Japan in April 2026: the most important developments in society
Japan in April 2026 was shaken by earthquakes and marked by wildfires and street protests. On April 20 an earthquake of between magnitude 7.4 and 7.7 struck off the Sanriku coast in the northeast. Authorities issued a tsunami warning and ordered coastal evacuations in Iwate, Aomori and Hokkaido; waves of up to 80 centimeters were recorded, and the warning was later downgraded. No immediate casualties or major damage were reported, evacuation orders were lifted on April 21, and the meteorological agency issued an advisory of a slightly higher risk of a future mega-quake that remained in effect. A magnitude 6 quake followed on April 26 and a magnitude 6.2 quake in Hokkaido on April 27, with no tsunami warning; the advisory for that region was then ended. Earlier, strong quakes had hit Nagano Prefecture, and Kumamoto marked ten years since its 2016 earthquakes.
Wildfires spread in the northeast from April 23, with hillsides evacuated in Iwate Prefecture and flames threatening a residential area in Otsuchi. Further fires broke out in Fukushima and Niigata prefectures. By April 28 firefighters said the blazes were largely under control amid rain.
Protests were the second major theme. Demonstrations against the government's easing of arms export rules and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's push to revise the constitution took place on April 6, April 9 and April 19, and around 36,000 people rallied in Tokyo on April 20. Rare nationwide protests against the Iran war were also held. On April 21 Takaichi sent a ritual offering to Yasukuni Shrine, and about 120 lawmakers from several parties visited the shrine the next day; China and South Korea criticized this, and Chinese state media called it neo-militarism.
Other developments touched daily life. Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako visited Fukushima Prefecture on April 7, fifteen years after the 2011 disaster. Measles cases reached 236 since January and passed last year's total. Japan introduced language tests for some visa applicants and considered making language ability a factor in residency screening, while debate over xenophobia on social media grew and protesters in Osaka demonstrated against it.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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