Japan

Japan: Tokyo Police Launch Anti-Groping Campaign

Date: September 16th, 2009 |

Tokyo police began a weeklong campaign to apprehend gropers on commuter trains Sept. 14, a problem for women that has existed for decades with little apparent progress made to stop it. Tokyo’s subways are notoriously crowded during morning and evening rush hours, presenting opportunities for molesters to have their way in the press of humanity. [read more]

Japan: Deadly Dinner

Date: February 5th, 2009 |

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Anyone who wants to experience the thrill of eating a potentially life-threatening meal should remember that if not prepared correctly, blowfish can kill. Four men who dined on blowfish testicles in Tsuruoka city Jan 26 began feeling the symptoms of blowfish poisoning—limb paralysis, breathing trouble, losing consciousness—and were rushed to the hospital for treatment. The [read more]

Japan: Tourists Hassle Geisha

Date: December 31st, 2008 |

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Once there were more than 80,000 Geisha throughout Japan, but now there are just 1,000, and many in the Gion district of Kyoto have complained about harassment from tourists. Visitors have tugged at their sleeves and snapped pictures with them as if the white-faced women in traditional silk kimonos were cast members in a theme [read more]

Japan: Plan to Fingerprint, Photograph Arriving Foreigners to Begin Nov. 20

Date: October 31st, 2007 |

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Japan’s plan to photograph and take digital fingerprints of all arriving foreigners will begin Nov. 20. Foreigners residing in Japan will have to go through the process every time they reenter the country. The collected data will be checked against a database of domestic and international terror and crime suspects and anyone matching the information [read more]

Pacific Rim: Taiwan Earthquake Damages Undersea Cables

Date: January 3rd, 2007 |

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A 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck near Taiwan Dec. 26 and damaged undersea telecommunications cables, affecting internet, banking and telephone services around the Pacific Rim. Much of the service has been restored but repairs to the cables are expected to take as long as a month. Internet access may be slow or unavailable in so [read more]

Japan: Increase in Drink-Spiking in Tokyo’s Roppongi Bars

Date: March 18th, 2009 |

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The U.S. Embassy in Tokyo issued a notice March 17 citing a significant increase in drink spiking in Tokyo’s Roppongi bars and clubs. Perpetrators slip a drug into drinks that renders victims unconscious for several hours while the criminals charge large sums of money to victims’ credit cards. Sometimes victims wake in the club, sometimes [read more]

Japan: Tourists Again Allowed into Tokyo’s Famous Fish Market

Date: January 15th, 2009 |

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Beginning Jan. 19, tourists will again be allowed to visit Tokyo’s Tsukiji fish market after a six-week-long ban that authorities had threatened to continue indefinitely. The ban was put in place to prevent tourists from interfering with the fish auctions but lifted because officials acknowledged that the market is part of Tokyo’s cultural fabric and [read more]

Japan: Tokyo’s Famous Fish Market to be Closed to Tourists

Date: December 11th, 2008 |

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A popular Tokyo attraction for tourists looking for something especially different will be off-limits beginning Dec. 15 when officials close the pre-dawn Tsukiji market to tourists. Hundreds of visitors daily attend the tuna auctions at the market that supplies fresh sushi and sashimi to restaurants all over the world. According to officials, the tourists get [read more]

Japan: Travelers To Be Fingerprinted, Photographed on Arrival

Date: September 19th, 2007 |

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Beginning in November, new immigration regulations will require all foreign visitors above the age of 16 except diplomats to be digitally fingerprinted and photographed upon arrival. The procedure should be quick and easy but it could cause delays in the initial days or weeks as officials and arriving passengers grow accustomed to the process. Authorities [read more]

Japan: Possible Threat to U.S. Facilities

Date: May 30th, 2006 |

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The U.S. Embassy in Tokyo reported it had received information of a possible threat to U.S. facilities in Japan, and urged Americans to remain alert for and report suspicious activity. Officials had not determined the credibility of the threat when they made the announcement May 24, nor would they say what precautions had b [read more]

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