I am a Japanese-English translator based in Tokyo.
Latest posts by Hanako Tokita
Japan: Frustrations from the Overlooked
While the eyes of the media and the rest of Japan have been glued to developments in the Tohoku region, cries for help from other disaster areas have not received as much attention.
Japan: Early-modern Japan in photography
Old Photos of Japan has a collection of fascinating photos taken between the 1860s and 1930s in Japan. The site is available in Japanese, English and Dutch.
Japan: 10,000 signatures to support a café
A small independent café, Berg, is facing possible eviction from a shopping complex in Shinjuku, adjacent to the world's busiest train station. The building owner wants the 50-square-metre café out...
Japan: The End of OhmyNews Japan
At the end of August, 2008, OhmyNews, the citizen journalism site from South Korea that entered the Japanese market in 2006 with much fanfare, closed its doors. First officially announced on February 22, 2006, and launched shortly thereafter with help from the Japanese media giant Softbank and an investment contract valued at 1.3 billion yen, OhmyNews had a rough ride in Japan right from the beginning. Bloggers reflect on the rise and fall of the Japanese citizen journalism project.
Japan: Ainu recognized as indigenous people
On June 6, a couple of months prior to the International Day of the World's Indigenous People, the Japanese Diet passed a resolution to officially recognize the Ainu as an...
Japan: LGBT Youth Exchange Project
LGBT Youth Exchange [jp] is a joint project by the Center for Gender Studies at International Christian University in Tokyo and Youth and Play Services of the city council of...
Japan: Bloggers on food crisis feast, G8 over Skype?
The G8 Summit at Toyako, Hokkaido, ended on June 9th after three days of meetings, leaving a bitter aftertaste for some bloggers in Japan. Many questioned the high cost of the event, pointing out how environmentally unfriendly it was, and one even proposed that the meeting could be better carried out over Skype.
Japan: Iwate-Miyagi Inland Earthquake
On June 14, an inland earthquake reaching M7.2 on the Richter scale struck the Tohoku region of Japan. In Iwate and Miyagi, the hardest hit prefectures, 10 have been confirmed dead, about a dozen are missing, and more than 200 people have been injured.
Japan: Experiences at IDAHO
On the International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO), Japanese LGBT communities organized several events and street activities in several cities across the country. With a slogan of “Yes to sexual diversity” (多様な性にYES!), various groups broadcast messages promoting a society where differences and diversity are accepted and respected.
Japan: A surge of suicides
Over the past few weeks, the Japanese media have been extensively reporting suicide cases associated with the use of hydrogen sulfide gas, providing detailed description of ingredients and methods used. The recent media reporting has been so sensationalized that the Japan Suicide Prevention Association requested that media organizations be more careful with their reporting. The phenomenon has stirred up conversation among Japanese bloggers.
Japan: Where has all the butter gone?
Where is the butter? — cry Japanese consumers who have been hunting everywhere for the dairy product. The drastic reduction in raw milk production, complicated by hikes in the price...
Japan: Architect bloggers stand against redevelopment plan
One of the most prominent modern architectural works in Japan is facing possible demolition. Japan Post, privatized last October, announced last year its plan to build a 200m building in...
Japan: Family registry system and same-sax couples
Blogger Maruyama Teruno discusses the gay-unfriendly nature of the Japanese family registry system, referred to as koseki, and argues that the system lacks consideration for the privacy of individuals. Even...
Japan: 7th Tokyo Pride Parade announced
7th Tokyo Pride Parade (TTP7th) has been announced and the official blog [jp]has been launched. Scheduled for August 9, the theme for this year's TPP is “matsuri”, or festival in...
Japan in full bloom
Spring has come to Japan with the first cherry blossoms of the year. People anxiously wait for the blossom forecast announced by the Meteorological Agency, while marking their calendar for...
Japan: Views on Yasukuni, the movie
A documentary film about the controversial Yasukuni shrine, shot by a Chinese filmmaker through funding by a Japanese government agency, has sparked debate and discussion after a group within the ruling LDP party convened a screening to assess its "neutrality". Bloggers offer differing views on the move and on the idea of their government subsidizing what some see as a "political" film.
Japan: Obama gets support from Japanese city
Excitement is growing in a sleepy fishing town on the coast of the Japan Sea. The city of Obama, whose name means “little beach” in Japanese, is receiving unusual attention for its coincidental resemblance to the name of a certain US presidential candidate.
Japan: American enka singer makes waves
The first ever American-born enka singer, Jero, has become the talk of the Japanese blogosphere the past weeks as he made his debut with the single “Umiyuki (Ocean Snow)”. The...
Japan: Is it obscenity or is it art?
On February 19, the Japanese Supreme Court ruled that a Robert Mapplethorpe book, confiscated at Narita Airport in 1999 on the basis of its perceived pornographic content, does not violate obscenity law. The book in question, titled “Mapplethorpe”, contains 384 pages of photographs of various subjects, 19 of which contain closeup photos of male genitalia.
Japan: Coming-Out Letters
The Japanese LGBT community has come a long way to claim its position in society today. However, aside from those flamboyant celebrities on TV who satisfy viewers’ appetite for entertainment,...
Japan: The Whistle of the Middle East
The sport of handball is receiving the kind of attention from the media and general public it never has before in Japan, as well as in Korea. The dispute came...
