BBC
 
Japan has passed laws that redefine rape and raise the age of consent in a landmark overhaul of sex crime laws.
The definition of rape was broadened to "non-consensual sexual intercourse" from "forcible sexual intercourse", aligning Japanese law's definition with other countries.
The legal ...

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CNN
 
Japan on Friday passed a much-contested bill to promote understanding of the LGBT community amid criticism that the legislation provides no human rights guarantees and may tacitly encourage some forms of discrimination.
Japan, the only Group of Seven (G7) nation with no legal protection for...

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JAPAN TODAY
 
Osamu Tezuka is known as the God of Manga, and with good reason. No other single artist did as much to advance the art form of comics in Japan, and nearly 35 years after his death, he remains a figure of reverence among anime/manga fans and professionals alike.
So it’s a big develop...

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KYODO NEWS
 
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Thursday ruled out dissolving the lower house during the ongoing Diet session through next week, after an opposition party voiced readiness to submit a no-confidence motion against his Cabinet.
His government's role is to "address challenges t...

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ENGLISH NEWS
 
The number of people who got stranded in the mountains in Japan hit a record high of 3,506 in 2022, police data showed Thursday.
Japan's National Police Agency (NPA) data showed that the number increased by 431 from a year earlier, as COVID-19 restrictions were eased and hiking tra...

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JAPAN TIMES
 
A Self-Defense Force member was arrested Wednesday after allegedly killing two other personnel with a rifle at a Ground Self-Defense Force shooting range in the city of Gifu. Another victim was seriously injured.
The 18-year-old male suspect — who is a new GSDF recruit — was arreste...

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TEMPO
 
 Japanese Emperor Naruhito is set to visit Indonesia on June 17-23, 2023, which is aimed at strengthening ties between the two countries. This will be their first official visit to Indonesia. 
“Through this visit, we hope to strengthen our friendly relationship with Indonesia,” the Japane...

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JAPAN TODAY
 
The Japanese government is looking into putting off a tax increase to fund extra defense spending by a year to 2025, a ruling party source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters said on Monday.
The coalition government agreed in December to raise key taxes to increase the ...

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BBC
 
Rina Gonoi had two dreams. To be a soldier, and to compete in the Olympics as a judo player.
She started judo when she was four years old, trained by her brother, and was 11 when she first saw soldiers in action.
The armed forces, known in Japan as the Self-Defence Forces (SDF), had helped...

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KYODO NEWS
 
A suspicious box was delivered Monday to a Japanese court scheduled to try the man indicted for murdering former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, prompting visitors to evacuate and leading to the cancellation of trial preparations planned for the day.
The cardboard box set off a metal dete...

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