Kyodo News Digest: Dec. 13, 2024
Photo taken on Nov. 12, 2024, shows Christmas trees decorated with crystal glass set up for display in the pond of the garden of the Venetian Glass Museum in the town of Hakone, Kanagawa Prefecture in eastern Japan. Two trees, 11 meters and 8 meters high, are decorated with approximately 85,000 and 65,000 pieces of crystal glass, respectively, and will be on display until Jan. 13, 2025. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan high court rules same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional
FUKUOKA – The Fukuoka High Court on Friday became the third high court in Japan to rule the country’s lack of legal recognition of same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, but upheld a lower court ruling to dismiss plaintiffs’ claim for damages.
In the ruling, the court judged for the first time that civil law provisions not allowing same-sex marriage violated Article 13 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to the pursuit of happiness.
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Japan big makers’ confidence improves as auto output recovers: BOJ
TOKYO – Business confidence among major Japanese manufacturers improved for the first time in two quarters in December, buoyed by production recovery in the auto industry as the effects of the recent certification scandal waned, the Bank of Japan’s Tankan survey showed Friday.
But the firms said they were less confident about the outlook, citing uncertainty in overseas economies, with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump expected to advance his protectionist trade policies after he takes office in January.
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Japan to delay decision on income tax hike for defense spending
TOKYO – Japan’s ruling parties have agreed to put off a decision on when to raise income tax to help fund a planned defense spending increase, sources close to the matter said Friday.
However, the government is expected to expand revenue from corporate and tobacco taxes starting April 2026, as part of efforts to nearly double the defense budget to 2 percent of gross domestic product, the sources said.
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Japan’s upper house election likely on July 13
TOKYO – Japan’s House of Councillors election will likely be held on July 13, given the envisaged Jan. 21 start of a parliamentary session, administration officials said Friday, in what would be the first nationwide poll for Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba as head of a minority government.
Under this scenario, a 150-day parliamentary session is expected to run from Jan. 21 to June 19 with no extension, followed by a campaigning period for the upper house likely starting on June 26.
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U.S. airman gets 5-yr term for sexual assault of minor in Okinawa
NAHA, Japan – A U.S. Air Force member stationed in Okinawa Prefecture was sentenced to five years in prison on Friday for kidnapping and sexually assaulting a girl under the age of 16 in December last year, with the court rejecting his not guilty plea.
In handing down the ruling on Brennon Washington, 25, the Naha District Court’s Presiding Judge Tetsuro Sato said the defendant continued performing sexual acts on the victim even after he was aware there was no consent.
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South Korea opposition chief urges ruling party to vote to impeach Yoon
SEOUL – The leader of South Korea’s main opposition party called on ruling party lawmakers Friday to support a new attempt to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over his short-lived declaration of martial law last week.
Lee Jae Myung’s Democratic Party and five other opposition parties submitted a motion to the National Assembly on Thursday after their first attempt at impeachment failed on Dec. 7 with most People Power Party lawmakers boycotting the vote.
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Japanese non-binary person seeks family register change via court
KYOTO – A Japanese person who does not identify as male or female filed a petition with the Kyoto Family Court on Friday to change their family register designation to a gender-neutral descriptor, the person’s lawyer said.
The person in their 50s, who has been registered in Kyoto Prefecture since birth as “first-born daughter” of the household, now seeks to change the term to an expression such as “second child,” the lawyer, Shun Nakaoka, said.
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Esports to be excluded from Asian Games after 2026 meet
TOKYO – The Olympic Council of Asia plans to exclude esports from the Asian Games after the 2026 meet to be co-hosted by Japan’s Aichi Prefecture and its capital, Nagoya, sources familiar with the matter said Friday.
Esports are likely to be held in a separate event, along with “mind sports” such as chess, which have been played at the Asian Games.
Video: All Nippon Airways plane to promote 2025 World Expo
