SNA (Tokyo) — The following stories were reported in the first half of February 2020 by the Shingetsu News Agency.

Rolling Coverage: Covid-19 and the Diamond Princess

—Even as it evacuates Japanese citizens from China’s Hubei Province and doesn’t quarantine them, the Abe government moves to ban entry to Japan by all foreigners who have recently been in Hubei Province, whether they test positive for coronavirus or not.

—Abe government argues that quarantining Japanese citizens it evacuated from Wuhan area would “violate their human rights,” in spite of Japan being the only nation so far which both evacuated its citizens and didn’t then quarantine them.

—The number of confirmed Wuhan Coronavirus cases in Japan rises to 17, still placing it third worldwide behind China and Thailand. Several of the Japan cases involve people yet to show any symptoms.

—Three airplane loads of Japanese evacuees from Hubei Province have returned: Groups of 206, 210, and most recently 149. There are thought to be about 140 Japanese nationals remaining in Hubei, but its not clear if they will evacuate due to their personal situations.

—Fake News: Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike and the Organising Committee express annoyance at the false social media rumor (in Japanese language) that the Wuhan Coronavirus has forced cancellation of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

—The two Japanese evacuees on the first airplane who refused to be tested for Coronavirus infection later changed their minds and took the tests, no doubt after understanding the national anger their original stance had elicited and feeling the intense social pressure.

—The Japanese government’s fourth and probably final charter flight evacuating Japanese nationals from Wuhan city and Hubei Province expected to occur midweek after several days delay. About 140 Japanese remain in the area, but some of them can’t quickly and easily evacuate.

—Suicide in Wuhan? A Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department seconded to the Cabinet Office and deployed to Wuhan, China, to help organize Coronavirus evacuations found dead. He appears to have jumped off a building.

—A cruise ship with more than 3,700 passengers is being quarantined near Yokohama after a former passenger was found to be infected by the Wuhan Coronavirus.

—Health Minister Katsunobu Kato reports that ten passengers on cruise ship quarantined off Yokohama have tested positive for Wuhan Coronavirus, and that is after only the first 31 test results. The true number of infected expected to rise, perhaps dramatically.

—Ruling conservatives, eager to create a clause in the Constitution for declaring national emergencies (during which they can limit the rights of the people), now attempting to use the Wuhan Coronavirus to scare up some support. Pure Reichstag fire political tactics.

—Chinese President Xi Jinping may postpone his planned visit to Japan in order to deal with the Wuhan Coronavirus crisis at home. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been weathering strong criticism from his rightwing political base to make the visit happen.

—Wuhan Coronavirus cases in Japan rise significantly to 86, mostly due to a sharp increase in the number found infected on the quarantined Diamond Princess cruise ship.

—Another load of Japanese evacuees from Hubei Province has returned to Haneda Airport. This was the fourth roundtrip. It’s not yet clear if it is the final one.

—Thanks to the infection on the Diamond Princess cruise ship, Japan is now clearly second only to mainland China in the number of confirmed Wuhan Coronavirus cases.

—Prime Minister Shinzo Abe: “In terms of whether to hold the Tokyo Games, I’d like to make it clear that there have been no talks or plans being considered between organizers and the International Olympic Committee since the World Health Organization declared an emergency.”

—Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy Yasutoshi Nishimura says the economic impact of the Coronavirus is beginning to be felt in Japan, and that economic growth in the current quarter could begin to slide as a result.

—The Holland America Line Westerdam cruise ship, carrying 1,455 passengers and 802 crew members, has been denied entry to Japan after one passenger is suspected of Wuhan Coronavirus infection. Many of the passengers are US citizens.

—“Donald Trump, save us! Get us a government-based airplane… Get us off the ship!” US citizens on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship quarantined near Yokohama appeal in CNN interview for US government action to rescue them.

—Japan’s 2020 tourism goals being smashed by a third major factor, which is that the Abe government is now refusing many cruise ships to make port in Japan. Many coastal communities had put cruise ship visits high on their inbound tourism strategies.

