A survival skill in shrinking Japan: Learn English

Japanese billionaire Hiroshi Mikitani decided two years ago that the employees at his company, Rakuten Inc., should work almost entirely in English. The idea, he said, was a daring and drastic attempt to counter Japan's shrinking place in the world. "Japanese people think it's so difficult to speak English," Mikitani said. "But we need to break the shell."

German customs demand $475,000 for Japanese musician's violin

German customs seized a $1.2 million violin from a Japanese professional musician and are demanding she pay almost $475,000 to get it back, reports said on Wednesday. Belgium-based Yuzuko Horigome was transiting through Frankfurt Airport last week after performing in Japan, the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper said. When she tried to walk through the green gate for travelers arriving in the EU with nothing to declare, customs officers stopped her and said she needed to pay 190,000 euros in duty on her 1741 Guarnerius violin.

Low Number of Babies Born in Japan Recorded

Fewer babies were born in Japan in the last year than any other on record, pulling down its population for the third year in a row, according to government statistics released this week. As of the end of March, Japan had more than 260,000 fewer people than a year earlier, the biggest drop of the Japanese population yet, according to Japanese media. The baby bust has continued year after year despite Japanese efforts to nudge up the numbers: The government has doled out payments for couples with children and subsidized daycare. Japanese towns publicly herald the number of local births in city signs. Engineering students even crafted a cooing robotic baby years ago in hope of setting biological clocks ticking.

Female Cops in Japan Hits Record High

The number of female police officers in Japan has hit a record high of 17,686, with women making up 6.8 percent of all police officers across the country as of April this year, a National Police Agency (NPA) report has shown. The record figures were reported in the nation's White Paper on Police 2012, which was released on July 24. Since 2002, over 1,000 female police officers have been hired each year as part of a bid to revitalize and enhance police forces across the nation. The NPA said it will seek to expand recruitment of female officers. "Female officers' abilities are utilized in investigations into sex crimes and spousal violence cases, as well as in supporting the victims of those crimes," the white paper said.

Married Women in Japan Want to Work

Married women want to work, according to a government survey that will form the basis for a 2012 white paper on children, child rearing and mothers. The survey results, released early, show an astounding 86 percent of women want to continue working after having children, though most find it almost impossible to do so. Only 11.6 percent indicated they do not wish to seek employment. Most women said they wanted to start working again as soon as possible after giving birth, though they were keenly aware of the importance of being with their young children. The largest percentage of mothers, 23.8 percent, said they wanted to start work again as soon as possible. Another 22.1 percent said they would prefer to wait until their children enter kindergarten or nursery school, and another 20 percent said they would like to start after their children enter elementary school.

Trying to Look Pretty is the Trend for Young Japanese Men

Young Japanese men are starting to resemble their female counterparts when it comes to the pursuit of beauty, with the nation awash in salons dedicated to male grooming and products such as hair removal creams, electric nose-hair trimmers and face-firming masks targeting the image-conscious man. Men in their 20s and 30s today were teenagers when the now-common expression "ikemen" - meaning a good-looking man - was a new buzzword. The advent of the term and a social phenomenon lionizing ikemen have given males of this particular age group a belief that looking pretty is pretty cool. At the same time, gaining a more attractive look is a way to compensate for a lack of self-confidence.

Pet Shops Banned from Displaying Cats, Dogs after 8 p.m.

An Environment Ministry ordinance took effect Friday banning pet shop operators from displaying cats and dogs after 8 p.m. to relieve the animals of stress, following criticism by animal rights' groups of outlets that stay open until late at night. According to the new ministry order based on the animal welfare and management act, cats and dogs can be shown to customers at pet shops between 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. As a provisional measure effective for two years, the ministry allows "cat cafes," where customers can pet cats, to operate until 10 p.m. if the animals are more than 1 year old and can move freely around the premises.

Korean idol enrages Japanese netizens by eating instant noodles from the pot

TOKYO —While the Internet in general is known for being a bottomless cauldron of hate, nothing quite gets Japanese netizens seething like South Korea. Case in point: the Japanese Internet is raging over a video of a young South Korean woman eating instant noodles because she has bad table manners. The video is actually part of a promotional series for Shin Ramyun instant noodles in which members of Korean girl group T-ARA share their favorite home recipes. The clip in question features member Park Ji-yeon, who divulges that she prefers to stick with the orthodox recipe and proceeds to show viewers how to prepare Shin Ramyun according to the directions on the package.

