JAPAN EYES ADDRESSING POSSIBLE MISTREATMENT OF CERTAIN VISA WORKERS - TOKYO JAPAN

JAPAN EYES ADDRESSING POSSIBLE MISTREATMENT OF CERTAIN VISA WORKERS - TOKYO JAPAN

@Jr_Paku Midin Channel

TOKYO

Japan's immigration agency plans to step up efforts to address the potential mistreatment of foreign nationals holding certain visas and employed through temporary staffing agencies, finding some have been inappropriately assigned to menial labor, a source familiar with the matter said Saturday.

The Immigration Services Agency plans to examine the working conditions of foreigners holding the visa supposedly for engineers and specialists in humanities and international services -- a visa that allows them to work in Japan for a long period of time as there are no limits in seeking extensions.

A record-high 410,000 foreign nationals in Japan had been given the visa as of the end of 2024. Some 10 percent appear to be contracted to dispatch firms, part of a growing trend, with many of them engaging in jobs such as interpreting and production management.

The visa requires the holder to have achieved certain educational qualifications, such as graduating from a university in their home country, and in principle only allows them to engage in highly professional jobs.

But the agency has found cases in which temporary staffing companies told clients that such workers can perform duties outside their field of specialism, leading them to be engaged in menial tasks.

The immigration agency said it will look into whether there are additional cases and take steps to raise awareness of the problem, according to the source.

If the situation does not improve, the agency is considering obliging foreign workers to report when they are assigned to a different company during their residency period.

A group supporting foreigners has also pointed to a rise in complaints that temporary staffing agencies do not offer jobs.

The agency, meanwhile, is considering tightening conditions for the business manager visa that is intended to support start-ups, after individuals applying with shell companies were approved.

It may raise the required minimum capital from 5 million yen to 30 million yen, the source said.

>>>MORE ARTICLE JUST CLICK AND READ<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2024/12/japan-government-eyes-higher-taxes-on.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/08/boy-with-measles-visited-osaka-expo.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/05/number-of-foreign-students-in-japan.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/07/japan-draws-up-yen-100-bil-policty-to.html

@Jr_Paku Midin Channel

PRICIER TICKETS FOR FIREWORKS, THEME PARKS TEST SUMMER HOLIDAYMAKERS - TOKYO JAPAN

PRICIER TICKETS FOR FIREWORKS, THEME PARKS TEST SUMMER HOLIDAYMAKERS - TOKYO JAPAN

@Jr_Paku Midin Channel

TOKYO

The scorching summer heat may be forcing some holiday goers to rethink their vacation plans, but leisure businesses have shown no hesitation in raising ticket prices for those seeking assurance of quality time.

About 80 percent of the 106 fireworks festivals surveyed in Japan offer paid seats this year, with the average "premium" ticket fee, which promises nice viewing and seating along with other luxury features, jumping 7.2 percent from a year earlier to 36,193 yen per seat, with some over 50,000 yen, according to research firm Teikoku Databank.

That compares with the average 5,227 yen for a regular reserved seat, up 1.8 percent from a year ago, meaning that premium seating costs about seven times more than regular seating, the biggest difference since 2019 when comparable data became available.

The highest-priced ticket in the survey was 120,000 yen for a table of four, or 30,000 yen per person for about an hour-long event.

The increases reflect the broader trend of inflation in Japan, partly because more organizers are passing on running costs, such as those for pricier fireworks and the hiring of security staff.

The trend can also indicate how people choose to spend money. Some surveys point to spending patterns more "polarized," with people willing to pay more for leisure activities or experiences while remaining frugal when buying daily necessities.

Leisure facilities are also hiking ticket prices, adopting dynamic-pricing, a strategy in which prices fluctuate according to demand. In a high season, for instance, prices may go up to maximize profits.

Entry tickets for amusement and theme parks, zoos and aquariums in Japan rose 4.2 percent from a year earlier to an average 1,695 yen. On average, unlimited passes to amusement and theme parks marked the biggest increase of 5.4 percent over the year to 4,846 yen, according to a separate survey by Teikoku Databank.

Among one-day passes, Universal Studios Japan in Osaka sells the priciest at 11,900 yen.