—Diamond Princess cruise ship becoming a floating house of horrors as tests reveal that at least 130 passengers and crew have been infected by the Wuhan Coronavirus. Many of the quarantined passengers reportedly growing fearful and angry.

—Transport Minister Kazuyoshi Akaba reveals that there’s been a 60% decline in the number of passenger flights connecting Japan and mainland China, and tours have been canceled for 13 of 14 cruise ships scheduled to visit Japan.

—Foreign political pressure is building on Japan to begin releasing some Diamond Princess passengers from quarantine before the end of the announced 14-day period. Criticism is escalating from foreign passengers able to contact their various national medias.

—Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova criticizes Japan over the Diamond Princess, describing Japan as acting “chaotically, unsystematically, and these actions raise big questions.” 24 Russian citizens are aboard the quarantined cruise liner in Yokohama.

—Abe government to extend China travel ban to people coming from Zhejiang Province, a coastal area that has no border with Hubei Province, over Covid-19 infection concerns. About five hundred Japanese firms reportedly have offices or factories in Zhejiang Province, soon to be under a Japan travel ban, including Panasonic and Toshiba.

—Confirmed Covid-19 infections in Japan rise to 203, with 174 of them on board the unhappy Diamond Princess cruise ship. While most of the infected are fine, there are several serious life-threatening cases as well.

—Health Ministry reports the discovery of 44 additional people infected with Covid-19 on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship off Yokohama. This brings the total number of infected found on board the vessel to 218 people.

—A Japanese woman in her 80s who lives in Kanagawa Prefecture confirmed as the first fatality in Japan from the Covid-19 coronavirus. It appears that what happened is Chinese travelers infected with Covid-19 passed it to a taxi driver in Tokyo, and he in turn infected his mother-in-law in her 80s. She was in the hospital since February 1 and died today, only now confirming her coronavirus infection.

—Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi announces that a fifth charter flight is being prepared to evacuate Japanese nationals from China’s Wuhan city and Hubei Province.

—US government to fly its citizens on board the Diamond Princess back to the United States, but then force them to stay another two weeks in quarantine. Americans who don’t take up the offer are threatened with not being allowed back in to the country “for a period of time.”

Rolling Coverage: Prosecutor Hiromu Kurokawa

—Is this how the Kantei controls prosecutors? Abe government gives Hiromu Kurokawa, superintending prosecutor at the Tokyo High Public Prosecutors Office, a reprieve from mandatory retirement at age 63 to allow him to become Prosecutor General and serve a couple more years.

—Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yukio Edano declares, “Mr. Kurokawa has controlled judicial administration in compliance with the intentions of Abe administration.” Jun Azumi adds, “The issue reveals the nature of the Abe government.”

—The issue of Hiromu Kurokawa really clarifies a major mystery for those who closely watch Japanese politics. It gives an answer to the question of how the Abe government has been able to shut down unwanted prosecutions and to go after its enemies through the legal system. Why were Tokyo prosecutors willing to pursue a flimsy case against Carlos Ghosn? Why did prosecutors refuse to go after corrupt Abe factotums like Nobuhisa Sagawa even when they admitted guilt? The answer is people like Hiromu Kurokawa, who themselves serve the Abe regime. We now see the once invisible threads because Shinzo Abe needed to pay off Hiromu Kurokawa for political services rendered, and unfortunately for them, it was necessary to do so by breaking the established bureaucratic rules, thus garnering unwanted attention to their move.

—Opposition parties blast the Abe government’s decision to suspend the mandatory retirement of Hiromu Kurokawa, a senior prosecutor known to be loyal to the Abe regime, as flat out illegal. Edano thunders, “It is an act of destruction for a nation ruled by law.”

—Asahi Shinbun: “We are concerned that the decision to postpone Kurokawa’s retirement could send a strong signal to bureaucrats about the administration’s ability to exert control over the prosecution system, thereby putting even stronger pressure on them to toe the government line.”

