Why are the stories of Filipino victims during Japan’s WWII occupation nearly invisible in Japanese media? This article uncovers a striking gap in war memory, and why acknowledging it matters for history, representation, and international relations. apjjf.org/2026/3/arroyo

Can news headlines really measure diplomacy? This study uses big data (GDELT) to track Japan and South Korea cooperation, and finds media reflects major events, but misses nuance when conflict and cooperation overlap. apjjf.org/2026/3/schultz

Using the News to Measure International Cooperation: Evaluating Japan–ROK Government Cooperation Using the GDELT 2.0 Event Database - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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Inside a hikikomori rehabilitation center: this ethnographic study examines how people who have withdrawn from society work to rebuild identity, relationships, and belonging in Japan. A powerful look at the human side of social isolation. apjjf.org/2026/3/julian

Withdrawal and Belonging: Ethnographic Insights from a Hikikomori Rehabilitation Center in Japan - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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Can culture heal political divides? This study argues that growing cultural exchange, especially among younger generations, is helping transform Korea–Japan relations and build a more resilient future for bilateral cooperation. apjjf.org/2026/3/oh-chun

Cultural Connectivity and the Sustainability of Korea–Japan Cooperation - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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New in Asia-Pacific Journal: A contested oral tradition in Jindo, South Korea, "Waedeoksan," honors Japanese soldiers from 1597 but faces debate over its historical accuracy and role in Korea-Japan reconciliation. apjjf.org/2026/3/zoh

The Controversial Oral Tradition Called “Waedeoksan” in Jindo, South Korea - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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New in Asia-Pacific Journal: A powerful analysis of the “Statue of Peace” and how attempts to erase contested history often make it return even stronger. apjjf.org/2026/2/kwak

Trick or treat: confronting the hauntological cycle of de- and re-commemorating the statue of peace - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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New in Asia-Pacific Journal: An eye-opening look at military comfort stations and comfort women through Japanese Imperial Army daily records, revealing official practices and realities behind the system. apjjf.org/2026/2/ha

“Military Comfort Stations” and “Military Comfort Women” as Recorded in Official Imperial Army Daily Records - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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These are the final days for our Glen S. Fukushima Matching Fund Challenge. Donate by February 28 and your contribution is doubled! apjjf.org/fundraising-... Support open-access publishing of in-depth analysis of forces shaping the Asia-Pacific and the world. Donate here: apjjf.org/support-us

Support Us - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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How can fiction deepen our understanding of Okinawa’s base politics? Steve Rabson, contributing editor at APJJF, interviews journalist and novelist Sarah Z. Sleeper about Gaijin, her 2020 novel set in 1990s Okinawa. #Okinawa #USJapanAlliance #MilitaryBases #Literature apjjf.org/2026/2/sleep...

What does the rise of independents mean for party politics in Japan? Junichi Hasegawa argues that the 2024 Tokyo gubernatorial election reflected a longer trend showing growing distrust of established parties since the 1990s. apjjf.org/2026/2/haseg... #JapanPolitics #TokyoElection #PartyPolitics

Can popular anime shape how we think about disaster? Timo Thelen examines Suzume no Tojimari (2022), showing how mythology, memory of 3/11, and national identity intersect to individualize responsibility for earthquakes and social decline. #Anime #Fukushima #Earthquake apjjf.org/2026/2/thelen

How did migration become a political issue in Japan’s 2025 election? In this article Maximilian Xavier Rehm explains how migration rose to political salience in Japan and what this shift means for the future of migration politics. #JapanesePolitics #PoliticsOfMigration apjjf.org/2026/2/rehm

How do games shape the way people experience public policy during crises? Ayaka Löschke analyzes the 2020 boom of Japan’s “Mitsu Desu” game, where players act as Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike to enforce social distancing. apjjf.org/2026/1/loschke #VideoGame #COVID19 #SocialDistancingPolicy #Japan

Is Japan a cautionary tale or a fetishized object that lets scholars and policymakers avoid hard questions? Paul Christensen explores this dynamic as part of our ongoing series, Critical Asian Scholarship in a Time of Global Crisis. Read the full article here: apjjf.org/2026/1/chris... #Japan

Why are young people increasingly skeptical of media outrage? In this article, journalist Waka Ikeda examines the gender and cultural politics of Japan’s 2025 election as a case study in institutional credibility crisis. #SanaeTakaichi #JapaneseElections #GenderAndPolitics apjjf.org/2026/1/ikeda

