Kenji Fujimoto was the personal chef to North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il for many years. In this exclusive interview, he talks about his experiences under the regime and gives a unique insight into who could be the Dear Leader's successor.
Japanese workers are notoriously reluctant to take time off work after the birth of a child. But the law in Japan is changing and now fathers who have taken time off during the first eight weeks of their child's birth can take leave for a second time: a revolutionary move in a country where people find it hard to take time off, even for a holiday. These new laws are seen as essential for the future of a country that has a rapidly ageing population.
In South Korea, a shocking case of high-tech neglect was recently tried in court: a young couple racked up incessant hours raising a virtual child at an internet gaming cafe, even as their own flesh and blood 3-month-old infant gradually starved to death. The incident has exposed a darker side of South Korea’s highly developed broadband infrastructure: internet addiction.
An unusual trial got underway in Japan this Friday: in a case that has stunned the luxury sector, a 36-year-old Japanese woman is suing Italian luxury goods company Prada on the grounds that she was fired because she wasn't attractive enough.
The Japanese cannot get enough of this endangered fish. Despite international pressure, Japan has managed to hold off a ban on bluefin tuna fishing. From the markets of Tokyo to the traditional fishing ports, France 24 investigates a country torn between ecological concerns and the tastes of its consumers.
School’s out, military and combat training are in: it’s a holiday programme that’s all the rage in South Korea. More and more families are sending their children to military camps during the holidays to toughen them up. But when faced with this soldier’s life, some of them can’t take it...
Members of the International Convention for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna have voted to lower the tuna quota to 13,500 tonnes for next year. For the Japanese, who consume 80% of the world's tuna, the cuts are excessive.
A wave of cyber attacks has hit South Korea, blocking or impeding access to official and private websites, amid suspicions that North Korea or its supporters are to blame.
The South Korean Truth and Reconciliation Commission has begun investigating some unpleasant aspects of the country's history, starting with the massacre of 100,000 people suspected of supporting communism during the 1950-53 Korean War.
Crowds gathered on Friday as the body of former President Roh Moo-hyun, who committed suicide on May 23, was transported from his hometown to Seoul. Riot police have been mobilised in the capital to control the crowds.