Lady Gaga auctions teacup to help Japanese artists

TOKYO — Fans bidding in a charity online auction to buy a teacup used once by pop diva Lady Gaga had offered more than four million yen ($50,000) by Tuesday, with five days left before the hammer falls. The china cup and saucer set was used by the star at a press conference in Tokyo three months after the massive tsunami of March last year swamped a large stretch of coastline. Lady Gaga told reporters at the time that she would auction the cup, marked with her lipstick and bearing the Japanese message “We pray for Japan” along with the star’s autograph. All the money raised will be used to help young Japanese artists who want to study in the United States. The cup was put on “Yahoo! Japan Auctions” at midday Monday, with the starting price of one yen. The auction is set to finish midnight Sunday.

Subsidy eyed to promote study abroad

40 universities could receive 5-year grants

The Yomiuri Shimbun - The education ministry plans to establish a new financial support system for universities encouraging students to study abroad, it has been learned. The ministry aims to promote the idea of studying abroad to Japanese students, who are often regarded as being introverted, to foster human resources who will be motivated to actively participate in the nation's domestic and international affairs. The Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry is targeting about 40 universities and plans to grant from 100 million yen to 200 million yen in annual subsidies to each institution.

Police dogs busy with PR not crime

TOTTORI — Two toy poodles have been tied up doing promotional events instead of crime-fighting duties since they became police dogs in Tottori Prefecture in January. The female poodles — Karin, who turns 2 on Sunday, and Fuga, also 2, — passed the police canine exam in November and have been making TV appearances ever since. They debuted in mid-January at a Tottori Prefectural Police event to publicize 110, the emergency telephone number, and took part in an event in February at a junior high school in the town of Chizu to explain the work of dog trainers. At the Chizu event, Karin trained with other police dogs as trainer Makoto Miyamoto told students what his job is like. Karin walked beside Miyamoto and obeying his command, "Wait." A Labrador retriever also demonstrated its sniffing skills at the event. Miyamoto said it takes three to four years for a police dog to master scent tracking. "It's best for them to get on-site work experience" to master the skills, he said. Poodles, which are used as hunting dogs, carry out orders and learn quickly, according to the Japan Kennel Club.

Kyoto aiming to get some royals to return

KYOTO — When the Imperial family moved to Tokyo at the beginning of the Meiji Restoration in 1868, after more than a millennium in Kyoto, many in the ancient capital were convinced the Emperor was just embarking on a long visit and would someday return. Now, more than 140 years later, Kyoto's top political and business leaders are working to have at least some members of the Imperial family take up residence here again. The reasons have less to do with romantic dreams of the past and more to do with modern concerns ranging from safety from natural disasters to the strengthening of Kyoto's role domestically and abroad as the center of traditional Japanese culture.  The seven-prefecture Union of Kansai Governments endorsed a plan to make Kansai a backup capital in the event of a natural disaster in Tokyo, and one of the proposals was to relocate the Imperial family to the region. Now, however, Kyoto's political and business leaders are stressing the social and cultural benefits to the city and the Kansai region of having some Imperial family members in Kyoto.

Miss Universe-Japan finalist is Manileña

Naomi S. Kida is perhaps the first Japino to make it to the finals of Miss Universe-Japan. Born in Tondo, Manila, in June 1988, she made it to the Top 5 of the beauty contest in Tokyo on June 17, 2011. Naomi is the daughter of Cristina Rivera Santiaguel of Imus, Cavite and Masami Kida, president of a cement production company. Fluent in Japanese, English and Filipino, Naomi regularly visits the Philippines and stays in Almanza, Las Piñas, with her aunt. “If I am back here and speak Tagalog, I have to change my [frame of] mind. It takes me one to two weeks to adjust,” she told the Inquirer over lunch recently in a restaurant in Salcedo Village, Makati City.

Tokyo ranks sixth in competitiveness

NEW YORK — New York ranked first and Tokyo sixth among 120 major cities in the world in terms of competitiveness, according to a survey report released Monday by Citigroup Inc. and the research arm of The Economist magazine. London and Singapore came in second and third, followed by Paris and Hong Kong tied for fourth place. The report ranks cities in eight categories of competitiveness, including economic strength, human capital, institutional effectiveness, social and cultural character, and environment and natural hazards. While many European and U.S. cities earned high rankings overall, Asian cities dominated the top rankings in the economic strength category. In this most highly weighted category, 15 of the top 20 cities are in Asia, and 12 of them are in China. Among other Japanese cities, Osaka ranked 47th, Nagoya 50th and Fukuoka 63rd. "Cities are engines of prosperity and innovation. . . . But as cities vie for investment, talent and business, we recognize that competitiveness is about more than growth," said Citigroup Chief Executive Officer Vikram Pandit.

