Tokyo Weekender - December 2017 - January 2018

RACIST TWEET OVERSHAD-
OWS SATO’S INDY 500
TRIUMPH
Ex-Formula One driver Takuma
Sato this year became the first ever Asian
driver to win the Indianapolis 500, the event
popularly known as “the greatest spectacle in
racing.” Unfortunately, his victory was slightly
marred by a tweet sent by The Denver Post
journalist Terry Frei who wrote, “Nothing specifically
personal, but I am very uncomfortable
with a Japanese driver winning the Indianapolis
500 during Memorial Day weekend.”
After a backlash, the columnist apologized,
stating that his father had been a veteran of
World War II. But the damage had been done
and he was fired by the newspaper.
SEX CRIME LAWS
FINALLY AMENDED
AFTER 110 YEARS
In what is the first major overhaul
in more than a century, Japan’s penal code
stipulating tighter sentences against sexual
crimes went into effect this summer. Revisions
include raising the minimum sentence
for rapists from three to five years as well
as the removal of a provision that requires
victims of sexual crimes to press charges in
order to prosecute. It also broadened the
definition of rape to include oral and anal
sex. In May, journalist Shiori Ito called a press
conference, telling reporters that she had
been raped by a high-profile TV reporter, but
he was never prosecuted because of what she
claims was a flawed investigation.
TORRENTIAL RAIN BATTERS
KYUSHU, KILLING 36
In early July, several cities were
badly damaged as the heaviest
rainfall on record hammered the southwestern
island of Kyushu. The downpour was caused by
a phenomenon known as senjo kosuitai (linear
rainbands) in which bands of giant cumulonimbus
clouds remain stationary in the air for
several hours. It triggered widespread flooding,
and landslides were reported in several areas.
Over 400,000 people were forced to evacuate
their homes as parts of Fukuoka Prefecture
were hit with 774mm of rain in just nine hours.
Thirty-six people died as a result of the disaster.
UNKO KANJI DORIRU
AUTHOR MAKES A
FORTUNE FROM POO
A series of six kanji study books
featuring 3,018 sentences that all include the
word “poo” has proved a massive hit this
year, selling more than two million copies
in its first three months. Released in March,
Unko Kanji Doriru (Poo Kanji Drills) attempts
to give children a more enjoyable learning
experience by associating kanji characters
with a word they all seem to love. “Adults
would raise their eyebrows, but for children,
the word ‘poo’ is magical and makes things
fun,” author Yusaku Furuya told Kyodo News.
Japanese kids are expected to be able to read
and write 1,006 kanji characters by the time
they finish primary school.
VANILLA AIR APOLOGIZES
TO DISABLED MAN FORCED
TO CRAWL UP STEPS
Informed that he wasn’t allowed
to board a flight back to his hometown of
Osaka from the southern island of Amami
because there was no wheelchair access,
disabled-rights activist Hideto Kijima decided
to get on the plane anyway by crawling up a
portable boarding staircase. The budget airline,
which is owned by All Nippon Airways,
apologized to the passenger and announced
that it had ordered an electric wheelchair
lift for its planes from Amami following the
incident. On his Facebook page, Kijima received
both support and criticism, with some
accusing him of unfairly targeting the airline
or making unreasonable demands.
WORLD CUP QUALIFICA-
TION SECURED FOR
SAMURAI BLUE
Japan qualified for its sixth
consecutive World Cup after beating Australia
2-0. Under pressure going into the game,
coach Vahid Halilhodzic’s decision to play a
relatively youthful side, dropping high-profile
players such as Shinji Kagawa, Shinji Okazaki
and Keisuke Honda, paid off. In club football,
Rafael Silva was the hero as Urawa Reds became
the first J-League side in 10 years to win
the Asian Champions League. The Brazilian
striker scored in both legs of the final as the
Saitama-based club defeated Saudi Arabia’s
Al-Hilal 2-1 on aggregate, earning them a
place at the Club World Cup alongside Real
Madrid in December.
XIANG XIANG CHOSEN AS
THE NAME OF JAPAN’S
NEWEST PANDA
Following a record 322,581
suggestions from the public, Tokyo governor
Yuriko Koike announced that Ueno Zoo’s
latest main attraction would be called Xiang
Xiang, 100 days after the panda was born to
mother Shin Shin and father Ri Ri. The name,
which means either “fragrance” or “popular”
in Chinese, received 5,161 submissions. Her
parents arrived in Tokyo in 2011 and gave
birth to a male cub a year later. It was the
zoo’s first panda delivery in 24 years, but sadly
he died of pneumonia after just six days.
Xiang Xiang is expected to make her public
debut in December.
YOKOZUNA HARUMAFUJI
INJURES FELLOW WRES-
TLER IN KARAOKE BRAWL
Grand sumo champion Harumafuji
is set to be referred to prosecutors after
assaulting lower-ranked wrestler Takanoiwa
following a drink-fueled altercation in Tottori.
The renowned Mongolian Yokozuna admitted
to striking his fellow countryman with his
fists and a remote control, but denied using
a bottle in the attack. It’s the latest in a long
line of scandals that have engulfed the sport
in recent years, and occurred at a time when
sumo was regaining popularity. In January,
Kisenosato delighted Japanese fans by becoming
the first homegrown wrestler to attain the
rank of Yokozuna in 19 years.
ZAMA SERIAL KILLER SUS-
PECT ALLEGEDLY HID BODY
PARTS IN COOLERS
Takahiro Shiraishi admitted to the
police that he murdered nine people, all aged
between 15 and 26, before dismembering their
bodies at his small apartment in Zama, Kanagawa
Prefecture. The unemployed 27-year-old
allegedly contacted females via Twitter, telling
them he would assist with their suicides, and
then killed them shortly after they met. He has
also confessed to rendering them unconscious
and hanging them with a rope. The killing
spree reportedly lasted two months. Shiraishi
told officers that he took three days to
dismember his first victim before slaying her
boyfriend who had tracked him down.
TOKYO WEEKENDER | DEC 2017 - JAN 2018 | 19