The statutory employment rate for people with disabilities in Japan was raised to 2.5% in April 2024, and a policy has been announced to make it 2.7% in fiscal 2026. UNIQLO’s parent company, ‘Fast Retailing’ employs 1,167 people, saying it has set a goal of “employing at least one person with disabilities per store.”
There is one week to go until the release of ‘Mark – A Call to Action’ on October 8th 2024! Mark Bookman was a historian, whose specialism was disability policy and related social movements in Japanese and global contexts. He studied Japanese Studies at University of Pennsylvania, and at the time of his death on December 16th 2022 he was Postdoctoral Fellow at The University of Tokyo. The film is directed by Ron Small.
The central Japan city of Obu, Aichi Prefecture, has created an orange-colored “dementia help mark” to make it easier for people to talk to dementia sufferers in need of support. The step was proposed by Ryuichi Takai, 74, who lost his father with dementia in a train accident. “I hope the help mark will become available nationwide to reduce as much as possible the number of people who have to feel the same kind of grief I did,” Takai said.
Founded in 1988 as a developer of motorcycle engines and parts, the company switched to the wheelchair business in 1995. It has a factory at its head office that manufactures wheelchairs for competitive sports.
The Disability Policy Promotion Council, which is made up of people with disabilities and academic experts, met in Niigata City to exchange opinions on the policies being implemented by the prefecture. Seventeen people attended the meeting of the Disability Policy Promotion Council, and the results of a questionnaire survey conducted by the prefecture last year targeting people with disabilities were announced. 373 people with disabilities living in the prefecture responded to the survey, and 115 people, or 30.8%, answered that they had been discriminated against or had a bad experience.
Through the body, the ministry hopes to back cooperation between local governments and transport business operators, in order to secure new means of transportation, including through the expansion of ride-hailing services in which individuals use private vehicles to offer paid rides. More specifically, the body will aim to create frameworks for joint taxi operations by multiple companies and for smooth taxi dispatch to train stations and nearby.
Japan on Tuesday defeated powerhouse South Korea on the first day of mixed gender boccia events at the Paris Paralympics to advance to the BC1\BC2 quarterfinals.
The team got off to a three-point lead in the three-a-side wheelchair event before the South Koreans briefly recovered to tie the match, only for Japan to score two more times to win 5-3 at South Paris Arena.
Japan won its first Paralympic gold medal in wheelchair rugby Monday after seeing off the United States 48-41 in Paris, with the nation adding two badminton gold on the day to make it five total at the ongoing games.
The Chunichi Shimbun reported that on August 30th, businessman Hiroyuki Nishimura (47), known as “Hiroyuki”, updated his X (formerly Twitter), giving his personal opinion regarding Nippon Television’s “24-hour TV”, which began its broadcast on August 31st.
Posting about the Paralympics, “Hiroyuki” said:
“If they’re going to deal with people with disabilities on 24-hour TV, they should broadcast the Paralympics…”, referring to the Paris Paralympics that began on the 28th.
The Japanese government will promote a “new perception of dementia” to offer hope to those living with the syndrome, according to a draft plan presented Monday. The plan, which incorporates opinions from dementia sufferers, sets four priority targets, including utilizing new insights and technologies, and calls on local governments to draw up their own plans for helping people with dementia. It is expected to be approved by the cabinet in autumn.
In 1977, large-scale protests were held over the public bus operator’s refusal to allow people in wheelchairs with cerebral palsy to board, which became known as the “Kawasaki bus struggle.” This became an impetus for the progression of rights for those with disabilities.
Barrier Free Japan