Disability News Japan

Recent reports made by Japan’s Ministry of Infrastructure, Land and Transport regarding the elderly and people with disabilities are arguably a kind of good news/bad news situation. Episode Notes: ‘Japan’s Land Ministry to take steps to help property owners who “hesitate” to rent to elderly and disabled’ https://barrierfreejapan.com/2024/02/15/japans-land-ministry-to-take-steps-to-help-property-ow...

Mark Bookman was a historian, whose specialism was disability policy and related social movements in Japanese and global contexts. He studied Japanese Studies at University of Pennsylvania, and at the time of his death on December 16th 2022 he was Postdoctoral Fellow at The University of Tokyo. Before he died, Mark was working on a new project with an organization that would help organizations suc...

A male client suffered severe burns while taking a bath at a facility for the disabled in Ibaraki City, Osaka Prefecture. The staff neglected to check the temperature of the hot water. Ibaraki City announced on February 5th that a male user in his 30s suffered severe burns to approximately 85% of his body after taking a bath at a municipal living support center for people with disabilities. Howeve...

A Japanese court on Wednesday 7th February recognized a transgender man’s petition to legally change his gender without having first undergone sterilization, after the country’s top court ruled the requirement unconstitutional in October. The plaintiff, 50-year-old Tacaquito Usui, welcomed the ruling from the Okayama Family Court’s Tsuyama Branch as “profoundly moving.” It is likely to be followed...

Three cities and towns in Aichi Prefecture, including Koda Town, Aichi Prefecture, have accused Megumi (Headquarters, Tokyo) of a major management company of group homes (GHs) for people with disabilities of overcharging food costs. This is the first time that financial abuse has been found in a series of issues, Governor Hideaki Omura stated in an announcement at a press conference on February 5t...

On January 30th, users of a facility for the disabled in Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture, which was hit by the Noto Peninsula earthquake, and their families evacuated to a facility in Aichi Prefecture, together with the staff who had been supporting them. A total of 19 people, including users and family members of a facility for people with disabilities run by the social welfare corporation Kowa-...

A man in his 40s who is severely disabled, filed a criminal complaint against an online contributor in Tokyo for defamation and insult on December 18, 2023. Prior to the criminal complaint, the man filed a civil suit against the online poster, seeking compensation for damages, and the Maebashi District Court ordered him to pay approximately 960,000 yen on December 8, 2023. The criminal complaint w...

The audio is from a NHK G TV programme broadcast at 7PM on Tuesday 30th January 2024. It reports that vulnerable people, such as the elderly and those with disabilities, continue to struggle after the earthquake that hit Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan on January 1st 2024.

The photograph was taken at my local train station in Kobe. The station itself is quite accessible to a person with disabilities like myself. However, there is one small problem when one enters the station, because those who enter the station, enter what I like to call an ‘empire of QR codes’. If you want to know where and when the trains are arriving or departing at this station, the quickest – a...

A meeting of a national organization made up of local politicians with disabilities was held in Isesaki City, Gunma Prefecture on January 15th, and the plan was to provide extensive support to people with disabilities in anticipation of a prolonged evacuation period following the Noto Peninsula Earthquake. Episode Notes: https://barrierfreejapan.com/2024/01/16/anticipating-a-long-time-to-recovery-...

More on why some elderly and people with disabilities are reluctant to take the ‘secondary evacuation’ option and Japan’s Education Ministry drafts a report on how to accommodate the increasing number of people with disabilities attending universities in Japan. And snow is coming… Episode notes: https://barrierfreejapan.com/2024/01/23/japans-education-ministry-discusses-support-for-increasing-numb...

NHK reported on its TV programme ‘News Watch 9’ on January 22nd that four ‘Group Homes’ and facilities for people with disabilities in Ishikawa Prefecture decided not to take the ‘secondary evacuation’ option, out of a concern that a change of environment might be disruptive to their mental health.