—Prosecutor Hiromu Kurokawa: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe claims it is no problem to suspend his mandatory retirement because his government has now “reinterpreted” the National Public Service Act (just as they earlier “reinterpreted” Article 9 of the Constitution).

Rolling Coverage: Russian Relations

—Speaking on Northern Territories Day, Abe reaffirmed commitment to resolving the territorial dispute: “It is firstly important to strengthen relations of trust and friendship between the Japanese and Russian people so that the four islands become islands of friendship.”

—Japanese media report that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe does intend to visit Moscow for Victory Day on May 9. Efforts are underway to arrange talks with Vladimir Putin. Abe hopes to use opportunity to advance territorial talks and to arrange for Putin to visit Japan. Abe fears that if he doesn’t go to Victory Day, he won’t meet Putin for a year and all his efforts on the territorial issue will come to nothing. By going, however, Abe provokes domestic and international criticism that it makes it look like Putin has him on a string.

—Russian Ambassador to Japan Mikhail Galuzin says peace treaty talks with Japan likely to take a long time: “Even hypothetically, any resolution of the border aspect of relations should firstly be supported by the society, parliament, and peoples of the countries.”

—Russian Consul-General in Sapporo Sergei Marin notes that, while official contacts between Russia and Japan have increased markedly, economic relations remain underdeveloped. Japan currently accounts for only 3% of total investment in the Russian economy.

—JAL to begin flights between Haneda and Moscow on March 29. JAL is also to begin flights between Narita and Vladivostok on February 28, contributing to a significant increase in flight connections between Japan and Russia.

Politics

—Yukio Edano asks the Democratic Party For the People to punish two of its conservative lawmakers who defied the unified caucus and voted in favor of the government’s supplementary budget.

—Little noticed in the media, but in Diet debate on January 23, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe himself rejected the Japan Communist Party’s call to legalize same-sex marriage. According to Abe, granting such rights would violate Article 24 of the Constitution.

—Conservative incumbent Daisaku Kadokawa reelected to a fourth term as Kyoto mayor, supported by both the ruling parties and main opposition parties. The Japan Communist Party and Reiwa Shinsengumi-backed challenger did pretty well, gaining about 76% as many votes.

—Rightwing Abe protege Tomomi Inada suggests a Constitutional revision to establish gender quota system: “Looking at the terribly low numbers of female politicians, perhaps we should consider a revision to Article 14 of the Constitution and include a quota system.”

—Akira Koike of Japan Communist Party (which now tends to run more female candidates) responds to Inada, “It would be good if the LDP would up its female candidate numbers. If it has the will, the party can increase female lawmaker numbers without altering the Constitution.” Akira Koike and others making the same point: the problem is not the Constitution, the problem is the conservative ruling party which typically runs the smallest proportion of female candidates. The Japan Communist Party now runs roughly equal numbers of male and females. To a large extent, what Tomomi Inada is saying is that the Constitution must be changed in order to force the ruling party to change its gender biased policies. Of course, as a political party, there’s nothing stopping the ruling LDP from embracing gender equality right now.

—Jiji Press poll on “most suitable” post-Abe prime minister ranked as follows: Shigeru Ishiba, Shinjiro Koizumi, Yoshihide Suga, Fumio Kishida, Taro Kono, and Toshimitsu Motegi. Every single one is from the ruling party. Leader of the Opposition Yukio Edano doesn’t even rank.

—Cabinet Minister Seigo Kitamura, who oversees the management of official documents, argues that altering official documents submitted to the Diet for public scrutiny poses no problem because copies should be treated as “separate documents” from originals. This is the moral hazard that is created by a lack of government accountability. In 2017, the Abe government was pushed to the wall in trying to carry out its Moritomo Gakuen coverup. Three years later, Abe government coverup has become such a well-practiced routine it is official policy.

—Jiji Press poll has disapproval of the Abe Cabinet ranking higher than its approval rating for the first time in a year-and-a-half. 38.6% approve of the Cabinet and 39.8% disapprove. This is still far short of a crisis for the Abe government.

