Key words : news conference containing apology
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240329_23/
Drug maker offers apology for health scare caused by 'beni-koji' supplements
A Japanese drug maker has offered an apology for the widespread health concerns caused by its supplements containing "beni-koji" red yeast rice.
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical on Friday held its first news conference since deaths were reported among users of the products, which are now subject to a recall.
President Kobayashi Akihiro expressed his condolences for the deceased customers and their family members. He added he is deeply sorry for causing concern and anxiety to many people over the issue that has developed into a social problem.
The Osaka-based firm was initially informed of suspected health damage in January, but did not go public for more than two months.
President Kobayashi said the company is seriously reflecting on the severe criticism it has faced over the time lapse, and is deeply remorseful.
The drug maker said that as of Thursday night, there were five deaths and 114 reports of hospitalizations among users of the beni-koji supplements. Those affected are said to have developed kidney problems and other health issues.
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical has launched a probe into what it calls an "unintended substance" that may have gotten into the ingredients of the supplements.
A senior company official said "the structure of the substance" has been coming to light in the past week.
The official said the company will investigate the cause of the health problems jointly with government institutions, by providing data to the government and others.
The health ministry and the agency in charge of consumer affairs have launched a joint Japanese language hotline to respond to inquiries by consumers and businesses.
The number is 03-3595-2760. The call center will operate from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day, including weekends and national holidays.
Key words : president appropriate
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240329_01/
Japan health ministry to ask firms to conduct inspection amid beni-koji concerns
Japan's health ministry says it will ask about 200 companies to conduct self-inspections in response to growing concerns about health supplements containing "beni-koji." That is rice fermented with red yeast.
The Kobayashi Pharmaceutical products are reportedly linked to four deaths and dozens of hospitalizations.
A panel of experts convened by the ministry met Thursday and recommended the measure.
The government says it will ask companies that received Kobayashi's "beni-koji" material to conduct self-inspections.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi Yoshimasa said earlier that the government will work to ensure food safety.
He said: "We've provided information to the World Health Organization and foreign governments. We'll keep doing so in an appropriate and timely manner to maintain public trust in Japanese food products."
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical held a shareholders' meeting behind closed doors on the same day. Its president apologized and said the firm will investigate the cause.
One shareholder said, "It's a problem that the company is causing people so much trouble."
Another shareholder said, " I hope the cause of this will be discovered soon and that the many people taking the company's other products feel safe."
"Beni-koji" is taken in pill form by people wanting to lower their cholesterol, or for other health reasons.
The company says some manufactured between last April through December could contain an "unintended substance." It says that substance could be the cause.
The company says more than 90 people who consumed the products were hospitalized after developing kidney problems.
Nihon University School of Medicine Professor Abe Masanori examined three of those patients from November last year to last month.
He said none of them had chronic disease before they started ingesting Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's "Benikoji CholesteHelp" around last spring.
He added, "In one case, if the patient had not been undergoing regular blood and urine tests, her condition could have advanced to a point where it was detected only when it was terminal.
Abe says he was concerned about the product and contacted Kobayashi Pharmaceutical last month, explaining the patients' symptoms in detail.
Key words : osaka city ordered
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240329_21/
'Beni-koji' supplement concerns spreading overseas
Concerns about a Japanese drug maker's health supplements containing "beni-koji," or rice fermented with red yeast, are also spreading overseas.
Five deaths have been reported in Japan in association with the products manufactured by Osaka-based Kobayashi Pharmaceutical. The patients reportedly developed kidney problems and other health issues.
In China, Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's supplements and other products are widely known. Chinese state-run media outlets have been extensively covering the related news and the topic has gathered attention on social media as well. The company announced it has suspended the sales of its products marketed online in China. It is also calling on customers to stop taking the supplements, adding that it will recall them voluntarily.
In Taiwan, local media outlets reported that a woman in her 70s, who lives in the southern city of Kaohsiung, was diagnosed with acute kidney failure in March last year after starting to take a supplement containing "beni-koji" three or four years ago.
The reports said the woman took the supplement that was manufactured by a Taiwanese company with Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's ingredients.
Local health authorities said it remains unclear whether the supplement induced the health problem. They added that they found records showing that the ingredient was imported to Taiwan. More than 30 local businesses are recalling products containing the ingredient.
As for Hong Kong, Kobayashi Pharmaceutical said its products containing beni-koji have not been sold. It added that it will recall products bought in Japan.
In Vietnam, the health ministry is warning the public not to take the supplements on the government's official website. It is also calling on people to report to authorities if they find the products. The ministry officials say the supplements have not been officially marketed in the country.
South Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said the three Kobayashi Pharmaceutical products, which Japan's Osaka City has ordered to be recalled, have not been imported to the country. It said it has not received any reports about the health problem. The ministry has urged online marketers to warn against the products and refrain from selling them.
Key words : government decided sector
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240329_12/
Japan to add 4 more sectors to specified skilled foreign worker program
The Japanese government has decided to add four more sectors to its specified skilled worker program to attract foreign workers in fields that have labor shortages.
The Cabinet reached the decision on Friday on the program that additionally grants residency status to non-Japanese workers with expert skills.
The program currently covers 12 sectors, including nursing care, construction and agriculture. The four new fields are auto transportation, railroads, forestry and timber.
Bus and taxi drivers as well as train drivers and conductors will now be able to apply for the program. A high-level of Japanese language proficiency is a requirement for those jobs because they involve communication and safety management skills.
