JapanBy Chidi Ugwu

General Facts

• Population: 127,078,679 (July 2009 est.)• Life Expectancy: 82.12 Years (78.8 male/85.62

female)• Ethnic Breakdown: 98.5% Japanese, 0.5%

Korean, 0.4% Chinese, 0.6% Other• Religions: 83.9% Shintoism, 71.4% Buddhism,

2% Christianity, 7.8% Other• 99% literacy for both males and females

Government

• A parliamentary government with a constitutional monarchy.

• Chief of State is Emperor Akihitio (Since Jan. 7 1989)

• Head of Gov. is Prime Minister Taro Aso (Since Sept. 24 2008)

Economy

• $4.329 GDP (4th Highest in the world).• Mainly focused on the production of motor

vehicles and electronic equipment.• Although they do export other things such a

rice, vegetables, poultry, fish, and vegetables. • Largest trade partner is The U.S. (17.8%),

followed closely by China (16%).

Japan and the MDGs

• They have met their goals, for the most part. • Child mortality (2.79/1000 live births) and

HIV/AIDS (less than 0.1%) are virtually nonexistent.

• Literacy rate is 99% for both men and women. • Their MDG goals focus mainly on bringing

other nations up to Japan’s standard of living. Japan's MDG Plan

What’s Happening in Japan Today?People are desperate…

A man was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of attempting to steal gasoline after he unwittingly filled his car's tank with water, stranding the vehicle shortly afterward, police said.Fujio Hirakawa, 56, allegedly stole water from an 18-liter tank in a gardener's workshop in Kawagoe, Saitama Prefecture, between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, thinking it was gasoline.But the 56-year-old gardener, who had been hit by a gasoline thief two weeks previously, deliberately refilled it with water instead. On Wednesday morning, the gardener found the tank empty and called police after finding the suspect's car about 200 meters away. Hirakawa admitted to the allegations, and the theft two weeks ago, saying he had no money, police said. He was charged with theft and trespassing.

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What Else?Little girls are getting hit by trains…

A 15-month-old Japanese toddler who walked onto train tracks near her house survived with only minor scratches after a train came to a halt on top of her, the AFP reported.The driver saw the girl standing on the tracks north west of Tokyo in Suzaka City, and brought the train to a screeching halt by pressing the emergency brakes, the AFP reported.The girl was alive and lived because she was trapped in the 50-centimeter gap between the train and the tracks, rescuers told PTI."The train pushed her along the level crossing and dropped her into a pit between the rails," Fuji Yoshida police spokesman Kenichi Nagata told PTI."It could have been a tragedy. It's a miracle that she survived this way," a rescue worker told the TV Asahi network.

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Say What?• "I eat the sun," Miyuki says, raising her arms as if to tear pieces

off an imaginary sun. "Like this: yum, yum, yum. It gives me enormous energy. My husband has recently started doing that too.“

• "While my body was asleep, I think my soul rode on a triangular-shaped UFO and went to Venus," she wrote, adding: "It was a very beautiful place, and it was very green.“

• "I have a dream that I still believe will come true, which is to make a film in Hollywood," she said. "The lead actor is Tom Cruise, of course. Why? Because he was Japanese in a previous life.“

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Yeah, that’s Japan.