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
Murder Victim, 2 Others Stabbed After Fight in Popular District
Tragedy struck one of Osaka’s best known entertainment spots last weekend. A 17-year-old youth and two of his friends were stabbed following an altercation near the famous “Glico” sign on the banks of the Dotonbori Canal.
Police believe that the suspect, 21-year-old Ryoga Iwasaki knew the 3 victims. Witnesses said that an argument broke out between the group shortly before the attack.
The incident occurred at around 11.55pm last Saturday night. Police didn’t apprehend the suspect until 10am the following morning. He was found still wandering around the area, carrying a knife.
Iwasaki told police he “had no intention to kill”, and planned only to threaten the victims. However, according to him, the deceased, Ryunosuke Kamada, move towards him, prompting Iwasaki to stab him in the chest.
Police continue to investigate. Iwasaki will face trial in the near future, though it remains uncertain if he will be tried for murder or manslaughter.
Murder Victim: “Had a Bright Future, Despite Past Troubles”
Speaking to local press this week, the victim’s grandparents spoke of great affection for Kamada. The youth often helped out at his grandfather’s farm. He had just recently acquired a drone piloting license, to aid his grandparents with crop spraying this summer.
“I always thought Ryunosuke would be the one to take over the farm someday,” his grandfather lamented. He had dropped out of high school after struggling to fit in, but his grandparents said he was working hard to get his life back on track.
Kamada had recently accepted a refuse collection job in his native Nara Prefecture, but continued to work tirelessly on the family farm at weekends.
His grandfather admits that the family still can’t fully process the tragedy of what has happened.
“I always warned him.” His grandfather said whenever his grandson talked of going to Osaka to meet friends: “be careful. Osaka is a dangerous place.”
As part of the ongoing investigation, investigators will have to perform an autopsy and other tests. So, to compound the tragedy for Kamada’s family, it may still be several days before they are able to say their final goodbyes.
Sugita Pays Price as Osaka Rejects Racism and Revisionism
Many rights activists in Japan continue to worry about the re-election of the hawkish Sanae Takaichi as Prime Minister. However, Osaka residents made it clear that racism and division will not take root in their city.
For the 4th time, voters in Osaka’s 5th electoral district emphatically rejected the lies, bigotry and racist rhetoric of Mio Sugita.
The LDP candidate had, against the advice of many within her own party, decided to run again in last week’s election. She made this decision despite only recently returning to the party following a long-term suspension both for her incendiary rhetoric and her implication in the nationwide slush fund scandal going back several years.
However, Osaka has never been a city to suffer fools gladly, and perhaps, finally Sugita will now get the message.
The twice indicted human rights violator was heckled repeatedly during the campaign. It got to a point where her campaign team stopped announcing the timing of her stump speeches.
Despite this, numerous protest groups still found a way to make their voices heard, over and above the lies of Sugita and her team. A large part of her divisive rhetoric, which wasn’t endorsed by the LDP itself centered around the non-sensical “Chinese invasion” narrative.
Sugita claimed that “The proportion of Chinese among resident foreigners is especially high in Osaka compared to the whole country,”
A cursory look at the facts reveals this as a bare-faced lie. Of Osaka’s total foreign population, 28.2% of them claim Chinese origin. Compare this to Tokyo. The capital has a ratio of over 38% of its registered foreign population claiming Chinese origin.
People in Osaka love a good debate as much as anyone, and they often disagree especially about politics. However, the city refuses to let those who seek to divide us do so unchallenged.
Sugita did not respond when asked if this will, finally, spell the end of her career in politics.
And Finally
Visitors to Osaka will soon have a whole new way to enjoy one of Kansai’s best known UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Mt. Koya, known colloquially as Koya-San, has a new train service running between the mountain and Namba, downtown Osaka. The new service, known as the “Gran Tenku” will enter service officially on April 24th. The 90-minute run between Osaka Nankai Namba Station and Gokurakubashi Station in neighboring Wakayama Prefecture takes in spectacular views of the mountain and its surrounding natural beauty.
Passengers are advised to book early, via the official website, to avoid disappointment.
That’s all for now but be sure to check back again same time next week for another round of this week in Osaka!
