sanjo 2 Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 Are the number of homeless people in the big cities increasing? There seems to be a huge increase in the number of guys in cardboard boxes in Niigatas main station, the main "bridge" in the station has so many boxes lined up there now, much more than even a year or so ago I reckon. And I never see any ladies. Just wondering what the situation in Tokyo / Osaka is like. Link to post Share on other sites
joshnii 2 Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 I know what you mean sanjo - loads in the station there.. Link to post Share on other sites
jstepp 0 Posted October 15, 2004 Share Posted October 15, 2004 anyone been to the Philippines? I've never seen anything like their situation anywhere else in the world. Not that I've been anywhere else in the world... Link to post Share on other sites
wakaran 1 Posted October 15, 2004 Share Posted October 15, 2004 Don't they move them on at all? Link to post Share on other sites
kintaro 0 Posted October 15, 2004 Share Posted October 15, 2004 I don't see much in sendai (too cold to be homeless). I used to live next to a park in Honolulu that was full of homeless people. Even families! I used to go there to play basketball and the homeless dudes would always come over and play (they didn't have their own ball)...we'de get some good 5 on 5 games going. but the minute the crack man OR the free food van came around it was GAME OVER. Link to post Share on other sites
frannyo 2 Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 A few years old but Homeless problem forces Japan to offer job help July 31 2002 They are the constant and highly visible reminder of how the Japanese economic miracle has turned sour. On the streets and in the parks of Japan, the number of homeless grows daily. The most recent official count last year put the number at 24,000. That figure is now thought to be closer to 30,000. Today, Japan's parliament, the Diet, is expected to pass legislation that few would once have imagined would be necessary in modern-day Japan. For the first time, the national government will act directly to deal with the homeless problem, the consequence of a decade-long economic slump. Under the package, the government will provide assistance for those who want to find employment. There will also be help to find public or private housing, and health care will be provided. "We really need help, especially with housing," said Hiroyuki Sekimoto, who has been homeless for two years. "Things aren't so bad now that the weather is warm. But every winter, some of the older men die on the streets. If this bill means that people can get off the streets, then I'm all for it," he said in an interview published yesterday. The passing of the new measures coincides with the latest jobless figures, which put the unemployment rate at 5.4 per cent, just 0.1 per cent shy of the record figure last December. Despite signs of economic recovery, the figures released yesterday showed that while the percentage remained steady, the actual number of unemployed increased for the 15th consecutive month, up 300,000 to 3.68 million. "The economy is improving, but the job situation is likely to remain severe for a while," said Health, Labour and Welfare Minister Chikara Sakaguchi. For a country ingrained with the notion of lifelong employment, this is a harsh new world. The growing numbers out of work seem certain to translate to more living on the streets. Many of the homeless are day labourers, who have seen work disappear because of the slump in the construction industry. A group that helps the homeless in Tokyo's Shinjuku area, Renraku Kai, recently surveyed their clients. It found that more than 1400 were homeless in their area. The group also conducted a detailed survey of 218 homeless. Their average age was about 53, and involuntary unemployment - such as bankruptcy - was the biggest reason for their homelessness. Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 Obuchi once said that there were NO homeless in japan! That was aclassic comment. It will be interseting to see whats going to happen here in Nagoya with the EXPO next year. I think mass clean just before it starts gonna happen, maybe they will all get a nice holiday to okinawa or somethin.. Link to post Share on other sites
joshnii 2 Posted October 19, 2004 Share Posted October 19, 2004 Lots in Nagoya then? I suppose in most big cities. Do they actually go IN the station though? In Niigata, they're right in the main hallway bridge thing in the station its pretty blatant. Link to post Share on other sites
sanjo 2 Posted October 20, 2004 Author Share Posted October 20, 2004 Hey kintaro, niigata gets pretty cold in winter too Link to post Share on other sites
blinkin'ek 0 Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 In Nagoya, yes. Perhaps if I dress down skruffee like, I might get one of those holidays. Link to post Share on other sites
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