SNA (Tokyo) — The following stories were reported today by the Shingetsu News Agency.

Politics

—Governor Yuriko Koike pays a heavy price for her Party of Hope failure. Komeito now ends alliance with Tokyoites First, meaning that the Governor has lost her governing majority in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly.

—The very rightwing Yuichiro Hata appointed Democratic Party’s Secretary-General for the House of Councillors. Doesn’t seem to bode well for potential cooperation with the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.

—With the victory of conservatives and rightwingers within Party of Hope, they are expected to cooperate with Abe government on Constitution revision, and also have difficulty coordinating with leading opposition party Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.

—Considerable media speculation that Party of Hope not far from first major split. Hiroshi Ogushi, who gained 14 lawmaker votes in leadership race and received no executive post, criticizing party’s lack of transparency.

—Compromise appears to have been reached whereby opposition parties’ time for parliamentary questions of the government will be reduced from 80% to 67%.

—Japan Innovation Party lawmaker Yasushi Adachi may face official sanctions after series of wild statements about Kake Gakuen in Diet committee. Same lawmaker just called for Asahi Shinbun to “die.”

International

—Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga declares it “extremely regrettable” that San Francisco city council votes to accept Comfort Women statue. Meanwhile, Osaka’s leaders continue to threaten to cut decades-old sister city ties.

—Prime Minister Shinzo Abe refuses to bring up any human rights issues with President Rodrigo Duterte, but did do so with Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi, asking the Rohingya be able to safely return to their homes.

—Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has wrapped up his Southeast Asia tour and will be back in Japan shortly.

—North Korea regarding US President Donald Trump: “He should know that he is just a hideous criminal sentenced to death by the Korean people.”

—Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga calls on the Defense Ministry to stop its construction of the US Marine airbase at Henoko using stones delivered to the site by boat.

Economy

—Osaka Governor Ichiro Matsui and Mayor Hirofumi Yoshimura travel to Europe to lobby for hosting the 2025 World Expo, a major local priority.

Society

—At meeting of UN Human Rights Council, Japan is urged to create media supervisory organization independent of the government. As usual, the Abe regime claims there are absolutely no problems with news media freedom in Japan.

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