Disability News Japan
Channel Details
Disability News Japan
Hosted by Michael Gillan Peckitt, who resides in Kobe, Japan, the Disability News Japan Podcast is News website 'Barrier Free Japan's podcast, a weekly digest of some of the news about disability in Japan in audio form. New episodes will usually be available every Friday at 6am Japan Time.
Recent Episodes
545 episodes
Life Sentence for Man Who Shot Former PM Shinzo Abe
Tetsuya Yamagami, who fatally shot former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, was sentenced to life imprisonment on Wednesday 21st January, three and a half ye...
Tokyo Opposes Cuts to Disability Welfare Fees
On December 23 last year, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government submitted a request to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and the Children and Fam...
Grok-generated Deepfake Images of Sign Language Literate Imperial Princess Kako Circulate Online
The South China Morning Post reported on January 13th that Grok-generated deepfake images of Japan’s Princess Kako, the niece of Emperor Naruhito, in...
Yokohama Court Hands Suspended Sentence to Man Over Growing Cannabis at Facility for Disabled Children
On January 13th, the Yokohama District Court held the sentencing hearing for a 31-year-old male defendant, a resident of Yamato City, charged with vio...
Barrier Free Japan Watched Black Box Diaries
Barrier Free Japan went to see 'Black Box Diaries' directed by Shiori Ito on January 13th, which had its theatrical release in cinemas in Japan a few...
A No News ‘Seijin no Hi’
No news on ‘Coming of Age Day!’ Although there is a report that ‘Sign Language Link’ will be provided by the Japan Foundation Telephone Relay Service,...
Medical Foundation Ends Disability Support Services in Miura City after Mayor’s Social Media Remarks
It was learned on January 6th that the medical corporation foundation “Aoyama-kai” has decided to end two disability consultation support services und...
After the Quake and a Cult-ish Encounter
A Shindo 5, Magnitude 6.2 earthquake occurred at 10:18AM on Tuesday 6th January 2026, the epicentre was Shimane prefecture and registered in most of w...
Hyogo Disability Rights Groups to Rally in Kobe Following Facility Violence Reports
People with disabilities in Hyogo Prefecture will hold an emergency rally in Kobe on January 24th to protest violence at residential care facilities a...
Japan PM Takaichi Aims for “Inclusive Society” at Barrier-Free Awards Ceremony
Speaking at an award ceremony recognizing contributions to the promotion of barrier-free and universal design initiatives on December 24th 2025, Prime...
Akemashite Omedetou & Good News from Nagasaki!
Akemashite Omedetou, Happy New Year from Japan! Nagasaki Prefecture reported a record 3,961 people with disabilities employed at private companies as...
Japan Pension Service Officials Discarded Doctors’ Disability Assessments
It was revealed on December 28th through interviews with stakeholders that the Japan Pension Service, which handles the administration of national dis...
Disability Abuse Cases Hit Record High in Japan in Fiscal Year 2024
Cases of abuse against people with disabilities in Japan reached a record high of 3,770 in fiscal 2024, the welfare ministry said Tuesday 23rd Decembe...
'Unboxing' Proposed New Japanese Visa Requirements on Boxing Day
Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party is considering adding Japanese language proficiency as a requirement for permanent residency for foreigners, s...
Two Years After Japan’s Anti-Disability Discrimination Law Revision, Mixed Progress Perceived on ‘Reasonable Accommodation’
Nearly two years after Japan’s revised Act for Eliminating Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities made the provision of “reasonable accommod...
Wishing you a Barrier Free Solstice from Japan!
Well, that’s more or less a wrap for 2025! There was a story on December 19th that Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare announced the result...
Japan Govt to set cap on number of ‘retained workers’ when calculating disability employment subsidies after excessive payments
It has been learned that the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) is making arrangements to set an upper limit on the number of “retained wor...
Third Anniversary of Disability Studies Scholar and Japanologist Dr. Mark Bookman’s Death
Three years have now passed since the disability studies scholar and Japanologist Mark Bookman (1991 – 2022) died on December 16th 2022. At the time o...
Man Disabled in Bear Cull Shooting; Yamagata Town Seeks Damages from Hunter
In April two years ago, in Oguni Town, Yamagata Prefecture, a bullet fired by a hunter engaged in a bear extermination operation struck another man in...
On Loneliness and Isolation in Japan
Almost half of Japanese nationals feel familiar with loneliness and isolation, a government survey showed Friday. According to the Cabinet Office’s fi...
