City.

On the economic front, Okinawa's tourism revenue nearly doubled over the 10 years through 2019 due to rapid growth of its tourism industry.

The prefecture's unemployment rate has improved dramatically. It used to be about twice the national average. The rate has now fallen to 2.7 percent, narrowing the gap with the nation's average of 2.4 percent.

But income disparity remains high in Okinawa. The prefecture's average income per capita stood at about 2.4 million yen, or roughly 18,500 dollars, as of fiscal 2018. That represents only about 75 percent of the national average.

Key words : mixed feeling
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220515_16/

People in Okinawa have expressed mixed feelings as the southern Japanese prefecture marks the 50th anniversary of its return to Japan from US rule on Sunday.

A woman in her 60s who runs a shop in the city of Naha said she was an elementary school student at the time of the prefecture's reversion, and that she still remembers using US dollars as the local currency.

She said she feels the prefecture could catch up with the mainland as many tourists come, and she is happy that the prefecture reverted to Japan.

She added that she wants Okinawa to remain a place many people hope to visit.

Another shopkeeper in his 60s said that even though there has been some progress in the streamlining of US military bases, he still feels as if the prefecture were a colony, as incidents and accidents related to the bases continue to happen.

He said he hopes Okinawa will have no military bases one day, and that academic standards and the economy will improve to make the region peaceful.

A female university student said she is learning about the prefecture, but there are still many things that she still doesn't know. The 18-year-old added she wants to continue learning more about Okinawa.

Key words : analyst contraction
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220516_02/

Analysts say an expected contraction of Japan's GDP in the January-March quarter might have been caused by the intensive coronavirus restrictions that were in place in many parts of the country.

The downturn would mark the first negative growth in two quarters. Official government data will be out on Wednesday.

Fifteen private-sector think tanks and research institutions have released projections. Their annualized figures range from minus 6.4 to minus 0.2 percent.

They say quasi-emergency measures hurt consumer spending such as dining out and traveling. Personal consumption accounts for more than half of GDP.

Automakers also suffered poor sales as they cut or suspended production.
Rising gasoline prices and other items are also believed to have pushed down spending further.

Meanwhile, 12 of the 15 institutions are forecasting growth in corporate capital investment, especially in IT-related fields.

Key words : indian
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220514_18/

The Indian government has banned exports of wheat to ensure a stable domestic supply amid soaring prices.

Wheat prices have been surging around the world due to speculation that supplies from Russia and Ukraine will be hindered as Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine.

The Indian government on Friday announced an immediate ban on exports of wheat to ensure a stable supply for domestic consumption.

India is the world's second largest producer of wheat, much of it is consumed domestically. Soaring wheat prices are already impacting people's lives.

The government says it will allow exports to countries that are facing difficulty securing supplies if requested.

Key words : north special order
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220516_06/

North Korea's media say leader Kim Jong Un has ordered the military's medical department to stabilize the nation's supply of medicine as it confronts an explosive number of cases with fever symptoms.

North Korea officially confirmed its first coronavirus cases last week.

The ruling Workers' Party newspaper Rodong Sinmun reported Monday that Kim issued the special order at an emergency meeting of the party political bureau.

The newspaper says Kim was told in a briefing that more than 392,900 new cases of fever symptoms had been confirmed in the 24 hours leading up to Sunday at 6 p.m., and eight people had died.

North Korea's total number of cases since late April has exceeded 1,213,500, with 50 deaths. The country's population is about 25.8 million.

Kim was quoted as saying he had instructed all pharmacies to shift to a 24-hour operation, but medicine still didn't reach people in a timely manner.

The paper says Kim criticized the Cabinet and health officials for the delay, and reprimanded the top prosecutor for not overseeing the situation appropriately.

Key words : taiwan vaccine
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220515_10/

Taiwan will make a fourth dose of COVID 19 vaccine available for people at higher risk beginning on Monday.

Health authorities say people who are eligible are those 65 or older, residents of care homes, and people who are 18 or older and immunocompromised.

But a fourth jab will only be offered to those who received their third shot at least five months earlier.

Taiwan has seen a major uptick in the Omicron variant infection cases from April.

The daily new infection cases topped 50,000 for the first time on Tuesday.

The number remained above 60,000 for three consecutive days from Thursday.

Authorities say more than 99 percent of those tested positive are experiencing either minor or no symptoms at all.

But people who are showing severe symptoms are mostly elderly and those who haven't had their third shot yet.

Meanwhile, the rise in cases has prompted Taiwan to allow individuals that are under 70 with minor symptoms to stay home so as not to overwhelm medical institutions.

Taiwan has also narrowed the definition of close contacts to people such as live-in family members in an apparent effort to limit the impact on economic activities.

Key words : shanghai frustrated hotel
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220515_04/

Residents in Shanghai have been frustrated over the city's vague coronavirus isolation policy. A lockdown has been imposed on China's commercial hub since late March.

Shanghai authorities reported more than 1,500 new cases on Friday. Strict restrictions on outings remain in many areas of the city.

The authorities said at a news conference on Friday that they seek to reduce the number of infections to zero by mid-May, excluding those who have been quarantined at facilities or elsewhere.

To achieve the target, the city has introduced an even stricter policy to isolate people who are deemed to be at risk of infection.

For example, if a person infected with the virus lives in an apartment building, residents on the same floor as well as the floors above and below may be subject to isolation.

But the isolation criteria are vague in some cases. Residents could be forcibly quarantined even under such circumstances; criticism has been voiced on social media.

A Japanese woman who is not infected herself, but is now being forcibly quarantined after an infection was confirmed at her condominium in Shanghai, spoke to NHK about the authorities' strict policies.

She said residents in her building had been restricted from going out since late March. But as infections were confirmed one after another in May, authorities gave a notification that even residents who were not infected would be isolated from Tuesday. The woman said she refused to be quarantined, but she was transferred to a hotel in another city.

The woman said meals are provided at the hotel, but the bathrooms and beds are not clean. She added that when she told the authorities that she did not want to go to a quarantine facility, they told her to just follow instructions, otherwise she would be detained by police.

Asked about China's zero-COVID policy, the woman said China had managed to keep the virus under control until the lockdown began in Shanghai, but she also saw the negative side of the anti-infection measures, as authorities are blindly pursuing the policy.

Key words : iwate
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220516_05/

A total of 16 young bulls have participated in a bullfighting event in the northeastern Japanese city of Kuji, Iwate Prefecture. The city's Yamagata district is the only place in the Tohoku region that hosts bullfights.

The traditional event on the Hiraniwa Highlands is held four times a year between May and October. The first bullfight of 2022 took place on Sunday.

The bulls are two or three years old. They butted heads and locked horns with each other, as their handlers shouted words of encouragement. Some of the bulls were novices, and they were unable to get their timing right.

The event dates back to the Edo period, between the 17th and 19th centuries. Fights between cows that carried salt were held during the period.

A teenage boy who attended the event for the first time said he was thrilled to see the different tactics used by each bull.

A bull owner in his 60s said he was glad to see how his young bulls had grown during the past year.

Yaezakura Tomoo is the head of the local group that organizes the bullfights. He said this is the event's 40th anniversary. Yaezakura added that he hopes people will continue to support the event.