International

—Akahata argues Japan should stop paying all protection money to the US government: “Japan is not required by the SOFA to pay the costs. This financial expenditure, dubbed the ‘sympathy budget,’ should be abolished, and to increase the payment is absolutely out of question.”

—Akita Governor Norihisa Satake visits Defense Minister Taro Kono and asks that the Aegis Ashore facilities not be deployed to Akita city as planned. He explains that it is impossible for him to gain the consent of local residents to host the facility.

—The Maritime Self-Defense Force’s 4,650-ton Takanami destroyer has left Yokosuka bound for its “information-gathering” mission in the Gulf of Oman.

—Prime Minister Shinzo Abe clarifies in Diet debate that the “information-gathering” MSDF mission in the Gulf of Oman is more for US military information than information Japan needs. The MSDF will report to the US military on a daily basis, even though a “separate mission.”

—Tokyo-Seoul relations may be set to plunge once again as it appears that some assets of Japanese firms seized as a result of Forced Labor judgments will soon be liquidated. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-Wha says the administration can’t interfere with the action of the courts.

—The US$15 billion Mumbai–Ahmedabad high-speed rail corridor in India, largely financed by Japan as part of Shinzo Abe’s anti-China strategies, is seeing rising costs, now likely to cost more like US$20 billion. The two governments are trying to figure out how to share the burden.

—Japanese Consulate-General office personally lobbies members of the Berkeley City Council to stop them from passing a symbolic resolution opposing the construction of the US Marine airbase at Henoko, arguing that without the base, North Korea and China will take over Japan.

Economy

—Foreign Workforce: It appears that Vietnamese workers in Japan (401,326) will soon outnumber Chinese workers (418,327). These figures are from last October, and Vietnamese have been Japan’s fastest-growing foreign community for some time now.

—Abe Cabinet approves legislation that will urge companies to give workers to option to continue working until age 70. This is apparently a step toward raising the retirement age in Japan more generally.

—TEPCO is storing about 1.2 million tons of radioactive water from the disaster-struck Fukushima Daiichi plant, and will run out of storage space in a couple years. The Abe government moving closer to dumping the water into the Pacific Ocean, arguing that it is safe to do so.

—The Foreign Ministry has begun briefings for foreign diplomats, seeking their understanding for the Abe government’s plan to start dumping treated radioactive water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean.

—Nuclear Regulation Authority accuses Japan Atomic Power Company of deliberately falsifying geological data regarding a possible earthquake fault running under Tsuruga Nuclear Power Plant. Some of the original raw data was deleted and rewritten in submissions to regulators.

—Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi welcomes the fact that a “No Deal Brexit” was avoided (which effectively isn’t really decided yet in the way Japan means it on trade issues), and hopes to build a new economic relationship with the United Kingdom.

—Japanese automakers in Europe watch nervously as UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson threatens to walk away from trade talks with the European Union. The automakers warn that their business in Europe is unsustainable if there is a major tariff wall down the English Channel.

—British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab holds talks in Tokyo. In the wake of Brexit, establishing a new trade agreement with Japan is actually a rather high priority for the United Kingdom, which is now isolated as never before in modern times.

—The government is taking initial legislative steps to deal with the increasingly serious problem of land ownership in Japan. A remarkably large amount of land has unclear ownership, with elderly people dying in the rural areas and their heirs undetermined or uninterested.

—The trading company Marubeni Corporation will build Japan’s first large-scale commercial offshore wind farms in Akita Prefecture in an initiative that may help the nation reduce its carbon footprint.

—The Abe government’s touted skilled worker visas for foreigners continues to be an embarrassing failure right out of the gate, with only 1,621 people having obtained such visas as of the end of 2019. The target was 47,550 visa holders by the end of March 2020.

—Fair Trade Commission investigators raid Rakuten’s head office in Tokyo. The company is under suspicion of engaging in monopolistic practices by making its product suppliers bear the financial burden of its free shipping policy.

