Kanako Takahara

Tokyo

Editor and Reporter at The Japan Times

editor/reporter for Japan Times, an English-language daily in Japan. hobbies include tennis, movies.

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Articles

Amid labor shortage, Japan approves guidelines to upskill foreign workers

1 month ago | japantimes.co.jp | Kanako Takahara

The government on Tuesday approved guidelines for a refurbished plan to support development of foreign workers into skilled workers, expected to kick off in 2027, in hope of resolving Japan’s chronic labor shortage. The new initiative replaces the current foreign trainee program, which has often been criticized for bad working conditions and participants being used as cheap labor.
Police may be able to use fake IDs to investigate yami baito

Dec 5, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Kanako Takahara

The government is considering allowing investigators to create fake ID cards to infiltrate crime groups that solicit accomplices on social media for high-paying illegal work, known as yami baito, which has been linked to a series of nationwide burglaries, a top government spokesman said Friday. “The government is considering new investigative measures, including allowing investigations under disguised identification,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said in a news conference.
What constitutes fatal dangerous driving in Japan?

Dec 5, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Kanako Takahara

When a 50-year-old man in Oita died after the car he was driving was hit by another vehicle that was driven at 194 kilometers per hour on a street with a 60 kph speed limit, his bereaved family was certain that the suspect would be charged with dangerous driving. To their surprise, prosecutors indicted the young driver of the other vehicle on a more lenient charge of negligent driving resulting in death, which carries up to seven years in prison.
LDP between a rock and a hard place in struggle to get DPP support

Nov 7, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Kanako Takahara |Himari Semans

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party is stuck between a rock and a hard place over whether to raise the threshold for tax exemptions from the current ¥1.03 million ($6,740) — which, if implemented, could rally much-needed support from the opposition Democratic Party for the People, but would slash tax revenues.
Former Tepco chairman Tsunehisa Katsumata dies at 84

Oct 30, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Kanako Takahara

Tsunehisa Katsumata, who served as chairman of Tokyo Electric Power Co. during the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and nuclear meltdowns, died on Oct. 21, Tepco said Thursday. He was 84. A funeral was held in private among close family members. Tepco currently has no plans to hold a public memorial event for him. Katsumata joined Tepco after he graduated from the University of Tokyo in 1963, climbing the corporate ladder to become president in 2002.
LDP-Komeito bloc may lose majority in Lower House election, exit polls show

Oct 27, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Kanako Takahara |Kathleen Benoza

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its junior partner Komeito may lose their majority in the Lower House election Sunday, according to early projections by NHK, which would require Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to seek a third party to join the coalition. If Ishiba needs a third party in the coalition — which would most likely be the Democratic Party for the People — it would require negotiations, or concessions, between the ruling parties.
LDP-Komeito bloc set to lose majority in Lower House election

Oct 27, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Kanako Takahara |Kathleen Benoza

The Liberal Democratic Party and its junior partner, Komeito, are set to lose their majority in the Lower House, according to early projections of Sunday’s general election by NHK, which would require Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to seek a third party to join the coalition to remain in power. The admission of a third party would require negotiations, or concessions, between the ruling parties.
Ex-boxer Hakamata set to vote for the first time in decades

Oct 14, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Kanako Takahara

Efforts are being made to restore the right to vote of Iwao Hakamata, the world's longest-held death row prisoner who has been exonerated over a 1966 murder case, for the first time in 44 years to allow him to cast his ballot in the Oct. 27 Lower House election.
Star female jockey Nanako Fujita retires following suspension

Oct 10, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Kanako Takahara

Jockey Nanako Fujita, a 27-year-old woman who is a rising star in the horse racing world, retired from the sportafter being suspended for using a smartphone for outside communication on the day before a race, the Japan Racing Association (JRA) said Friday. Under JRA rules, jockeys are required to stay in a designated room on the day before a race and are banned from communicating with others outside the racecourse as a measure against match fixing and to ensure fairness.
Fifth time's a charm: Shigeru Ishiba set to be Japan PM after LDP poll win

Sep 27, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Alex Martin |Tomoko Otake |Eric Johnston |Kanako Takahara

After five tries, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba will finally lead the Liberal Democratic Party — and Japan. The veteran Ishiba, who has also served as party secretary-general, won the LDP presidential election on Friday, defeating economic security minister Sanae Takaichi in a runoff vote, and is set to be named prime minister next week after a parliamentary vote. Ishiba won the runoff with 215 votes — 189 from LDP lawmakers plus 26 votes from local LDP chapters.