Japan

Tue

Apr

2015

Japan Looks to End Taboo on Military Research at Universities

New translation available

Submitted by antimili-youth

Government wants to tap best scientists to bolster defenses

By Eric Pfanner and Chieko Tsuneoka / The Wall Street...

Wed

Nov

Researching Pop Culture and Militarism: What is Militarism? What is Militarization?

Submitted by gdghirardi on Wed, 22/11/2017 - 11:14

Selene Rivas - November 22, 2017

In the previous articles, we talked about how normal is defined differently in both space and time; just as Japan and Argentina might have two different ideas of what constitutes as “normal”, so does 18th century and 21st century United States. We also talked about normalization, or how things become more (or less) socially accepted over time. Finally, we introduced the concept of “militarism”. In this article, we’ll attempt to define it as concisely as possible, as well as give examples of militarism in Japan.

The following statement is found in page 92 of the 1996 edition of Naval Science 1, a textbook used for High School JROTC courses.

Mon

Sep

Japan Military Fair Sees Record Number of Gamers, Recruiters

Submitted by hannah on Mon, 01/09/2014 - 16:11

A record number of Japanese flocked to a trade show for military paraphernalia and gaming that attracted recruiters for the country’s Self-Defense Forces, the latest sign Japan is shaking off its postwar pacifism.

About 4,000 people, including a growing number of women, attended the March 30 “Victory Show” and related “ASGK Festival” in Tokyo to shop for military uniforms and model weapons, take target practice with air guns and show off their prowess at the World of Tanks video game. That’s the largest crowd since the now-quarterly event started in 1981, when it drew about 80 people, organizers said.

“About 10 times more people come to our booth here than at ordinary venues,” said Nobuaki Sato, one of four SDF members from the northern prefecture of Iwate staffing the recruitment stall. “You can feel the interest.”

Tue

May

Japan increases military recruitment with drawings of manga girls

Submitted by hannah on Tue, 06/05/2014 - 13:05

The objective: to obtain new recruits. And if to get them you have to resort to anime, you use it. The Okayama prefecture Cooperation Office, in the south west of Japan, has promoted since last July military enlistment with drawings of three manga girls by the artist Huikane Shimada. The experiment has been a success, considering that new recruits have increased by 20%, according to the Sankei Journal this Tuesday.

Japan increases military recruitment with drawings of manga girls

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Countering Military Recruitment

WRI's new booklet, Countering Military Recruitment: Learning the lessons of counter-recruitment campaigns internationally, is out now. The booklet includes examples of campaigning against youth militarisation across different countries with the contribution of grassroot activists.

You can order a paperback version here.