October 2023
- Opinion
- Opinion
From afar, the Voice debate is not our finest hour
Australia could lose the moral high ground to speak out on issues on the global stage if the Voice referendum is defeated.
- Updated
- Melanie Brock
June 2023
- Opinion
- Gender equality
Japan seeks to end ‘missing women’ in boardrooms
Postcard from Tokyo. Japan is a laggard and the lowest-ranking G7 country in terms of gender equality, but Prime Minister Fumio Kishida wants to turn that around.
- Melanie Brock
December 2022
- Opinion
- Opinion
Snow in winter, hammer bans in summer: How to go bush in Japan
How hard can it be to build your dream mountain home to escape Tokyo’s summer heat? Long-time expat Melanie Brock got a little more than she bargained for when she set out to do just that.
- Melanie Brock
May 2022
- Opinion
- Opinion
Australia’s new-look leadership plays well in Japan
The change of government in Australia presents the perfect opportunity to work on making our relationship with the land of the rising sun deeper and richer.
- Melanie Brock
March 2022
- Opinion
- Opinion
Return to Oz an eye-opening reality check
An extended visit to her birthplace gave this Tokyo resident much to ponder on the pandemic’s lingering impact on the Australian psyche.
- Melanie Brock
October 2021
- Opinion
- Opinion
Contenders stifle smiles as Japan tiptoes around gender issues
Candidates are largely masked and have been instructed not to smile too much in campaign posters, in deference to pandemic suffering. Aside from that, it’s tough enlisting change as Japan votes.
- Melanie Brock
September 2021
- Opinion
- Opinion
Will Japan’s new optimism survive PM choice?
Japan is on the mend and the vibe is upbeat. Who knows – the country’s governing party may even elect a new leader who is prepared to tackle desperately needed reforms.
- Updated
- Melanie Brock
August 2021
- Opinion
- Perspective
Japan deserves a medal for the games
One of the strangest games in history is nearing a close and the successful delivery of the world’s major sporting event through the pandemic is a remarkable achievement.
- Melanie Brock
- Opinion
- Opinion
A social media fracas left me a little stunned
A social media fracas left me a little stunned and concerned about my own part in these most unusual of Games.
- Updated
- Melanie Brock
July 2021
- Opinion
- Tokyo Olympics
Strangest Olympics takes Tokyo’s joy behind closed doors
Japanese people, like Australians, love sport. Yes this Olympics will be ‘like no other’, but the joy will still be there when a Japanese athlete does well and gets a medal.
- Melanie Brock
June 2021
- Opinion
- Opinion
Beware the hubris of a holier-than-thou virus stance
Notwithstanding a few outbreaks, Australia may have been too successful at keeping the virus at bay. Here’s hoping our leaders work to shift fear into understanding, and our true outward-looking spirit prevails.
- Updated
- Melanie Brock
February 2021
- Opinion
- Japan
Mori is simply the latest face of Japanese sexism
The former prime minister’s comments about women have stirred up passions around the world. But will the controversy bring meaningful change in Japan where social progress rarely comes easily?
- Updated
- Melanie Brock
December 2020
- Opinion
- Opinion
Virus has last laugh as end-of-year party pooper
The final cruel irony in 2020 is that a rotten third wave of virus infection means we cannot even have the forget-the-year parties we desperately need.
- Melanie Brock
July 2020
- Opinion
- Opinion
Change in mindset would be virus' silver lining
There is much talk of what post-COVID Japan looks like. I hope it is one that supports families, allows more flexibility for workers, protects the vulnerable and embraces change.
- Updated
- Melanie Brock