Disability News Japan
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Disability News Japan
Hosted by Michael Gillan Peckitt, who resides in Kobe, Japan, the Disability News Japan Podcast is News website 'Barrier Free Japan's podcast, a weekly digest of some of the news about disability in Japan in audio form. New episodes will usually be available every Friday at 6am Japan Time.
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Japan’s Children and Families Agency Considers “Children’s Homes”
Japan’s Children and Families Agency has begun considering the creation of small-scale residential facilities tentatively called “Children’s Homes” fo...
Mother Ordered to Pay 30 Million Yen in Abuse Damages Causing Mental Disorders
A lawsuit in which a 36-year-old man from Kanagawa Prefecture sought damages from his mother, claiming that abuse he suffered as a child caused him to...
Japan’s new guidelines warn employers not to mislabel access requests as harassment
The guidelines on harassment by customers make clear that employers must take care not to interpret requests for reasonable accommodation from persons...
Japan Approves Muscular Dystrophy Drug Price of 304 Million Yen
An advisory panel to Japan’s health minister decided Friday to allow public health insurance coverage for a gene therapy for muscular dystrophy beginn...
Japan’s ‘first visit date’ rule shows gaps in disability pension system
A Tokyo man in his 50s who was forced to quit his IT job after developing Parkinson’s disease faced difficulties obtaining Japan’s disability pension...
85% of Families of People with Disabilities in Japan Anxious About Future “After Parents Are Gone”
The online survey was conducted by the Nippon Foundation last October targeting 2,500 family members of people with disabilities. Overall, 36.2% said...
Aichi Prefecture’s Disability Certificate “irregularities”
While assigned to the center, a 27-year-old male employee from the Toyokawa Public Health Center issued certificates without obtaining the required ap...
Chiba disability group home resident dies; former representative arrested
Police in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, plan to arrest a man in his 30s who formerly headed a disability group home on suspicion of assault resulting in...
Japan Lower House Election 2026: Barrier Free Japan’s ‘Two Yen Worth’ Analysis
As of the evening of February 9th, according to Jiji Press, Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party secured a historic landslide victory in Sunday's H...
LDP Wins Two-Thirds Majority, Sanseito and Team Mirai Gain Seats
Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party secured a two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives in Sunday’s general election, delivering a stron...
Japan Lower House Election 2026: LDP Certain to Win Majority
Japan's Liberal Democratic Party led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is set to win a majority in the House of Representatives in Sunday's election, a...
Less than a month until the Paralympics, Japan finalizes Milan–Cortina preparations
With less than a month to go until the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Games open on March 6, Japan is stepping up final preparations for a camp...
Ahead of Election JIP, Sanseito Call for Cap on Foreigners in Japan
The Japan Innovation Party and Sanseito have called for setting a cap on the percentage of foreign nationals in Japan’s population in their promises t...
Tokyo Court to Rule on Unification Church Dissolution Order on March 4
The Tokyo High Court will decide on March 4 whether to back a lower court’s order for the Unification Church to disband itself, informed sources said...
The Saga of Japan’s PM Takaichi’s Hand Continues
The Shukan Bunshun published: ”As early as Friday, January 30, two days before the broadcast, Takaichi’s camp had already approached Takayuki Kobayash...
Takaichi Cancels TV Debate due to Hand Injury
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi canceled her appearance in a television debate program Sunday morning as she injured her hand during the campai...
Yokohama Court Rules Disability-Based Dismissal After ‘Outing’ Illegal
While the court ordered the payment of ¥800,000 in consolation money, it did not recognize the claim for wages for the period during which the man was...
The Sounds of an Election in Japan
Supporters of Sanseito took to the streets of Kobe on Saturday 31st January 2026 to promote the party’s platform ahead of the upcoming election; as di...
Japan Compiles Statistics on Abuse by Psychiatric Hospital Workers for First Time
Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare announced on January 19th that in fiscal 2024 there were 6,258 reports and notifications received by pr...
52.6% of Companies in Japan Find Disability Employment Targets “Difficult” to Achieve
More than half of Japanese companies say they will struggle to meet the government’s higher disability employment quota, highlighting persistent chall...
