Tag: politics (Page 2) | RocketNews24

politics

Japan Starts High Seas Squirt-Gun Fight With Taiwan, Pushes Fishing Boat Flotilla Out of Contested Waters

Sep 26, 2012 by Steven
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Alright, let’s recap.

Last Tuesday, a flotilla of Taiwanese fishing boats was rumored to have set off for the disputed Senkaku islands, located near the Japanese islands of Okinawa, seeking to assert their ownership among China and Japan.

At around 6 a.m. on Sept. 25, the 50-strong Taiwanese flotilla arrived in the disputed waters. At least eight patrol ships were sailing alongside the fishing vessels and many of the boats were displaying banners reading “We swear to defend the Senkaku islands!”

Japanese coastguard patrol boats moved in to intercept the tiny fleet and warned them to vacate the area. However, the Taiwanese boats maintained their position, asserting that they were in Taiwanese waters and their presence perfectly legitimate. Tensions were running high and it seemed only a matter of time before the conflict turned hostile.

And that’s when Japan decided to bring out the big guns.

Sep 24, 2012 by Steven
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When Chinese officials were deciding how to handle the over-100,000 visitors expected to show up for the Xishan Wanshou Palace Temple Fair, an annual religious festival held in Nanchang, Jiangxi province, there was one problem: what to do with the beggars?

The scale of the event in recent years has made it a magnet for the impoverished and homeless seeking alms and many visitors have complained the constant pleading for pocket change ruins the festive atmosphere.

Unable to just throw the beggars off the street (this is a religious festival, mind you), organizers decided to take the humanitarian route and erect a 165 foot-long iron cage to keep them in during the duration of the festival.

Sep 18, 2012 by Steven
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Chinese state-run media reported on Monday, September 17 that 1,000 Chinese boats were heading toward the Senkaku Islands, the group of islands at the center of a territorial dispute that has triggered numerous anti-Japanese protests across China since last month.

The “armada” was said to be made up of fishing boats from coastal provinces such as Zhejiang and Fujian, and while Chinese media made it sound like the fleet was getting ready to play a game of naval chicken, a Chinese fishing industry representative followed up by saying that the mass departure of boats from port was merely because waters in the East China sea had become open to fishing.

Still, when pictures like the ones above and below surface on the internet along with the headline “1000 Fishing Chinese Ships Heading to Waters Around Senkaku”, you can’t blame the Japanese for catching the jitters.

Sep 17, 2012 by Steven
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Anti-Japanese rallies in China continue to escalate as protesters in cities across the country have come out in the thousands, marching in front of diplomatic compounds, attacking Japanese businesses and burning Japanese flags (see photos of the destruction here).

The Chinese government has shown no signs of intervening and the unchecked violence has become a double-edged sword as many of the Japanese businesses vandalized were staffed by local employees and contribute to local tax revenue.

Now it seems the protests have begun to take a toll on human life as well: it was revealed on Sunday that at least one Chinese person was trampled to death in a protest and, even more tragic, another person was critically injured after being attacked for driving a Japanese car.

Sep 6, 2012 by Steven
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On August 31, Greenpeace uncovered a study backed by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) involving feeding genetically modified (GM) rice to children in Hunan province, China.

Chinese officials in Hunan immediately denied that the study had taken place but a few days later, a representative from Tufts University in the United States confirmed that they had indeed tested a new strain of GM rice on Chinese children in rural areas of Hunan.

Whoops! Looks like someone’s a tattletale.

Aug 21, 2012 by Steven
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Japan and Korea have not been on the best of terms recently, thanks mostly to a territorial dispute over literally a couple of rocks known as Takeshima to the Japanese and the Dokdo islands to Koreans.

As so, now may not be the most welcoming time to visit Korea if you’re Japanese, and vice versa.

To cite an extreme, in Korea there is even one net cafe that has gone so far as to post a sign outside reading: “No Japs Allowed.”

But if you read the fine print, you’ll notice that the management isn’t being completely unreasonable with the ban.

Aug 18, 2012 by Steven
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A Korean man protesting at the infamous Yasukuni Shrine was assaulted by a group of Japanese men on August 15, the 67th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II.

Aug 17, 2012 by Bruce
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Asuka Tachikawa, 27, famous for being a “beautiful city councilor,” has had pressure put on her to quit her job because she is actually an alien in disguise trying to ruin the city of Niizu in Saitama (near Tokyo).

Elected as a city councilor in February this year, the Saitama Prefectural Electoral Office has decided that her election is invalid because she may not have lived in the city for more than the required 3 months. In other words, she is an alien.

But what evidence do they have?
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China Grumbling After (Another?) Oppressed People is Helped by Japan

May 27, 2012 by danielnishina
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The 13th China-Japan friendship exchange meeting kicked off on Thursday, May 24 in Guiyang, capital of southwest China’s Guizhou Province. Tang Jiaxuan, president of the China-Japan Friendship Association, ranted about what he perceived as “critical failures” in the bilateral relations, referring to the recent conflict over the Senkaku Islands and the hosting of the World Uyghur Congress in Tokyo earlier this month. Read More

Fukushima Refugees Rather Gamble than Work, Claims Iwaki City Mayor

Apr 12, 2012 by Master Blaster
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The city of Iwaki lies 30km south of the Fukushima Daiichi just outside of the evacuation zone created after the nuclear disaster struck. As such it has become home to approximately 25,000 displaced people from Futaba District, where the Daiichi reactor is located.

