This essay examines two interconnected themes: Japan’s unresolved postwar claims against North Korea and the accelerating decline of the Asahi Shimbun. Masayuki Takayama emphasizes that Japan built major infrastructure, including the Supung Dam, and continued to provide loans after the war—none of which North Korea ever repaid. Properly calculated, these debts reveal that North Korea has no basis for demanding compensation from Japan. The second theme exposes how the Asahi Shimbun, after its comfort-women false reporting, coral vandalism incident, and NHK program falsification, has suffered a catastrophic loss of credibility and circulation. As its business deteriorates, the newspaper blames Abe and intensifies its attacks. The essay calls for a factual reassessment of history and accountability in journalism.

Blaming its deteriorating performance entirely on Abe, they curse him endlessly.
Now that they have fallen into poverty, Chief Editorial Writer Nemoto Kiyoki and his subordinates run wild, insisting that Abe must be destroyed—even by lies.
June 6, 2024.

During Japan’s governance of the Korean Peninsula, various dams, including the Supung Dam in what is now North Korea, were built to support the region’s electricity supply.
Moreover, Japan continued to provide loans even after the war.
Yet since 1975, North Korea has not repaid any of them.
July 30, 2019.

This is a chapter originally published on June 28, 2018, titled “During Japan’s governance of the region now known as North Korea, various dams including the Supung Dam were built to support electrical infrastructure.”
Below is the continuation from the previous chapter.

Preface omitted.

Takayama:
According to The New York Times, there are about one hundred Japanese abductees, and around thirty of them are said to still be alive.
North Korea will likely return these thirty people and then endlessly extort Japan, but Japan does not know the actual total number of abductees.
Japan must insist that all abductees be returned, and until then, absolutely no economic cooperation should be given.
If we follow that line, North Korea will eventually confess all of its past crimes.
In other words, we must negotiate to the point of asking whether Japan owes any compensation to North Korea.
During Japan’s governance, various dams, including the Supung Dam, were built in what is now North Korea, supporting electrical supply.
Moreover, Japan continued providing loans even after the war.
Since 1975, North Korea has never repaid them.
These legitimate loans must be fully settled.
If everything is tallied up, it will become clear to the entire world that North Korea is in no position to demand money from Japan.

Inoue:
Exactly so.
To be continued.

“These legitimate loans must be settled. Once tallied, it will become clear to the entire world that North Korea is in no position to demand money from Japan.”
July 30, 2019.

“‘This is poison gas,’ the coral vandalism incident, and the NHK documentary falsification”—these malicious reports were judged collectively, and subscribers abandoned the Asahi Shimbun in a mass exodus.
July 30, 2019.

This is from Masayuki Takayama’s essay originally published on November 15, 2018, titled:
“Despite the enormous success of Abenomics, the Asahi Shimbun claims there is no trickle-down effect and calls it a failure. It is only your company saying that.”

Below is the continuation from the previous chapter.

The trigger was the party leaders’ debate held just before Abe’s second term as prime minister.
Abe pointed out that the comfort women issue was based on the Asahi Shimbun’s fake news—specifically the lies of the swindler Yoshida Seiji.
He called it a deceptive newspaper unfit for journalism.
The Asahi, imagining itself a kingmaker, fainted with humiliation at this insult.
Their plan for revenge ended in total defeat when they were forced to admit Yoshida’s lies, and even the president of the company lost his job.
And that was not all.
“The poison gas incident,” the coral vandalism, the NHK program falsification—these malicious acts were tallied, and readers abandoned the Asahi Shimbun in droves.
The Mainichi Shimbun once lost one-third of its circulation because of the Nishiyama Takichi scandal, in which he exploited and discarded a female Foreign Ministry clerk like trash.
But this time, the Asahi’s collapse is even worse.
Circulation continues to decline, with no end in sight—not even at half.
No funds for reporting, no taxi vouchers; night reporting, once done by hired cars, is now done by subway.
On top of that, their salaries have been cut by an average of 1.6 million yen per person.
Despite the overwhelming success of Abenomics, the Asahi calls it a failure and insists trickle-down “does not exist.”
Only your newspaper says that.
Blaming its business decline entirely on Abe, they curse him endlessly.
Now that they have fallen into poverty, Chief Editorial Writer Nemoto Kiyoki and others run wild, willing to use lies or anything else to bring Abe down.
To be continued.