Author: Michael Gillan Peckitt

UK & CP born, living in Japan, blogging about disability
by Michael Gillan Peckitt October 28, 2025 Number of comments0
Abuse Elderly Japan Nursing Care

Amid abuse claims, 120,000 are forcibly institutionalized in Japan

Around 6:30 a.m. on Dec. 12, 2018, Minoru Eguchi and his wife Tomiko were busy preparing breakfast for residents of the nursing facility they were running in the city of Toyama in central Japan when four men suddenly entered. They placed Minoru in a wrestling hold and began dragging him outside. He screamed for his wife to call police. The men forced Minoru, who was in his late 70s, into a private ambulance and drove off. To his horror, Minoru was being forcibly institutionalized, a procedure applied to tens of thousands of Japanese in a complex system that critics say is rife with abuse and lacking independent oversight.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt October 27, 2025 Number of comments0
Assassination of Shinzo Abe Crime Japan Mental Health

Shinzo Abe’s Shooter Expected to Plead Guilty in Court on Tuesday

Tetsuya Yamagami is expected to plead guilty to murdering former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the first hearing of his trial at Nara District Court on Tuesday, more than three years after the fatal shooting in the western city of Nara in July 2022. The defense plans to claim that the damage Yamagami suffered from the controversial Unification Church religious group was behind the crime. On the other hand, the prosecution is expected to argue that the influence of the group on the incident should not be exaggerated and that the viciousness of the crime itself should be emphasized.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt October 27, 2025 1
Barrier Free Disability E-Sports Gaming Japan

Japanese Gaming Industry Moves to Improve Accessibility

The Japanese gaming industry is working to improve video game accessibility by developing equipment and systems that allow people with disabilities affecting their hands to play by using other parts of their body, such as their cheeks, feet and eyes. There were people playing games without using their hands at an area dedicated to accessibility at the Tokyo Game Show in the city of Chiba in September. Such an area was set up at the show for the first time.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt October 27, 2025 Number of comments0
Children Disability Japan Mental Health Podcast

Japan student suicides hit record high in 2024 despite overall decline [Podcast Episode]

Japan’s overall suicides fell to 20,320 in 2024, the second-lowest figure on record, but the number of schoolchildren who took their own lives rose to a record 529, government data showed. Suicides among junior high school students reached their highest level since statistics began in 1980, with school-related problems cited as the leading cause. The 2025 White Paper on Suicide Prevention noted that overdoses, including those involving over-the-counter drugs, were a major factor among young people, prompting plans to tighten restrictions on drug sales to minors. Despite the nationwide decline, experts warn the record student suicides reflect deepening mental health and social issues among Japan’s youth.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt October 26, 2025 Number of comments0
Disability Imperial Family Japan Sports

Japan Crown Prince, Crown Princess Attend Disabled Sports Festival

Japan’s Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko attended the opening ceremony of this year’s national sports festival for people with disabilities, held in the city of Hikone, Shiga Prefecture, western Japan. In an address, the Crown Prince encouraged athletes who gathered from all over Japan, volunteers and local residents to deepen exchanges, create a lot of memories and develop good relations.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt October 25, 2025 1
Children Disability Japan Mental Health

Japan student suicides hit record high in 2024 despite overall decline

Japan’s overall suicides fell to 20,320 in 2024, the second-lowest figure on record, but the number of schoolchildren who took their own lives rose to a record 529, government data showed. Suicides among junior high school students reached their highest level since statistics began in 1980, with school-related problems cited as the leading cause. The 2025 White Paper on Suicide Prevention noted that overdoses, including those involving over-the-counter drugs, were a major factor among young people, prompting plans to tighten restrictions on drug sales to minors. Despite the nationwide decline, experts warn the record student suicides reflect deepening mental health and social issues among Japan’s youth.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt October 25, 2025 1
Disability Japan Mental Health

Record 529 Students Committed Suicide in Japan in 2024

The number of elementary, junior high and high school students in Japan who committed suicide in 2024 stood at 529, up by 16 from the preceding year and the highest since data became available in 1980, a government report showed Friday.  According to the 2025 white paper on suicide prevention adopted at a cabinet meeting the same day, overall suicides in the nation fell by 1,517 from 2023 to 20,320, the second lowest since statistics began in 1978.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt October 24, 2025 Number of comments0
Disability Elderly Japan Podcast Politics Sanae Takaichi

New Cabinet under Takaichi omits dedicated minister for elderly, disabled [Podcast Episode]

As of Tuesday 21st October, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s new Cabinet appointed Kenichiro Ueno as health, labor and welfare minister and Hitoshi Kikawada as minister for children and population issues, but did not include a minister specifically in charge of elderly or disabled affairs, leaving those areas under the health ministry’s broader welfare framework.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt October 23, 2025 Number of comments0
Disability Elderly Japan Medical Nursing Care Politics

Balancing Medical Services, Costs a Major Challenge for Takaichi

New Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi faces a difficult challenge in maintaining the quality of the country’s medical and nursing care services while lowering related expenses, amid an aging population. Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party), the new coalition partner to Takaichi’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, has called for lowering social security premiums for working people. But this requires reforms that are expected to increase the burden on society, including the elderly, as a whole. Since medical and nursing care services are offered at fixed prices set by the state, many service providers are struggling to cope with rapid inflation and are operating at a loss.