—Some observers believe that the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) call for “merit-based pay” might be camouflage to allow Japanese big business to avoid raising wages overall, even as they sit on piles of money that they aren’t reinvesting in the economy.

—Nissan Motor nationalists again demonstrate their utter shamelessness, suing Carlos Ghosn, the person who saved their company two decades ago, for ¥10 billion (US$91 million) in damages. They also had signed off on every supposedly “corrupt” decision he made as chairman.

—Miyagi Prefecture becomes the first Japanese local government to embrace the four-day work week concept, instituting the policy for care workers for the elderly in hopes of attracting more people to this critical field.

—Osaka Prefectural Government announces that MGM Japan is the only accepted bidder to build a casino resort at the Yumeshima location. A year ago, there were more than half a dozen competitors.

GreenTech

—Liberal Democratic Party House of Councillors lawmaker Kenji Nakanishi rues the fact in Diet debate that Japan was given the “Fossil of the Day” award at COP 25, stating that it was an event “mocking the country.”

—Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi expresses annoyance in Diet debate that Japan received “Fossil of the Day” award at COP25, mainly because Japan is “the only country that reports on the award so much.” He frames Japan’s pro-coal policies mainly as a PR problem.

—Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi: “I want to make sure that we get the message across that Japan is in no way unwilling to make society carbon free. And to do that, we’ll communicate to the world that straight-forward actions are needed.”

—Toshiba has now opened three H2One Station Units, which is a system which produces hydrogen and with water as its only emission. With this technology, Toshiba says that it is aiming for a CO2-free “hydrogen society.”

—Akira Amari: “We live in a stable world led by dollar settlement. How should we respond if that foundation collapses and if China gives rise to a struggle for currency supremacy?… We should ask the United States, as the chair, to put digital currency on the G7 agenda.”

—Jiji Press poll finds 77% of the Japanese public in favor of small fees for receiving plastic shopping bags at supermarkets, convenience stores, and other retailers. This hints at likelihood that the public would support environmental policies if government takes the lead.

—Nissan Leaf electric vehicle suffers very poor sales in January, falling 73% year-on-year to only 753 units sold. Sales seem to have peaked in 2018 and have fallen consistently from around the time that Carlos Ghosn was arrested.

—Climate change now posing a clear threat to the future of the Sapporo Snow Festival, which faced the unprecedented problem of not having snow this year. Organizers had to truck in snow from distant towns in order to hold the festival at all.

Society

—Actress Erika Sawajiri receives a suspended sentence for drug possession instead of the 18 months in prison sought by the prosecutors. She says her professional acting career is over. Notch another victory in the War on Drugs!

—Even as Japan’s population disappears at the rate of 500,000 people per year, the Tokyo region population is rising by almost 150,000 people per year. The regional and rural areas are being drained of their population. Sometime in the 2020s, Tokyo may start shrinking too.

—Kyodo News reports that Japan’s system of court interpreters is essentially failing. The number of interpreters is falling even as there are more foreigners needing their services. A key issue is that the interpreters are poorly paid and have no income security.

—A study in The Lancet Public Health estimates that an additional 10,800 women in Japan will die of cancer in coming years because the Abe government reversed the earlier policy to actively recommend adolescent girls receive HPV vaccinations.

—“Let’s massacre Korean residents in Japan.” A postcard with this message was sent to a public facility in Kawasaki, and there have apparently been other similar threats. It may, however, be a single individual behind these acts.

—Japan continues to dominate the world in human longevity. The new oldest man in the world is 112-year-old Chitetsu Watanabe, who replaces another 112-year-old Japanese man who died last month. 117-year-old Kane Tanaka, also Japanese, is the oldest living human.

—War on Drugs: Despite the nation’s draconian legal approach, seizures of illegal drugs entering Japan were at a record high in 2019. Customs authorities seized a record 3,318 kilograms of illegal drugs, more than double the 2018 figure.

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