• Solution Engineer
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    365 months ago

    The man with the microphone is Shinichi Yokoyama, who in 2018 was the Chairman of the Judicial Affairs committee in Japanese Parliamen.

    On December 8th, 2018, Japanese Parliament voted on a hotly contested immigration reform bill that allowed foreign workers a path to Japanese citizenship. The plan was put forth by then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe earlier that year and was opposed by Japan’s opposition party, as well as some in Abe’s right-wing base.

    When Yokoyama attempted to move to hold a vote on the controversial bill, he was beset by members of Parliament who apparently wanted to stop him from moving forward with a vote, leading to the image of Yokoyama speaking into his microphone while dozens of politicians attempted to restrain him.

    It should be noted that physical altercations are not exactly a rarity in Japanese Parliament, as the group has made headlines for what some have called “brawls” in both 2015 and 2023.