2013 in Japan

Events in the year 2013 in Japan.

Incumbents

January 9 – Early reports show Japan’s economy is expected to recover slowly in 2013 under "Abenomics," with fiscal stimulus, monetary easing, and a weaker yen.
January 13 – January 2013 Northwest Pacific bomb cyclone causes 1,600 injuries across Japan.
January 21 – Human Rights Watch sends a letter to newly inaugurated Prime Minister Shinzo Abe urging Japan to lead the establishment of a UN Commission of Inquiry into human rights violations and abductions by North Korea.

March 15 – Caroline Kennedy arrives in Tokyo as the U.S. Ambassador, three days before the 50th anniversary of JFK’s assassination.
March 17 – Chiba gubernatorial election: Kensaku Morita retains governorship of prefecture.
March 30 – An Advanced Liquid Processing System begins operating at Fukushima Daiichi to improve the treatment of contaminated water.

April 28 – By-election for House of Councillors in Yamaguchi – Kiyoshi Ejima is elected to the House.

June to October - 2013 Japanese heatwave, according to Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare official confirmed report, 1,077 person lost to lives, caused by heat stroke, second worst heatwave disaster in Japan.
June 16 – Shizuoka gubernatorial election – Heita Kawakatsu re-elected.
June 22 – Mount Fuji is formally added to UNESCO’s World Heritage list.
June 23 – Tokyo legislative election – The Democratic Party of Japan loses control of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly to the Liberal Democratic Party.

August 15 – An explosion at the 2013 Fukuchiyama Firework Festival event kills 3, injures 59.

September 7 – The 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires, Argentina award the rights to host the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo over Istanbul and Madrid.
September 8 – Ibaraki gubernatorial election – Masaru Hashimoto enters his sixth term as governor.
September 15 – Wladimir Balentien breaks the 49-year-old Nippon Professional Baseball home run record with 60 home runs.

October 11 – A fire at the Abe Orthopaedic Surgery Hospital in Hakata-ku, Fukuoka kills 10 and injures 5.
October – Typhoon Wipha kills at least 17 people in Ōshima, Tokyo; at the request of governor Naoki Inose, GSDF troops are dispatched. On the mainland, the storm causes major traffic disruptions and kills one woman in Machida, Tokyo.
October 27 – Miyagi gubernatorial election: Incumbent governor Yoshihiro Murai's only challenger is JCP-supported lawyer Masaaki Satō.

November 10 – Hiroshima gubernatorial election – Hidehiko Yuzaki re-elected.
November 25 – Human Rights Watch urges revisions to Japan’s draft Special Secrets Bill over concerns about press freedom and whistleblower protections.

December 4 – Washoku is recognized as an Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO.
December 6 – Special Secrecy Law passes the National Diet
December 19 – Naoki Inose announces his resignation as Governor of Tokyo following allegations of dubious loans from the Tokushukai medical group.
December 26 – Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visits Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, honoring Japan’s war dead, including convicted war criminals, drawing international criticism from China, South Korea, and the U.S.

January 15 – Nagisa Oshima, director
January 19 – Taihō Kōki, sumo wrestler
February 18 – Chieko Honda, voice actress
April 4 – Yamaguchi (author)|Noboru Yamaguchi], writer
April 29 – Shinji Maki, comedian
June 12 – Jiroemon Kimura, supercentenarian, oldest man ever, world's oldest living person
June 13 – Kenji Utsumi, actor
September 2 – Makoto Moroi, composer
September 19 – Hiroshi Yamauchi, businessman
October 13 – Takashi Yanase, manga artist
October 28 – Tetsuharu Kawakami, baseball player
November 8 – Chiyoko Shimakura, singer and TV presenter
November 13 – Chieko Aioi, actress
December 30 – Eiichi Ōtaki, musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer