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123rd year ISSN 0289-1956 © THE JAPAN TIMES, LTD., 2019 | www.japantimes.co.jp EXTRA EXTRA EXTRA ALL THE NEWS WITHOUT FEAR OR FAVOR 月 MONDAY, APriL 1, 2019 EXTRA EDITION Next Imperial era name: Reiwa TOMOHIRO OSAKI yoshu,” compiled over 1,200 years ago, STAFF WRITER contains poems that were composed by In a much-awaited moment that her- people of varying social status, includ- alded a new chapter in Japan’s his- ing emperors, noblemen and noble- tory, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide women, warriors and farmers. Suga announced Monday that Japan’s Noting that the “Manyoshu” is Japan’s next era will be named Reiwa, taking oldest anthology of poems, Abe lauded one of the final steps toward initiating the tome as a “symbol of our nation’s the nation’s first Imperial succession in rich culture and long tradition.” three decades. “I hope the new gengō will take root Suga, who displayed a placard show- among the public and be widely ing the kanji for the era name, said it accepted by the people,” Abe said. was formulated based on a poem from Reiwa, Abe said, reflects his hope “Manyoshu,” the oldest existing compi- that it will “help pass Japan’s long his- lation of Japanese poetry. tory, noble culture and beautiful, The first character represents “good four-season nature down to the next fortune,” while the second can be trans- generations.” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga holds up a placard showing the kanji for Reiwa, the name of the lated as “peace” or “harmony.” next Imperial era, at a news conference Monday at the Prime Minister’s Office in Tokyo. SATOKO KAWASAKI The era will be the 248th in the history This is the first time the kanji for an era of Japan, which has used the Chinese- name have been selected from classi- The new era will start on May 1, when means “achieving peace.” style calendar system since 645. cal Japanese literature. Prior names had Crown Prince Naruhito ascends to the At a news conference later in the day, used kanji from Chinese literature. Chrysanthemum Throne after the abdi- Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the The kanji were taken from the intro- cation of his father, Emperor Akihito, a government chose the kanji because duction to a poem and describe an day earlier. they signify “a culture being born and For subscription ume (Japanese apricot flower) that has The dawn of the Reiwa Era will in nurtured by people coming together and free trial, call entered full bloom in early spring after turn end the 30-year run of the Heisei beautifully.” 0120-036-242 surviving a cold winter. Era, which began on Jan. 8, 1989. Heisei He also pointed out that the “Man- (Free-dial) PAGE: 1.

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JAPAN: the Silence Defeated Suga, As Eyes Turn Now to Kono
Asia | September 3, 2021 JAPAN: The silence defeated Suga, as eyes turn now to Kono ● Strategic silence from Abe and Aso undermined Yoshihide Suga, but the prime minister’s own gambits hastened his departure. ● Taro Kono is set to enter the race as the favorite, and Kishida may now be joined by Ishiba and other candidates. ● The LDP’s prospects for the general election will now improve, as will the likelihood of another stimulus package The dominos all fell quickly at the end. Perhaps the chief factor in Yoshihide Suga’s decision to step down from his positions as party president and prime minister was the ongoing silence of two of the kingmakers, his boss of eight years and former PM Shinzo Abe, and his current deputy PM and Finance Minister Taro Aso. Their lack of public support created the space for doubts to fester in Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) circles about whether the factionally-unaligned premier would secure the votes to repeat his unlikely victory of 12 months ago. Suga also hastened his own departure with two consequential gambits this week – first floating the idea of a snap September election that resulted in blowback from jittery party colleagues, then presenting several prominent names with a back-me-or-I’ll-sack-myself ultimatum with his plan to reshuffle top posts only weeks before the party vote. Environment Minister Junichiro Koizumi and others ultimately seem to have concluded that Suga’s offers of promotion were akin to being given front-row deck chairs on the Titanic. The leadership race opens The incumbent’s withdrawal leaves the field open in the party leadership race.
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Imperial Japanese Propaganda and the Founding of the Japan Times 1897-1904
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Japan's Way Forward: the Prospects for Political Leadership and The
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An Analysis of Two Newspaper Articles in the Aftermath of the 2011 Japanese Tsunami
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Who Is Yoshihide Suga, Japan's Next Prime Minister?
