Tokyo Weekender - January 2016

MAY
Demolition of Tokyo’s old Olympic
Stadium, the centerpiece of
the 1964 Olympics, is completed.
A pair of Japanese melons from
Sapporo sell for $12,400. Butter
shortages increase as the government
weighs the idea of carrying
foreign imports. Japanese ad
giant Dentsu announces that, for
the first time in its 114-year history,
it has generated more profit
outside of Japan than inside. Notwithstanding
the continuing stories
about Japan’s supremely low
birth rates, Germany manages
to take the inauspicious crown,
with a tally of 8.2 children per
1,000 people, compared with 8.4
per 1,000 from Japan, according
to BDO and the Hamburg Institute
of International Economics.
JULY
After months of criticism, budget
cuts, and rising building costs,
architect Zaha Hadid’s design for
the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Stadium
is taken off the drawing board.
Following suit with Shibuya
Ward, Tokyo’s Setagaya Ward
announces that it will begin issuing
certificates that recognize the
marriage of same-sex couples.
Amid strong protests (a rarity for
Tokyo), the Lower House of Parliament
approves a controversial
set of bills that would expand the
capability of the Japanese military.
After a gutsy performance
that got them into the Finals of
the FIFA Women’s World Cup,
Nadeshiko go down 5–2 against
the US Women’s team. It’s the
final game for superstar Homare
Sawa, who has the most caps of
any player.
SEPTEMBER
Deluges from heavy rains lead
to flooding throughout Japan,
with the worst in Tochigi and
Ibaraki Prefectures. Parts of the
Ibaraki city of Joso is flooded
after the bordering Kinu River
washes over its banks. The new
logo for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics,
first unveiled in July, is scrapped
following plagiarism complaints,
and an eventual lawsuit, due to
its similarity to the mark used by
Belgium’s Théâtre de Liège. PR
firm Sunny Side Up purchases
Bulbous Cell Media Group, the
publisher of Tokyo Weekender.
Massive protests continue against
the controversial security bills
as they are debated in the Upper
House of Parliament; they are
finally passed on September 19.
NOVEMBER
A small bomb is detonated in a
bathroom at the controversial
Yasukuni Shrine. No injuries
were caused, and a South Korean
suspect is arrested the following
month. In the first tranche of
what might be one of the largest
IPOs in the world, the first shares
of Japan Post Holdings and its
two financial units go onto the
market. The privatization of the
institution was a major political
coup pushed forward by former
Prime Minister Koizumi. An artificial
intelligence called the Todai
Robot Project passes a standardized
university exam with higher
than average marks. It scores
10 percent higher than human
examinees on a test that included
questions in math, physics, English,
and history.
JUNE
Haruo Hayashizaki, a 71-year-old
pensioner, sets himself on fire
on a southbound Shinkansen. He
kills himself, 52-year-old Yoshiko
Kuwahara, and wounds 26. He
had complained to a neighbor
about the difficulties of living on
what he called a meager pension.
The Managing Officer and Chief
Communications Officer of
Toyota, American Julie Hamp, is
arrested for having Oxycodone
mailed to her without a prescription.
She had been appointed in
April. Volcanic eruptions in Hakone
close some areas of the popular
vacation spot near Tokyo.
An old law that made it illegal to
dance in clubs after midnight is
officially taken off the books.
AUGUST
After 53 years in business,
during which it played host to
world leaders and even found
its way into a James Bond novel,
the Hotel Okura Tokyo closes
its doors. A new 41-story Okura
Tokyo will be rebuilt in 2019. The
Yamaguchi-gumi, Japan’s largest
organized crime syndicate,
fractures into several different
gangs. Protests against the security
bills continue to rage while
the country recognizes the 70th
anniversary of the end of World
War II. In the “good luck with
that” department, a group of railway
companies, the operators of
Haneda and Narita airports, and
the Japan Elevator Association
declare an unofficial rule that all
escalator riders should simply
stand, hold onto the handrails,
and not try to pass or the right—
or the left.
OCTOBER
London mayor Boris Johnson
catches a fair amount of flak for
bowling over a 10-year-old boy
during a casual rugby match. Organizers
of the Tokyo Olympics
announce an open competition
for the design of the new Olympics
logo. In a questionable bid
to appeal to foreign tourists, the
district of Ebisu promotes a food
festival centered on whale meat.
In a news conference, UN envoy
Maud de Boer-Buquicchio makes
the controversial statement that
13 percent of all schoolgirls in
Japan engage in enjo kosai (“compensated
dating,” a practice that
can range from casual conversation
to paid sex). The following
month, de Boer-Buquicchio retracts
her statement under pressure
from Japanese government
officials and complaints that her
figure could not be corroborated
with any “official” reports. After
years of private deliberations,
the Trans-Pacific Partnership is
passed.
DECEMBER
The Tokyo 2020 Organizing
Committee selects a new design
for the Olympic stadium. Created
by architect Kengo Kuma,
the environmentally friendly
concept is already raising some
hackles for its similarity to Zaha
Hadid’s design. Somewhat slow
on the heels of the drone scare
in April, Tokyo police announce
the launch of a drone squad:
its unmanned aerial vehicles
are tasked with taking down
nuisance drones and equipped
with nets. The restaurant Tsuta
becomes the first ramen establishment
to earn a star in the
Michelin Guide.
www.tokyoweekender.com
www.tokyoweekender.com
DECEMBER
JANUARY 2016
2016