On 9 April, Iwaki Mayor Takao Watanabe had this to say about the evacuees: “With the compensation money they received from TEPCO, most people are choosing not to work. The pachinko parlors, however, are packed every day.” Pachinko is a highly popular game similar to pinball that is often used for gambling much like slots or video poker in other parts of the world.

Although this may sound like another case of a Japanese politician putting his foot in his mouth, it appears Mayor Watanabe is not alone with his opinion.

Apr 12, 2012 by Mac Denny
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The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is holding general meetings in Monaco starting on April 23, and on the agenda is the hot debate over the name of the body of water between Japan and the Korean Peninsula.

Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo reported on April 10 that the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade was feeling doubtful of global support for its request that “East Sea” appear alongside the current “Sea of Japan” name. The ministry is said to be making special arrangements for the IHO meetings, including ramping up the urgency of its requests for support from IHO member nations. Read More

Energy Companies Make Move Toward Massive Geothermal Development in Fukushima

Apr 6, 2012 by Mac Denny
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Idemitsu Kosan, INPEX and other energy corporations began speaking with locals on April 3 about building a geothermal power plant inside Bandai-Asahi National Park in Fukushima Prefecture. If locals agree with the plan, research would begin this year with operation commencing in about 10 years. The area is expected to produce 270,000 kilowatts of geothermal energy, higher than anywhere else in Japan.

Apr 5, 2012 by Jessica
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On the second of April, the official website for the Japanese prime minister and his cabinet underwent a major update and redesign. According to Chief Cabinet Minister Osamu Fujimura, the update will allow them to disseminate easily understandable information to the public by gathering together all policy explanations prepared by individual agencies in one place. They have also added a section of the website aimed at children, which includes some specially developed games. The cost of all this? About 45 million yen (about $547,000). And that’s what has Japanese taxpayers’ attention.
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Help the Police Find Grenades and Land Yourself $1250 – Per Grenade!

Apr 3, 2012 by Master Blaster
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In these hard economic times there aren’t many ways to make a buck. The Fukuoka Prefectural Police are pitching in during these cash strapped times. All you have to do is help them locate some deadly unexploded ordnance.

Yes, on 30 March, Fukuoka Prefectural Police announced that they will be giving cash rewards to anyone who can provide tips leading to an arrest of anyone in possession of grenades. And I’m announcing that I’m cancelling my trip to Fukuoka.

In what’s called the Grenade 110 Incentive Program (110 is the emergency number for police in Japan) you can receive a whopping $1250 (100,000 yen) per grenade that they find on a suspect. It starts on 2 April and is open to anyone in the country.

Apr 3, 2012 by Mac Denny
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The Japanese Internet is erupting with debate over whether newly elected 26-year-old Niiza City Councilwoman Asuka Tachikawa is more beautiful than Hachinohe City Councilwoman Yuri Fujikawa, previously dubbed “too hot for city council.”

Mar 23, 2012 by Master Blaster
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They say the only thing you have after losing everything is your name. Not so, says the Izumisano City officials who in the dying moments of their failing economy are considering a plan to sell their naming rights off amongst other ideas.

Residents of the Osaka Prefecture city will be pleased to know that they wouldn’t be selling it to just anyone with money, so the threat of the name becoming Poopiehead City is minimal. From June till the end of November they will be accepting proposals from both foreign and domestic businesses interested in unique ways to advertise using their city’s government and resources.

Mar 14, 2012 by Master Blaster
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Earlier this month in Kanagawa Prefecture, a high ranking government official was arrested for allegedly assaulting his wife’s “male acquaintance.” The attack took place when Mr. Noda (47) discovered his wife entering a hotel with another man (44) after following her when she left home late in the evening. In the heat of the moment, Mr. Noda confronted them and allegedly ended up severely beating the man in the face and chest, breaking several ribs.

A few days after the confrontation, the alleged victim filed a complaint with the authorities. After Mr. Noda was arrested, the story hit blogs across the internet and triggered a landslide of support for him.

Mar 12, 2012 by Master Blaster
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Thanks to the proliferation of the internet we can see countless images in an instant with the click of a mouse. Most of the pictures available online, however, are of cats with misspelled captions or people confusing Joseph Kony with Carl Weathers.

Feb 28, 2012 by Steven
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Yoshihiko Noda is Japan’s 6th prime minister since 2006 and it’s no surprise that over half a decade of gridlock has left most Japanese people feeling either cynical or apathetic towards politics.

Recently, a thread emerged on popular Japanese internet message board 2 channel that highlights just how much people don’t care about what their political leaders are talking about.

According to the initial post, an official video of a public address made by Prime Minister Noda regarding comprehensive reforms of Japan’s social security and taxation systems had received no more than 300 views after 4 days of being uploaded.

Oct 24, 2011 by Steven
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Scholars have long grappled with the question: “Who loves fried chicken more, African-Americans or Chinese people?” African American’s love of fried chicken is said to date back to the 19th century, when chicken was the only livestock slaves were allowed to raise. On the other hand, the Chinese have been frying chicken for centuries and their love for even Western variants on the dish is evident in the skyrocketing popularity of Kentucky Fried Chicken in the country.