Author: Michael Gillan Peckitt

UK & CP born, living in Japan, blogging about disability
by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 29, 2026 Number of comments0
Children Crime Disability Japan Pregnancy

Prosecutors Amend Indictment in Fatal Crash Involving Pregnant Woman, Stops Short of Injury Charge for Fetus

At the second hearing on Jan. 26 at the Ichinomiya branch of the Nagoya District Court, prosecutors amended the indictment in a fatal traffic accident case involving a pregnant woman to include harm caused to the fetus, while declining to apply a separate charge of negligent driving resulting in injury to the child. The husband of the victim, Yudai Togitani, who lost his wife and whose daughter was left with severe disabilities, said the grief of losing his wife and the anger over having his daughter’s future taken away have remained unchanged since the accident, adding that he could not accept that his daughter was not treated as a victim when her name was initially omitted from the indictment.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 29, 2026 Number of comments0
Abuse Disability Hospitals Japan Mental Health

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 prefectures and designated cities concerning alleged abuse of persons with disabilities by staff at psychiatric hospitals. Of these, 260 cases were officially recognized as abuse.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 28, 2026 Number of comments0
Abuse Care Crime Disability Japan

Ex-Employee Arrested for Multiple Assaults at Saitama Disability Facility

A former employee of a facility for people with disabilities in Koshigaya, Saitama Prefecture, has been arrested on suspicion of repeatedly assaulting and injuring a male resident in his 20s with a disability on three occasions between 2021 and 2024, police said. Investigators allege the 42-year-old man initially told colleagues the injuries were the result of an accident, but the case came to light after a relative of another resident contacted police in January last year. Authorities have since identified injuries among other residents from the same period that may have been caused by assaults, raising concerns the suspect may have routinely abused multiple residents, and police are continuing their investigation.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 28, 2026 Number of comments0
Barrier Free Disability Discrimination Employment Japan Podcast

52.6% of Companies in Japan Find Disability Employment Targets “Difficult” to Achieve [Podcast Episode]

More than half of Japanese companies say they will struggle to meet the government’s higher disability employment quota, highlighting persistent challenges in workplace readiness and internal awareness. A survey by disability employment support firm Persol Diversity found that 52.6% of companies view achieving the revised statutory quota of 2.7%, which takes effect in July, as difficult, underscoring gaps in organizational understanding and the need for improved accommodations and support systems for workers with disabilities.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 27, 2026 Number of comments0
Crime Disability Japan

75-Year-Old Tottori Man Sentenced to Three Years and Two Months For Multiple Hit-and-Run Incidents, Leaving 9-Year-Old Disabled

In explaining the reasons for the sentence, the court first referred to the incident on March 31, 2025, in which the defendant caused serious injury to a 9-year-old child through negligent driving. The 9-year-old child who was injured suffered “diffuse axonal injury, traumatic subarachnoid hemorrhage, acute subdural hematoma, swallowing dysfunction, and quadriplegia, among other injuries, and at one point was in a life-threatening condition.” Even now, “the function of both the upper and lower limbs remains severely restricted, nutrition is almost entirely provided through tube feeding, the child can barely speak, and requires assistance for most daily activities.” The prospect of future recovery remains uncertain.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 27, 2026 Number of comments0
Barrier Free Disability Employment Japan

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 challenges in workplace readiness and internal awareness. A survey by disability employment support firm Persol Diversity found that 52.6% of companies view achieving the revised statutory quota of 2.7%, which takes effect in July, as difficult, underscoring gaps in organizational understanding and the need for improved accommodations and support systems for workers with disabilities.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 27, 2026 Number of comments0
Care Disability Japan Podcast Welfare

Gunma Issues Guidance After Death of Disabled 17-Year-Old on Outing, Cites “delay in transporting to hospital” [Podcast Episode]

Gunma Prefecture issued guidance to a social welfare corporation operating a disability support facility following an investigation into an accident in which a male high school student (17 at the time), who attended a disability support facility in Ōra Town, Gunma Prefecture, fell ill and died during a sea swimming outing. The prefecture cited a “delay in transporting him to a hospital” as a contributing factor and pointed out that countermeasures against aspiration of seawater had not been discussed, stating that “risk management was not in place.”

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 26, 2026 Number of comments0
Crime Japan Sexual Assault

Final Settlement Reached in GSDF Sexual Abuse Case

A former member of Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force reached a final settlement on Monday in a damages lawsuit she filed over sexual assault by five then GSDF members. The settlement, reached at Yokohama District Court, includes the government’s payment of a total of 1.6 million yen to the plaintiff, Rina Gonoi, 26, but not an apology or payment from the five former GSDF members.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 26, 2026 Number of comments0
Care Disability Japan Welfare

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 in which a male high school student (17 at the time), who attended a disability support facility in Ōra Town, Gunma Prefecture, fell ill and died during a sea swimming outing. The prefecture cited a “delay in transporting him to a hospital” as a contributing factor and pointed out that countermeasures against aspiration of seawater had not been discussed, stating that “risk management was not in place.”

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 26, 2026 Number of comments0
Disability Eugenics Forced Sterilization Japan Podcast Politics Sanae Takaichi

Takaichi Meets with Forced Sterilization Victims [Podcast Episode]

“The government’s responsibility is extremely grave,” Takaichi said when she met with the victims at the prime minister’s office on Wednesday.   A law on compensation to forced sterilization victims took effect on Jan. 17 last year following a Supreme Court ruling that recognized the state’s liability. While victims are estimated to include around 25,000 individuals subjected to sterilization procedures and about 59,000 who had abortions, the number of cases certified under the law remained at just 1,560 as of the end of November last year.