The government aims to accept up to 820,000 foreign workers in the 16 sectors in the five years from the fiscal year that begins in April.
Key words : talent agency two staff
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240329_10/
Former Johnny & Associates admits sexual abuse by two staff members
A Japanese firm previously known as Johnny & Associates says two staff members at the former talent agency sexually abused clients.
Smile-Up. made the announcement on its website late Thursday, admitting for the first time there were multiple perpetrators, other than the late founder of Johnny & Associates, Johnny Kitagawa.
Kitagawa was found to have sexually abused his agency's talent. Smile-Up. is currently compensating victims.
The admission came after British public broadcaster BBC published an interview with Smile-Up. President Higashiyama Noriyuki.
A special investigative team of outside experts published a report last year and pointed out sexual abuse cases involving staff of Johnny & Associates.
Smile-Up. admitted to the allegations at a news conference, but did not reveal the number of perpetrators at that time.
The agency says it took strict measures against the two staff members by September. It says it has refrained from providing details of the abuse cases to protect the privacy of those involved.
Smile-Up. says it has not received any reports from people who say they were sexually abused by staff of the former agency. But the company says it will examine any claims and compensate the victims.
Key words : china economic forum Tatehata Kazuo
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/videos/20240329155656236/
China urges foreign investment at Boao Asia Forum
At an annual economic forum in China, the country's third-highest ranking official has appealed for more foreign investment. This cones as China's economic outlook is becoming increasingly unclear, amid a prolonged real estate slump. NHK World's Tatehata Kazuo explains.
Key words : international court
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240329_07/
ICJ orders Israel to do more in humanitarian assistance
The International Court of Justice has instructed Israel to take all necessary measures to make sure that people in the Gaza Strip receive humanitarian assistance.
The ICJ issued additional provisional measures for Israel on Thursday. It says the catastrophic living conditions of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have deteriorated further, and that "famine is setting in."
The court requests that Israel take all necessary and effective measures to ensure that urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance are delivered to Palestinians throughout Gaza.
The court says the measures, including increasing the capacity and number of land crossing points, should be taken in full cooperation with the United Nations.
South Africa earlier filed a complaint with the ICJ, saying Israel's military campaign is an act of genocide against residents of the Gaza Strip.
The court issued provisional measures in January, instructing Israel to make sure that humanitarian assistance is delivered to Gaza residents, among other requests.
The ICJ has no powers of enforcement. The court issued the additional provisional measures to make requests in stronger terms as it decided that the January order was not enough to address the worsening situation in Gaza.
Key words : palestinian kamikawa ask
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240329_03/
Japan FM meets UNRWA head in step towards resuming funding for agency
Japan's foreign minister has held talks with the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees as a step towards resuming the country's financial contribution to the organization.
Kamikawa Yoko met the commissioner-general of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, in Tokyo on Thursday.
Japan suspended its funding to UNRWA in January following allegations that some of the agency's staff were involved in the deadly Hamas attacks on Israel last October. The United States and some European nations also put their funding on hold.
The Foreign Ministry said that Kamikawa asked Lazzarini to carry out effective structural reforms to ensure the transparency and traceability of UNRWA's fund flows as well as the neutrality of the agency's personnel.
Kamikawa said Japan's contribution to UNRWA is a valuable resource funded by taxpayers. She said it is important to strengthen the agency's governance to ensure that Japan's assistance is not used for terrorist activities.
Lazzarini outlined his agency's plan to reinforce its governance. He said UNRWA will establish a new framework with Japan on management and monitoring to ensure the transparency and traceability of projects. He added that this will involve the active participation of the agency's Japanese staff.
The Foreign Ministry said Kamikawa expressed appreciation for UNRWA's action plan and the two sides "confirmed that they will advance final coordination about necessary efforts to resume Japan's contribution."
Lazzarini told reporters after the talks that the meeting was "very constructive." He pledged to strengthen his agency's risk management.
Key words : canada
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240329_25/
UNRWA chief expresses hope Japan will resume funding amid crisis in Gaza
The head of the United Nations' refugee agency for Palestinians has expressed hope that Japan will resume funding for the organization amid a deepening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.
Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, or UNRWA, spoke to the media on Friday during his visit to Japan.
Major donor countries, including Japan, suspended funding for UNRWA following allegations that some of its staff were involved in the deadly Hamas attacks on Israel last October.
Lazzarini said it has become a "race against the clock" to reverse the "unfolding starvation and famine" taking place in Gaza.
He said the lack of funding for UNRWA is unsettling, not only for the communities it is supporting, but also for the agency's staff.
He said that "with the unprecedented humanitarian crisis in Gaza, obviously it's important that an agency like UNRWA, having the biggest footprint in Gaza, be able to continue to operate."
Canada, Sweden, France and others announced this month that they will resume funding for UNRWA. Therefore, Japan's decision is being closely watched, as it was organization's sixth largest contributor.
Lazzarini referred to the agency's 70 years of partnership with Japan.
He expressed hope that Tokyo will resume its financial contributions, and also provide political support to the agency.
Regarding the United States, UNRWA's top donor, Lazzarini said the US has informed the agency that there will be no funding until March 2025, and that this will have an impact on the organization's activities.
Lazzarini said he will redouble his efforts to reach out to new donors in Southeast Asia and elsewhere to seek their cooperation.
Key words : weather Yuumi Hirano
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