Japan wants cuisine listed as UNESCO heritage

TOKYO — Japan said Friday it was applying to UNESCO to have its cuisine listed as a global cultural treasure as part of a bid to restore global confidence in its food after the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Tokyo is to ask the UN's educational, scientific and cultural arm to register "Washoku: Traditional dietary cultures of the Japanese" as part of the intangible heritage of humanity, the foreign and agriculture ministries said. "Washoku" or the Japanese diet, is traditionally based on rice, fish and vegetables, but the varied and highly seasonal cuisine of the country has won it plaudits around the world. The government said washoku was characterised by respect for nature and the importance placed on the way in which dishes are served as well as the quality of ingredients used. The nation also "needs to restore confidence in Japanese food, which has been adversely affected by rumours due to the nuclear accident" at Fukushima, the government said.

How to spot a yakuza front company

Shukan Taishu Venus (Feb. 22) sets about determining what commoners can do to protect themselves from unknowingly associating with crime syndicates. There are thousands of yakuza front companies operating in Japan, says the tabloid. “I used to work at such an organization,” confesses a freelance writer. “Many other employees did not know, however, that a gang group was behind it.” To avoid working for such a firm, the writer suggests research. “You should at least check the company’s name on the net,” the source says. “While it is important to see what users on bulletin boards say, what’s crucial is to know the number of years it has been in business and its history.”

Subsidy eyed to promote study abroad

  40 universities could receive 5-year grants

The Yomiuri Shimbun - The education ministry plans to establish a new financial support system for universities encouraging students to study abroad, it has been learned. The ministry aims to promote the idea of studying abroad to Japanese students, who are often regarded as being introverted, to foster human resources who will be motivated to actively participate in the nation's domestic and international affairs. The Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry is targeting about 40 universities and plans to grant from 100 million yen to 200 million yen in annual subsidies to each institution.

Doll displays celebrate Japan's girls

Japanese families have traditionally used dolls to decorate their homes ahead of March 3 Girls' Day celebrations. Known as the hina matsuri (doll festival) it's a time to pray for the health and welfare of the nation's daughters. If you don't have hina dolls in your home, don't worry. You can still take part in the tradition if you head out to Konosu, Saitama Prefecture. Konosu, which has a history as a doll-making center that dates back to the Edo Period (1603-1867), vows to impress visitors with its gigantic set made up of a 31-step, red-carpeted staircase decked with 1,807 traditional ornamental dolls. The 7-meter-tall pyramid, placed inside City Hall, includes figures of the Emperor, Empress, servants and musicians, among others. While this would no doubt be the biggest draw of the annual Konosu Bikkuri Hina-matsuri, there's more. In the city, 7,000 to 8,000 dolls are currently on show at storefronts, schools and public halls.

Retirement age plan to be axed

The Yomiuri Shimbun-The government will shelve its plan to extend the compulsory retirement age for national government employees from 60 to 65, according to sources. Instead, it plans increase the number of employees working until the age of 65 by rehiring workers who retired at 60 at wages lower than preretirement levels. Extending the retirement age would mean maintaining salaries at the same high levels and inevitably increase labor costs. The government plans to expand the reemployment system from fiscal 2013, when the eligibility age for mutual pension payments will begin to be raised to 65 in stages.

Uniqlo opens in Philippines in June

The clothing chain is one of Japan’s biggest exports today and is owned by Japan’s richest (or second richest, depending on who you ask) man. It   claims to be the world’s fastest-growing apparel retailer. Uniqlo’s parent company, Fast Retailing Inc., has partnered with the Sy family’s SM Retail Inc. to form Fast Retailing Phils. Inc. Uniqlo’s first Philippine store opens in June at SM Mall of Asia. The shop, to cover 1,500 sq m, will carry the men’s, women’s and children’s lines. Tadashi Yanai, chair and chief executive of Fast Retailing Inc., said in an interview early this year that Uniqlo is going into developing countries with a fast-growing middle class, naming the Philippines and other Asian countries.