Gunma Issues Guidance After Death of Disabled 17-Year-Old on Outing, Cites “delay in transporting to hospital”
Gunma Prefecture issued guidance to a social welfare corporation operating a disability support facility following an investigation into an accident i...
PM Takaichi Meets with Forced Sterilization Victims
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi mentioned the government's responsibility in her meeting with victims of forced sterilization conducted under t...
Judge Says of Ex-PM Abe Killer: “It cannot be said that his background had a great impact”
The man who killed former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was given an indefinite prison term on Wednesday for the fatal shooting with a homemade gun in the...
Life Sentence for Man Who Shot Former PM Shinzo Abe
Tetsuya Yamagami, who fatally shot former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, was sentenced to life imprisonment on Wednesday 21st January, three and a half ye...
Tokyo Opposes Cuts to Disability Welfare Fees
On December 23 last year, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government submitted a request to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and the Children and Fam...
Grok-generated Deepfake Images of Sign Language Literate Imperial Princess Kako Circulate Online
The South China Morning Post reported on January 13th that Grok-generated deepfake images of Japan’s Princess Kako, the niece of Emperor Naruhito, in...
Yokohama Court Hands Suspended Sentence to Man Over Growing Cannabis at Facility for Disabled Children
On January 13th, the Yokohama District Court held the sentencing hearing for a 31-year-old male defendant, a resident of Yamato City, charged with vio...
Barrier Free Japan Watched Black Box Diaries
Barrier Free Japan went to see 'Black Box Diaries' directed by Shiori Ito on January 13th, which had its theatrical release in cinemas in Japan a few...
A No News ‘Seijin no Hi’
No news on ‘Coming of Age Day!’ Although there is a report that ‘Sign Language Link’ will be provided by the Japan Foundation Telephone Relay Service,...
Medical Foundation Ends Disability Support Services in Miura City after Mayor’s Social Media Remarks
It was learned on January 6th that the medical corporation foundation “Aoyama-kai” has decided to end two disability consultation support services und...
After the Quake and a Cult-ish Encounter
A Shindo 5, Magnitude 6.2 earthquake occurred at 10:18AM on Tuesday 6th January 2026, the epicentre was Shimane prefecture and registered in most of w...
Hyogo Disability Rights Groups to Rally in Kobe Following Facility Violence Reports
People with disabilities in Hyogo Prefecture will hold an emergency rally in Kobe on January 24th to protest violence at residential care facilities a...
Japan PM Takaichi Aims for “Inclusive Society” at Barrier-Free Awards Ceremony
Speaking at an award ceremony recognizing contributions to the promotion of barrier-free and universal design initiatives on December 24th 2025, Prime...
Akemashite Omedetou & Good News from Nagasaki!
Akemashite Omedetou, Happy New Year from Japan! Nagasaki Prefecture reported a record 3,961 people with disabilities employed at private companies as...
Japan Pension Service Officials Discarded Doctors’ Disability Assessments
It was revealed on December 28th through interviews with stakeholders that the Japan Pension Service, which handles the administration of national dis...
Disability Abuse Cases Hit Record High in Japan in Fiscal Year 2024
Cases of abuse against people with disabilities in Japan reached a record high of 3,770 in fiscal 2024, the welfare ministry said Tuesday 23rd Decembe...
'Unboxing' Proposed New Japanese Visa Requirements on Boxing Day
Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party is considering adding Japanese language proficiency as a requirement for permanent residency for foreigners, s...
Two Years After Japan’s Anti-Disability Discrimination Law Revision, Mixed Progress Perceived on ‘Reasonable Accommodation’
Nearly two years after Japan’s revised Act for Eliminating Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities made the provision of “reasonable accommod...
Wishing you a Barrier Free Solstice from Japan!
Well, that’s more or less a wrap for 2025! There was a story on December 19th that Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare announced the result...
Japan Govt to set cap on number of ‘retained workers’ when calculating disability employment subsidies after excessive payments
It has been learned that the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) is making arrangements to set an upper limit on the number of “retained wor...