Rising ticket fees can still risk scaring some potential visitors away when wage growth is canceled out by inflation.

The operator of Tokyo Disney Resort, one of the most popular entertainment facilities, has said it is considering a review of ticket prices. At present, one-day ticket prices fluctuate depending on the day and season, ranging from 7,900 yen to 10,900 yen per adult.

>>>MORE ARTICLE JUST CLICK AND READ<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/08/81-year-old-woman-apparently-killed-by.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2023/09/hanabi-kumamoto-year-2023-more-creative.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/08/dozens-dead-in-vietnam-after-ha-long.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/08/prominent-political-speakers-step-up.html

@Jr_Paku Midin Channel

MAN FOUND DEAD IN APARTMENT IN AICHI PREFECTURE, SUSPECT ARRESTED - AICHI JAPAN

MAN FOUND DEAD IN APARTMENT IN AICHI PREFECTURE, SUSPECT ARRESTED - AICHI JAPAN 

@Jr_Paku Midin Channel

AICHI

Police in Iwakura City, Aichi Prefecture, have arrested a 22-year-old man on suspicion of killing a 56-year-old man at his apartment.

According to police, Hayato Kiyama, an office worker from Minami Ward, Nagoya, is accused of fatally assaulting Hiroyuki Kato by hitting him multiple times in the head and face with a bottle, NTV reported.

Police said Kiyama told them he assaulted Kato at his home in Nagoya and the apartment where the body was found, between Monday and Wednesday.

A witness to the assault called 110. Kiyama subsequently turned himself in at a police station in Iwakura at around 10 a.m. Wednesday and said he had killed someone.

Police said Kiyama is an employee of an apartment management company, and is believed to have met Kato through his management duties.

Police said Kato had previously lived in another apartment managed by the suspect.

>>>MORE ARTICLE JUST CLICK AND READ<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/07/man-lying-on-road-dies-after-being-run.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/08/the-hiroshima-men-is-reminder-of.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/07/fan-bid-teary-farewell-to-4-giant.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/08/dozens-dead-in-vietnam-after-ha-long.html

@Jr_Paku Midin Channel

NOWADAYS BUGS ARE POPULAR PETS IN JAPAN, BUZZING WITH LESSONS ABOUT ECOLOGY AND SPECIES - TOKYO JAPAN

NOWADAYS BUGS ARE POPULAR PETS IN JAPAN, BUZZING WITH LESSONS ABOUT ECOLOGY AND SPECIES  - TOKYO JAPAN  

@Jr_Paku Midin Channel

TOKYOThe pet of choice in Japan, as much as cuddly kitties and playful puppies, is the humble bug.

The bug has been a key part of Japanese culture from the Heian era classic “The Tale of Genji” to popular modern-day manga and animation like “Mushishi,” featuring insect-like supernatural creatures.

Japanese people appreciate the glitter of fireflies let loose in the garden or the gentle chirping of crickets kept in a little cage. You can feed the bug pets watermelon, but special jelly pet food for bugs is also available at stores. Naturally, bugs are on sale as well, with the more esoteric ones selling for 20,000 yen.

Here, crawly and buzzing critters are not just relegated to the scientific realm of the entomologist working on a taxidermy of pinned butterflies. Celebrities boast about their fascination with bug-hunting as their hobbies just like a western movie star might talk about his yacht or golf score.

The bug as companion is an essential part of what’s observed, enjoyed and cared for in everyday life, reflecting a deeply rooted celebration of humankind’s oneness with nature.

“They are so tiny. If you catch and study them, you’re sure to discover something new,” says Munetoshi Maruyama, professor of bioenvironmental sciences at Kyushu University, whose fascination with bugs began as a child, like many Japanese.

“They are so beautiful in shape and form.”

One thrill that comes from studying insects is discovering a new species, simply because there are more than 1.2 million known kinds of insects, far more than mammals, which translates to a lot of undiscovered ones, said Maruyama, who has discovered 250 new insect species himself and shrugs that off as a relatively small number.

Japan differs from much of the West in encouraging interaction with bugs from childhood, with lots of books written for children, as well as classes and tours.