Former comedian Esper Ito, who was reported to have passed away on the 17th at the age of 63, announced on the 19th that the cause of his death was status epilepticus. The office said, “Esper Ito (real name Masuo Ito) had been receiving rehabilitation treatment at a facility for a long time and has been repeatedly in and out of the hospital, but on January 16, 2024, due to status epilepticus, He p...

This is a short audio extract from the NHK G TV programme ‘News Watch 9’ broadcast on January 19th 2024, reporting about the elderly and people with disabilities in Ishikawa prefecture after the earthquake on January 1st 2024.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has determined that ‘Megumi’, a major group home management company for people with disabilities, was overcharging food costs from residents. It was revealed on January 17th, through interviews with related parties, that the government has recommended that a report be submitted by the end of this month. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare conducted a...

There was an aftershock from the Noto Peninsula Earthquake on Tuesday 16th January 2024 at 18:42. It was only 4.8 in magnitude but Shindo 5 and apparently NHK felt it was worth interrupting its programming to report it. This short audio clip is the sound of an NHK G TV reporting it just as it happened.

Fourteen people who evacuated to safety are now believed to have died from causes related to the earthquake in Ishikawa prefecture. Medical experts warn the figure could increase due to poor sanitary conditions in shelters. On January 15th, NHK reported how some elderly people are hesitant to evacuate out of Ishikawa prefecture because it may disrupt their medical care regime.

For a break from ‘earthquake news’, Barrier Free Japan talks about the prevalence of ‘QR codes’ at train stations in Japan and how this might affect accessibility. On September 9th 2020, Kyodo reported that: “East Japan Railway Co. on Wednesday began testing new ticket gates in Tokyo that can be accessed using QR codes to make travel smoother for those without its Suica IC prepaid travel cards suc...

A massive earthquake that struck central Japan on New Year's Day has now claimed 215 lives in Ishikawa Prefecture. Fourteen people who evacuated to safety are now believed to have died from causes related to the disaster. Medical experts warn the figure could increase due to poor sanitary conditions in shelters. A survey has found that caregivers at facilities for the elderly and people with disab...

The death toll in Ishikawa Prefecture from a huge earthquake that struck central Japan’s Noto Peninsula on New Year’s Day has risen to 206, the prefectural government said Wednesday. Of the total, eight died of indirect causes related to the earthquake, including exhaustion and poor health during evacuation. As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, the number of people still unaccounted for stood at 52. The Japane...

Fatalities in the central Japan prefecture of Ishikawa from a massive earthquake that struck on New Year’s Day have exceeded 200.  According to an announcement by the Ishikawa prefectural government Tuesday, the death toll in the 7.6 magnitude quake rose to 202. Episode notes: *Since recording this podcast episode fatalities in the central Japan prefecture of Ishikawa from a massive earthquake tha...

Mayor Shigeru Sakaguchi of Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture, announced on January 7th that one victim of the Noto Peninsula earthquake who had evacuated to an evacuation center in the city had died of hypothermia. Nine people at evacuation center in Ishikawa were infected with norovirus and two people were infected with the new coronavirus. They were all in the same evacuation center. Episode note...

The death toll in the central Japan prefecture of Ishikawa from Monday's powerful earthquake has risen to 126, prefectural officials said Saturday. The magnitude-7.6 New Year's Day quake has left 210 people unaccounted for in the prefecture, the officials said. The toll is likely to increase, as many people are believed to remain trapped under collapsed houses. More than 30,000 people stay in evac...

According to Ishikawa Prefecture, as of 10 a.m. on the 4th, damage such as water outages and power outages had been confirmed at around 120 elderly facilities in the prefecture, including special nursing homes and group homes. . Residents are not able to take a bath, and the toilets cannot be flushed, raising concerns about hygiene. Episode Notes: https://barrierfreejapan.com/2024/01/04/residents-...

At the time of posting this it is 72 hours after the earthquake in Ishikawa Prefecture. Aftershocks seem to be lessening, although one should not be too blasé. *Since recording the podcast episode there has been a NHK report about a care home in Ishikawa where residents cannot use the toilet or take a bath: https://barrierfreejapan.com/2024/01/04/residents-of-ishikawa-care-home-unable-to-use-toile...