The family of a pregnant woman who died after being hit by a vehicle in Ichinomiya, Aichi Prefecture, is urging prosecutors to recognize her newborn daughter Hinami, who was left severely disabled due to the accident, as a legal victim.
The family of a pregnant woman who died after being hit by a vehicle in Ichinomiya, Aichi Prefecture, is urging prosecutors to recognize her newborn daughter—left severely disabled due to the accident—as a legal victim. Sayaka Togitani, 31, died two days after the May 21 incident, and her daughter Hinami was delivered via emergency cesarean section but suffered brain damage from fetal hypoxia. While the 50-year-old driver has been indicted for negligent driving resulting in Sayaka’s death, no charges have been filed in relation to Hinami, as she was a fetus at the time under Japan’s Criminal Code. On September 2, Sayaka’s husband, Yudai, submitted a petition with over 112,000 signatures calling for prosecutors to also pursue charges for the injury to Hinami. At the driver’s first court hearing the same day, they admitted guilt and apologized, while Yudai emphasized the importance of acknowledging his daughter’s life and suffering.
An after-school day service facility for children with disabilities in Hiroshima City has been penalized after staff, including the operator’s representative, were found to routinely use wrestling moves, shouting, and hitting as a supposed form of “communication” with children—behavior described by a former employee as a daily occurrence and treated as “part of a game.” Hiroshima City has suspended the operator Watanohana for three months.
In Hiroshima City, at a support facility that takes care of children with disabilities, abuse such as hitting a child on the buttocks was found to have occurred. In addition, improper receipt of benefit payments was confirmed. As a result, the city has taken administrative action, including revoking the operator’s authorization.
In Hiroshima City, at a support facility that takes care of children with disabilities, abuse such as hitting a child on the buttocks was found to have occurred. In addition, improper receipt of benefit payments was confirmed. As a result, the city has taken administrative action, including revoking the operator’s authorization.
Japan has provided rehabilitation equipment to Ukraine to help support children with disabilities. More than 130 items are being delivered to the capital city of Kyiv through the Japan International Cooperation Agency. The gear includes electric wheelchairs, and robot suits, which help wearers move their lower limbs with less effort. A handover ceremony was held at the rehabilitation center for children with disabilities in Kyiv on Tuesday 22nd July. Some children tried out the devices.
The number of patients with fifth disease, or slapped cheek syndrome, in Japan hit the highest level in some 26 years in the week that ended June 22, according to data compiled by the Japan Institute for Health Security.The number of fifth disease patients reported by some 2,000 medical institutions nationwide stood at 2.53 per institution in the week, the highest since the current counting method was adopted in 1999. In the following week through June 29, the figure came to 2.13, the third highest.Japan’s health ministry is urging pregnant women to consult medical institutions if they experience symptoms, as infections can lead to miscarriages.
Around 80 percent of struggling families with children in Japan said that their household finances are much worse than last year, a survey by nonprofit group Kidsdoor has shown. The survey was conducted online from late May to early June, covering 3,227 households including single-parent families and others registered for a Kidsdoor aid project. Valid responses came from 2,033 households, or 63 percent.
Sohei Kamiya, leader of the populist minor opposition Sanseito party, has courted controversy ahead of Japan’s House of Councillors election with his comment that “only young women can have children.” “Only young women can have children”, Sanseito leader, Kamiya said. “When I say that, some people call it discrimination. But it’s not. It’s reality. Men and, sorry to say, older women cannot have children,” Kamiya said during a stump speech in Tokyo on Thursday.
Japan’s Children and Families Agency will hold an in-person session next month to hear the opinions of junior high and high school students on a planned system for checking whether teachers have sexual crime records. Over the so-called Japanese version of Britain’s Disclosure and Barring Service, the government set up a panel of experts in April to discuss its details, and plans to draw up related ordinances and guidelines later this year and implement them on Dec. 25, 2026. Around 12 students will be selected by lottery from volunteers to participate in the upcoming hearing session at the agency.
Barrier Free Japan