(LinkAsia: November 16, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
Japanese are going to have a new government by year's end. Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda announced a general election for December 16th. Here's Japanese public broadcaster NHK.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: November 14, 2012

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda:
The economy and energy will be part of the focus of the election. Our party will make a manifesto and play our position to voters. I'll explain it to the people after I dissolve the lower house on Friday.

Reporter:
The lead up to the decision played out on Wednesday in the Diet. Noda debated LDP leader Shinzo Abe. The prime minister said he was ready to dissolve the lower house if the LDP committed to reducing the number of seats in the chamber by next year. LDP executives met later and decided to accept Noda's proposal. Officials campaigning for the general election starts on December 4th. Japanese voters head to the polls less than two weeks later.

Woman on the street:
I can't believe they decided to hold an election. I want them to think about alternate people. There isn't any talent among the leaders.

Man on the street:
Lawmakers don't really care about the people. The prime minister changes like a revolving door. It's better to give the younger generation a chance at the leadership.

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Yul Kwon:
Opinion polls reflect that last comment. Noda's Democratic Party of Japan has only about 13 percent support, half of that of the Liberal Democrats. But the eye-catching figure is that fully 45 percent of Japanese say they don't support any party.

(LinkAsia: November 9, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
In the wake of Romney's defeat and Obama's victory, Japan's prime minister congratulated the president and stressed the importance of the Japan-US alliance for East Asian security and economic recovery. Here's Japanese public broadcaster NHK with more.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: November 7, 2012

Reporter:
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda has congratulated the US President and promised his co-operation. The foreign ministry will also welcome Obama's second term. Senior officials expect the US will maintain its international policies, including its focus on Asia. But problems remain in Japan-US ties. There is the stalled plan to relocate the Marine Corps' Futenma Station in Okinawa. The deployment of the US transport aircraft, the Osprey, is another sticking point. Defense officials have yet to convince local populations to accept training flights over their neighborhoods. In Okinawa, people are calling for stronger controls on US troops after the recent sexual assault of a woman by US servicemen.

On the economy, Japanese officials will be preparing a response should the US press Japan into joining free trade talks for the Trans-Pacific Partnership. There may be friction if the US insists Japan drop its tariffs.

But overall, Obama's win should be good for Japan. There's the chance of stronger US ties. With China relations gone sour over the Senkaku conflict, that's sure to be re-assuring.

Jun Oikawa. NHK World, Tokyo.

(LinkAsia: September 7, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
In Japan, public opinion is turning toward a complete "build-down" of nuclear power in the wake of the Fukushima-Daiichi meltdown. Polls show half the population wants to shut-down all the country's reactors within 15 years. Now, the government's put a price tag on a non-nuclear future. Japanese public broadcaster, NHK, reports that the industry minister says it'll cost 600 billion dollars.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: September 4, 2012

Reporter:
Yukio Edano spoke at a meeting of cabinet ministers in charge of energy policy. He said the cost of building renewable energy infrastructure would add up. He pointed to the expense of constructing generating facilities and power lines. Edano warned that immediately shutting down reactors would cut the power supply by 30 percent. He said going non-nuclear would weaken the countries bargaining position when buying oil and natural gas. The government has promised to draft a new energy policy. Ministers are working on scenarios for ending nuclear dependence while compensating for lost power generation. 

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Yul Kwon:
The disaster at Fukushima has rippled through other countries in Asia. South Koreans are nervous about building more reactors to add to the 21 already in operation. And in Taiwan, the government just held a big drill to show its readiness in case of an accident with one of the country's six reactors. Here's NHK with the story.

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Reporter:
Workers played out an emergency scenario at the nuclear complex near Taipei. They assumed a natural disaster knocked out all power at the plant and disabled its cooling system.  Firefighters sprayed water to practice bringing a fire under control. Then helicopters, military vehicles and patrol ships moved in.

Helicopter teams are measuring radiation levels around the nuclear power plant just as crews did following the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear accident. 

Participants practiced measuring radiation on land and sea too. The exercise follows a decision to expunge the area around the nuclear plant subject to radioactive monitoring.  Most reactors are located in the vicinity of densely populated Taipei, and the residents have been increasingly worried after the disaster in Fukushima. Officials at Taiwan's nuclear power regulator say they want to minimize the damage in the event of an accident.  They plan to reinforce the evacuation plans to ensure residents are safe. Naoki Makita, NHK World, Taipei.

(LinkAsia: August 31, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
Staying in Beijing, a diplomatic incident between Asia's top two powers. A few days ago, the Chinese capital was the scene of a minor attack involving Japan's Ambassador to China. This came after weeks of rising tensions over territorial disputes in the East China Sea. There've been anti-Japanese demonstrations all over China, and anti-Chinese demonstrations in Tokyo. But both governments are trying to calm things down. Japanese broadcaster NHK has this story.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: August 27, 2012

Reporter:
Two vehicles forced the ambassador's car to a stop on Monday evening. A man ripped the Japanese flag from the hood of the car, then fled. An embassy worker took photos. The embassy gave them to the Beijing Public Security Bureau. Japanese officials demanded that police investigate and arrest those responsible. Security Bureau officials responded by saying they'll work with other departments to look into the incident. Chinese officials say they regret what occurred, and they say they won't let it happen again.

Ambassador Uichiro Niwa made his first public comments since the incident. He said it's important to ensure the safety of Japanese nationals and those working for Japanese firms in China.

Man on the Street 1:
I support what happened, because it was a passionate, patriotic act aimed at protecting China's national interests.

Woman on the Street 1:
I can't agree with such an action. The act wasn't rational. I think they should think about how they would feel if the same thing happened to a Chinese ambassador.

Yul Kwon:
Chinese police say they have some suspects in custody and may charge them with damaging property.

(LinkAsia: August 31, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
Over in Japan, the concerns of anxious parents are finally being heard. Japan is conducting thyroid tests on more than four thousand children who live outside Fukushima prefecture. The test results will be compared with those of children living within the area surrounding last year’s nuclear disaster. According to Japanese broadcaster, NHK, the goal is to reassure parents in Fukushima. 

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: August 27, 2012

Reporter:
Healthcare professionals discovered lumps in the thyroid glands of 1 in 3 children in the prefecture. Radioactive iodine released from Fukushima-Daiichi can accumulate in the glands of children and raise their risk of developing cancer. So healthcare professionals are testing all children aged 18 or younger. They had checked 38,000 of them by the end of March. They didn't diagnose anyone with cancer, but they found lumps in the thyroid glands of 36% of those tested. Prefectural officials explained that lumps can be found in healthy children. Still, parents were concerned. Thyroid checks will now be conducted on 4500 children in three areas outside Fukushima. Researchers will compare the data with the results from Fukushima.