How much did Japan’s postwar bureaucracy really change? Daniel Wollnik challenges narratives of institutional inertia, tracing how U.S.–Japanese negotiations reshaped the Ministry of Communications and Japan's postwar state. #USJapanRelations #bureaucracy #PostWarJapan apjjf.org/2026/1/wollnik

APJJF editorial board member Jenny Chan reflects on her own scholarly journey and highlights how APJJF serves as a platform for scholarly community, critical inquiry, and independent open-access publishing. Read the full piece in Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus: apjjf.org/2025/12/chan #APJJF

Do criminal suspects in Japan have "a right to remain silent" in practice? David T. Johnson tackles this question and ongoing debates about legal reform in Japan. Read the full piece in Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus: www.cambridge.org/core/journal... #Japan #APJJF #legalstudies

Support open-access publishing of critical analysis of the forces shaping the Asia-Pacific and the world. Glen S. Fukushima Matching Fund Challenge Double your impact: donate $50 and it becomes $100 if you donate by February 28, 2026. apjjf.org/fundraising-... #APJJF #openaccess

Recent Developments, Plans for the Future, and a Request for Support - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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Can civic organizations play the multi-faceted role of promoting multi-ethnic nationhood at home and sovereign statehood abroad? Michiko Suzuki explores how the Manchukuo Red Cross Society was used to pursue these goals in the context of Japanese imperialism. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

Support open-access publishing of critical analysis of the forces shaping the Asia-Pacific and the world. Glen S. Fukushima Matching Fund Challenge Double your impact: donate $50 and it becomes $100 if you donate by February 28, 2026. apjjf.org/fundraising-... #APJJF #openaccess

Recent Developments, Plans for the Future, and a Request for Support - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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Atsushi Hagihara & Hasan Topacoglu explore culture practices and generational change in Hyogo Prefecture Okinawan Association. Using surveys and interviews, they highlight how Okinawans navigate migration challenges while preserving their heritage. www.cambridge.org/core/journal... #Okinawa #APJJF

How is public interest litigation evolving in Japan? Lawrence Repeta examines CALL4, a bilingual platform highlighting public interest cases and crowdfunding litigation costs. www.cambridge.org/core/journal... #Japan #Law #PublicInterest #APJJF

How does Ishimaru Shinji fit into Japan’s evolving populist landscape? In this article Jack Northey draws on the cases of Hashimoto Tōru and Koike Yuriko and identifies a “populist playbook” shaped by Japan’s neoliberal era. www.cambridge.org/core/journal... #Japan #Politics #Populism #APJJF

How do we understand Japan’s wartime past through the words and silences of its emperor? David McNeill speaks with historian Ryuichi Kitano about his new book, 側近が見た昭和天皇 (The Showa Emperor as Seen by His Close Aides). #Japan #History #APJJF apjjf.org/2025/10/mcne...

“The Showa Emperor repeatedly advocated for the necessity of rearmament”: Interview with Ryuichi Kitano by David McNeill - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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Can translation become a tool for historical revisionism? In this essay, Harumi Osaki examines how sympathetic translators and editors reshaped The Ōshima Memos (1942–45), allowing for wartime ideology to persist under the guise of reinterpretation. apjjf.org/2025/10/osaki #Japan #History #APJJF

Commentary, Translation, and Historical Revisionism: On The Ōshima Memos - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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How can film confront the silences surrounding workplace harassment? In conversation with art historian Asato Ikeda, filmmaker Atsushi Funahashi discusses his 2022 film Company Retreat, reflecting on trauma and solidarity in Japan’s workplaces. apjjf.org/2025/9/ikeda #Film #Gender #Japan #APJJF

Film Director Atsushi Funahashi in Conversation with Asato Ikeda: Company Retreat (2022), Sexual Violence, and the Unconscious of the Time - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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What did “compulsory education” mean for children excluded from it? In this powerful article, Gregory S. Johnson traces the history of the Kōmei School, Japan’s first public school for children with physical disabilities. www.cambridge.org/core/journal... #DisabilityHistory #Japan #Education #APJJF

How did Trump change US engagement with the UN? In this interview with Mark Selden, Lawrence S. Wittner examines the historical context and what it means for US-China relations and global influence. #Trump #USPolitics #UnitedNations #USChina #ForeignPolicy #GlobalAffairs apjjf.org/2025/10/witt...

Trump’s Assault on the United Nations and the Decline of American Global Influence - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

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In this important article, Dorothy Finan and Kaori Suetomi examine efforts to introduce child safeguarding frameworks in Japan’s entertainment industries in the wake of the Johnny Kitagawa abuse scandal. www.cambridge.org/core/journal... #Japan #ChildSafeguarding #EntertainmentIndustry #APJJF