Each week, here at Osaka.com, we bring you a selection of some of the top stories about Osaka making the local and national news here in Japan. Sometimes it’s serious, sometimes it’s funny, but it’s always direct to you, from Osaka.
Table of Contents
Yomiuri Shimbun Makes False Allegations Against Osaka Politician
One of Japan’s top newspapers faced an embarrassing climbdown this week over false allegations against an Osaka politician.
The Yomiuri Shimbun sent senior management out to issue a personal apology over the embarrassing affair.
The controversy stems from a story the Yomiuri ran about Japan Innovation Party lawmaker Taku Ikeshita. The paper ran the story across its front page on Wednesday morning. They alleged that Ikeshita’s secretary, along with those of several other lawmakers, was under investigation for suspected salary fraud.
In reality, it was fellow Japan Innovation Party lawmaker Akira Ishii, whose office was raided by prosecutors this week.
Paper Weighs How to Apologize and Correct False Accusation
A senior executive of Yomiuri visited Ikeshita’s constituency office in Takatsuki, near Osaka City on Wednesday afternoon. They admitted the story was false and offered an unreserved apology to the lawmaker and his staff.
The Yomiuri has not yet decided how they will frame their retraction, apology and correction to the initial story. Unlike, many other countries, Japan does not have an independent press regulator.
There is also no law governing how an apology or retraction must appear in a subsequent edition of the newspaper.
The UK, for example, has the Press Complaints Commission. The PCC stipulates that a retraction must have the same prominence as the original report. So, if this were the UK, the Yomiuri would, most likely, print the apology to Mr Ikeshita as a front-page splash.
Japan has no such regulatory body, and the reasons for this are complex, linked to Japan’s past occupation by the US, and pre-war suppression of press freedoms.
New Foreign Worker Regulations Have Implications for Osaka Amid Wave of False Rumors
The government discussed revisions to the latest update to its much-maligned “Foreign Trainee Program” this week.
According to reports, the new “Employment for Skill Development” Program, set to officially replace the Foreign Trainee Scheme in 2027 will make it easier for participants to change jobs after a set period.
As it stands, workers under the current scheme cannot, in principle, change their jobs. This has led to widespread accusations of abuse and slave labor working conditions, from which foreign laborers have no clear means of escape.
The new policy will allow foreign workers to change their jobs after 2 years, provided they remain within the same sector.
However, after a wave of false reports emanating from anti-foreigner groups on the political far right, the government was forced to clarify the implications of this change for Osaka, Tokyo and other major urban centers.
The allegation was that this change in the rules would lead to a mass influx of foreigners to Osaka and other larger cities, where salaries are higher.
However, the government added that “if” the proposed changes are approved, then the number of workers allowed to transfer to the 8 largest municipalities in Japan, of which Osaka is one, will be limited to one sixth of foreigners working at the company in question.
Internal reviews and discussions are ongoing. The government hopes to announce a final decision on the shape of the new plan by the end of the year.
Shinkansen Travelers Have Lucky Escape After Mobile Battery Fire
JR staff earned praise for their quick response this week, which prevented a possible disaster. A fire broke out on a Tokkaido Shinkansen train, bound for Osaka last Friday. The fire was attributed to a mobile phone battery, which caught fire after overheating. A passenger had plugged in the device before placing it in the seat pocket in front of them.
However, staff reacted quickly and extinguished the fire before any major damage was done. Not only this, but they did so with such swiftness that there wasn’t even any disruption to train services.
A JR spokesperson advised passengers to exercise caution when using mobile batteries, and to keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t get too hot.
And Finally…
As we near the start of September, there seems to be some hope in Osaka that, at last, temperatures are returning to something resembling comfortable.
Temperatures are expected to drop after hitting their peak this coming Sunday, August 31st.
Whilst temperatures will remain above 30 degrees until the middle of next week, this should drop off significantly thereafter.
By mid-September, we can expect a daily average of around 24-27 degrees Celsius. Not exactly cold, but significantly cooler than most of us have been used to recently!
That’s all for now but be sure to check back again same time next week for another round of this week in Osaka!