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Prime Minister Suga on Chinese Trade Threats, Olympic Moments
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JAPAN: Suga's Cabinet Offers Bland Continuity but Honeymoon Is Still Likely
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Japanese Swords As Symbols of Historical Amnesia: Touken Ranbu and the Sword Boom in Popular Media
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Turtle-Shell Divination Conducted at Imperial Palace in Tokyo Ahead of Key Succession Rite | the Japan Times
Turtle-shell divination conducted at Imperial Palace in Tokyo ahead of key succession rite | The Japan Times JOBS ≫≫ STUDY IN JAPAN JAPAN SHOWCASE NEWS RELEASES t f ◎ 購購購購購購購 SUBSCRIBE LOGIN ≫ 22°C M/SUNNY FREE MEMBERSHIP TOKYO (12 a.m.) TODAY'S STORIES MARKETS 109.73 ¥/$ (5 p.m.) NEWS + MENU CITY GUIDE ◎ The turtle-shell divination rite to select the prefectures that will supply rice for the Daijosai ceremony was held at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Monday. | IMPERIAL HOUSEHOLD AGENCY / VIA KYODO NATIONAL Non-Japanese YouTubers tackle the art of vlogging in the vernacular Turtle-shell divination conducted at Imperial Palace in Tokyo ahead of key succession rite https://www.japantimes.co.jp/.../13/national/turtle-shell-divination-rite-conducted-ahead-key-imperial-succession-ceremony/#.XN8EychKjIV[5/17/2019 9:02:23 AM] Turtle-shell divination conducted at Imperial Palace in Tokyo ahead of key succession rite | The Japan Times KYODO P PRINT ◎ SHARE ARTICLE HISTORY MAY 13, 2019 An imperial divination rite using turtle shells was held Monday to prepare for the most important ceremony to be performed by Emperor Naruhito upon his enthronement. In the Saiden Tentei no Gi ritual at the Imperial Palace, diviners observed the cracks that appeared when turtle shells were heated in order to select two prefectures — Tochigi and Kyoto — that will supply crops for the upcoming Daijosai ofering ceremony in mid-November. The Daijosai is performed by a new emperor only once during his reign. The emperor will ofer newly harvested rice to his imperial ancestors and the deities of heaven and earth, while also eating the rice himself, as well as praying for peace and abundant harvests for the country and its people.
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How Japan's Oldest English- Language Newspaper Tacked Right
Volume 17 | Issue 7 | Number 4 | Article ID 5240 | Apr 01, 2019 The Asia-Pacific Journal | Japan Focus Reinventing the Japan Times: How Japan’s oldest English- language newspaper tacked right: Updated David McNeill, Justin McCurry On November 30th, 2018 The Japan henceforth refer to them as ‘wartime Times waded into the interminable controversy laborers.’” In addition, the note said, the over Japan’s wartime misdeeds with a small description of “comfort women”, a euphemism editor’s note tacked onto the end of a story for girls and women herded into military about conscript labor. The previous day, South brothels would be changed to reflect the fact Korea’s Supreme Court had ruledthat their experiences “varied widely.” Hence, that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries should“women who were forced to provide sex for compensate Korean forced laborers. That Japanese troops before and during world war followed a similar ruling against Nippon Steel two” would be dropped in favor of ‘women who in October. With another dozen lawsuits worked in wartime brothels, including those pending against about 70 Japanese companies, who did so against their will, to provide sex to Japan’s most venerable English-language Japanese soldiers’.” newspaper appeared to question whether these laborers were actually forced to work at all. The revision was greeted with glee byThe Japan Times’ critics, who view the country’s oldest English-language newspaper as a nest of whining Western liberals dedicated to blackening Japan’s image (its nickname among online rightists is “The Anti-Japan Times”). Sakurai Yoshiko, president of the Japan Institute for National Fundamentals (a conservative think tank) and Sato Masahisa, state minister for foreign affairs, were among several prominent commentators who publicly congratulated the management.
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