“In Japan, kids love bugs. You can even buy a net at a convenience store,” he said. “It’s fantastic that bugs can serve as a doorway to science.”

The fact some insects go through metamorphoses, transforming from a larva to a butterfly, for instance, adds to the excitement, allowing kids to observe the stages of a life span, Maruyama said.

Tracing the movement of bugs can be a way to study global warming, too, while so-called “social insects,” like bees and ants show intelligence in how they communicate, remember routes to find their way back to their nests or burrow elaborate underground paths as colonies.

Because bugs carry out important functions in the ecosystem, such as pollinating crops and becoming food for birds and other wildlife, human life isn’t ultimately sustainable if all bugs were to disappear from earth.

The love affair with bugs was clear at an exhibit in Tokyo, aptly called “The Great Insect Exhibition,” running through the end of this month at the Sky Tree Tower, where crowds of children gathered around trees inside indoor cages so they could observe and touch the various beetles.

One kind of rhinoceros beetle known as Hercules, which originated in the Caribbean but is now also found in Japan, is reputed to be the biggest beetle on record, although it’s just several inches in length. Its back coat is a shiny khaki color, though such shades change depending on the season. The other parts, like its horn and delicate but spiky legs, are dark.

“We want the kids to feel the emotions and joy of actually touching the insects here. That’s really positive for the workings of a child’s brain,” said Toyoji Suzuki, one of the event’s organizers, who insisted everyone, including adults, touch the bottom of the beetles’ horns and wings to feel how surprisingly soft and fluffy they are.

Four-year-old Asahi Yamauchi, who was at the exhibit with his grandmother and getting his photo taken inside a special installation that made it look like he was inside a beetle, loves bugs as much as he loves dinosaurs and has what he called a cute beetle as a pet at home.

“My friend had one so I wanted one,” he said.

>>>MORE ARTICLE JUST CLICK AND READ<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/01/japanese-researchers-test-pioneering.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/04/popular-red-panda-travels-to-another.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/08/81-year-old-woman-apparently-killed-by.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/07/eel-eating-japan-opposes-eu-call-for.html

@Jr_Paku Midin Channel

TEAM PULLS OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP AMID ABUSE CLAIMS - TOKYO JAPAN

TEAM PULLS OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP AMID ABUSE CLAIMS - TOKYO JAPAN

@Jr_Paku Midin Channel

TOKYO

A high school baseball team has withdrawn from one of Japan's most popular national tournaments, the school's principal said Sunday, amid social media controversy over reports of abuse.

The Koryo High School team's withdrawal from the annual summer national high school baseball championship follows revelations that the event's national body issued a severe reprimand in March over a case in which four students physically abused a younger boy at a dormitory in January.

Principal Masakazu Hori said with further allegations circulating on social media and students targeted by online attacks, the decision was made with "protecting the lives of students, teachers and local people as our greatest priority."

Employees at the school in Hiroshima have been targeted online amid the claims, which include allegations of abuse by coaching staff and a bomb threat made to a dormitory.

According to the school, police are investigating the January incident after the victim filed a complaint, and a third-party committee is examining new allegations from a former member.

Hori expressed "deep regret" over the situation. The school has said it plans a fundamental review of the baseball team, with head coach Tetsuyuki Nakai relieved of his duties until the investigation is complete.

The tournament organizer, the Japan High School Baseball Federation, said that due to the withdrawal, the team has forfeited its second-round game scheduled for Thursday.

Organizers will "continue efforts to eradicate violence, bullying, and unreasonable hierarchical relationships," the federation's statement said.

The national high school baseball championship, held annually at Koshien Stadium in western Japan, is one of the country's most popular sporting events.

Koryo High School is a three-time winner of the event's spring edition and has a history of producing professional players.

Its withdrawal marks only the third in the tournament's roughly 110-year history, and the first after games have begun.

>>>MORE ARTICLE JUST CLICK AND READ<<<

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/05/organizers-visitors-bracing-for-hot.html

 https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/07/japan-to-promote-sign-language-with-new.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/06/hakuho-to-quit-sumo-over-forced-closure.html

https://www.jacknjillscute.com/2025/06/top-court-rejects-claim-dual.html

@Jr_Paku Midin Channel