Another ‘Jishin-ful’ Day After 6.7M Quake Off the Coast of Aomori, Tsunami Advisories Issued
Around 11:44 a.m. on Friday December 12th, a quake with an estimated magnitude of 6.7 occurred off Aomori, logging 4 on Japan's seismic intensity scal...
Half of the People with Disabilities Living in Facilities Sent to “out-of-Tokyo facilities”
Aikawa Shinseien, a remote facility in Akita Prefecture housing nearly 90 intellectually disabled people sent from Tokyo, illustrates the long-standin...
‘Jishin Bells’: Powerful Quake Hits Northeastern Japan
A powerful earthquake mainly struck Japan's Tohoku northeastern region, including Aomori Prefecture, on Monday night, measuring up to upper 6, the sec...
Japan Eyes Ban on Gene-Edited Babies
Japan plans to introduce a ban with penalties on implanting a genome-edited fertilized human egg into the womb of a human or another animal amid conce...
Shinzo Abe Shooting Trial: Defendant Explains Motive, Akie Abe Attends Hearing
The trial of Tetsuya Yamagami, accused of killing former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022, continued this week at the Nara District Court with detail...
Tokyo Annual 'Disability Week' to be Held December 3rd to 9th
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government announced on December 1st that it will hold its annual ‘Disability Week’ from December 3rd to 9th. The aim of ‘Disab...
University students with developmental disabilities increase in Japan
The number of university students with developmental disabilities in Japan is on the rise, with their conditions often identified at a late stage thro...
Tokyo Deaflympics Venue Attendance Far Exceeded Expectations
The organizers of the Tokyo 2025 Deaflympics have revealed that the number of people who visited the event’s venues totaled about 280,000, far more th...
Japan’s Women Win Basketball, Volleyball Gold As Tokyo Deaflympics Ends
As the Tokyo Deaflympics nears its conclusion, the Japanese women’s basketball and volleyball teams won gold medals at the Tokyo Deaflympics on Tuesda...
Record 31 Medals for Japan at Tokyo Deaflympics; Crown Princess Kiko and Hisahito Attend Event
Japan’s medal haul at the Tokyo 2025 Deaflympics reached a record 31 on Sunday, surpassing the previous national best of 30 set at the 2022 Games in C...
![Japan to raise visa fees for foreign residents next fiscal year [Podcast Episode]](https://i1.sndcdn.com/artworks-tyKgdbvWqAfDOQeI-Fw1ZTQ-t3000x3000.png)
Japan to raise visa fees for foreign residents next fiscal year [Podcast Episode]
Japan will substantially hike visa issuance fees for foreign residents in the next fiscal year and utilize the additional revenue to strengthen polici...
Japan Picks Up Five Judo Bronzes, Gold in Men’s 400-metres at Tokyo Deaflympics
Japan’s first judo podium came on Nov. 14, when Kazuma Gamo secured bronze in the men’s 73-kilogram division. The remaining medals followed on Nov. 17...
Osaka Woman With Intellectual Disability Refused UR Housing, Raising Rights Questions
A 60-year-old woman with an intellectual disability in Hirakata, Osaka Prefecture, was denied a UR rental apartment despite having spent more than a y...
Ex-Policeman Nabbed over Defrauding Person with Dementia, Tokyo Deaflympics Begins
The former officer, Masato Takeuchi, and another suspect arrested over the case, 55-year-old company employee Hiromi Ishichi, are apparently denying t...
Tokyo Gears Up for Japan’s First Deaflympics with Push for Accessibility
Japan is preparing to host its first-ever Deaflympics from Nov. 15 to 26, with events held in Tokyo, Shizuoka, and Fukushima, and Narita airport stepp...
Shiga care worker for disabled arrested with knife will not be prosecuted
The Hikone branch of the Otsu District Public Prosecutors Office announced on the 10th that it has decided not to indict a 70-year-old male care worke...
Osaka Firm Suspected of Tens of Billions in Improper Disability Work Subsidies
A welfare-related company based in Osaka City is suspected of having improperly received tens of billions of yen in disability employment support subs...
McDonald’s Japan to stop using paper straws
I am not a climate change denier, nor am I indifferent to environmental issues, but these types of cups are really difficult for me to use as a person...
Care Facility Worker Suspected of Abusing Disabled Residents, 15 Possible Victims, Says He “Couldn’t Control His Frustration”
A 43-year-old care worker at a facility for people with disabilities in Higashiomi, Shiga Prefecture, has been arrested for indecent assault and is su...
Tokyo couple denied housing after disabilities revealed
A couple in Tokyo were all set to move into a new home when a real estate agent abruptly relayed a message from the apartment management company. “We...