welcome to nhk world "newsline." japanese prime minister shinzo abe has laid out a busy agenda for 2014. he used his new year message to talk up his plans for revitalizing the economy and his hope to amend the constitution. the prime minister said the government is halfway toward ending 20 years of deflation. he said it will continue its efforts to bring back a strong economy. abe also spoke about security and diplomacy.

he said japan will play a more aggressive role in maintaining stability around the world, and he argued it should follow active pacifism in the 21st century. abe said it's necessary to deepen discussions on revising the document enacted almost 68 years ago. the prime minister mentioned the people who had to flee their homes after the march 2011 disaster. some are staying in evacuation shelters for the third year in a row. abe said the government will redouble its efforts to help as many survivors as possible to live in new homes by 2015 and work to allowing displaced residents of fukushima return to normal life. the foreign minister of china is fielding opposition on abe's visit to a shrine.

china's state-run news agency says wang spoke on tuesday with south korean foreign minister. it says wang noted china and south korea denounced abe's visit to yasukuni shrine in tokyo. yun reiterated south korea's position against abe's visit and says wang spoke on tuesday with u.s. secretary of state, john kerry. their agenda reportedly included issues on japan. wang had already talked with the foreign ministers of russia, germany, and vietnam a day earlier. chinese president xi jinping delivered a new year's address focused on his country's reforms. the speech was broadcast by state-run tv and other media on new year's eve. xi emphasized results achieved in 2013, such as economic

policies and anticorruption efforts. he says his government has drawn a grand blueprint for the country's future development and will press ahead with reforms in 2014 to make the country rich and strong. >> translator: the chinese are pursuing the dream of realizing their nation's great rejoouf nation. i hope that people from various countries will also realize their dreams. i sincerely hope people from all countries can understand and help each other while striving for their own dreams. >> xi made no mention of china's territorial disputes with other countries. the president of russia has also outlined his vision for 2014. vladimir putin says he hopes the new year will bring better relations between his country and japan. putin wrote letters to world leaders, including prime minister abe. he told abe great progress was made last year in bilateral

relations and he said he appreciated the prime minister's visit last year. putin said he hopes to further promote relations and work on common issues affecting the asia pacific region. south korea's foreign ministry has posted a new video online claiming sovereignty over islands in the sea of japan. it deleted a video in october that used footage from a japanese tv drama without permission. south korea controls the islands, which japan claims. the new video on the foreign ministry's website is four minutes long. the old one included footage from an nhk drama showing a 1905 between japan and russia in the sea of japan. a spokesperson says the latest video was made to inform the international community that the islands are an integral part of south korea. south koreans call them toktu. japanese call them takeshima. the ministry plans to post a

12-minute video. the japanese government maintains the islands are an inherent part of japan 's territory. it says south korea is occupying them illegally. the leader of north korea used his new year address on state-run tv to promote unity in his reclusive nation. he said the execution last month of his uncle strengthened the country. kim was apparently calling on citizens to show their loyalty and try to consolidate internal unity. north korean authorities executed kim's uncle on allegations he was trying to launch a coup. chang song thaek was widely seen as the young leader's mentor. kim said in his address that

2014 will be a year of great changes. he said north korea will make what he called a fresh leap forward to build a thriving socialist country. kim also said he will work to beef up the military. he warned that another war on the korean peninsula would lead to a nuclear catastrophe. people on the pacific island of kuribati have heard endless arguments about climate change. they say -- they saw, rather, negotiators at the latest u.n. conference go back and forth, then promise to submit targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions, but for residents of kuribati, the time for talking about climate change has already passed. nhk world explains. >> reporter: waves break over ocean roads and seawater floods into people's homes. the sea level is rising, and the

people of kuribata are under siege. the country, over 30 small islands in the pacific ocean, is home to 100,000 people. this is the highest place in this island. around three meters above sea level. at such low elevation, kuribata is on the front line of global warming. the ocean's advance never stops. at high tide, the water now covers the land all around the houses here. >> i feel sad about the people, but i already know the answer. >> reporter: saltwater has contaminated this well, and residents have lost their drinking water. farmland is under threat. this field is now useless for

planting crops. it's estimated that kuribati has lost about 10% of its agricultural land over the past decade. he lives in a village by the ocean. residents here have endured repeated flooding, and they've had enough. one by one, his neighbors are leaving. >> as you can see, the remaining of the building here. one family lived here. but they have moved out, as you can see. this is the floor of their house. small storeroom they have, but nothing they can do. they have to move out to some other places. >> reporter: this is a long-term computer forecast from the japan meterological agency and the university of tokyo. it shows that sea level will rise an average of 20

centimeters around the world by 2035. the sea level around kuribati is expected to rise more than 20 centimeters. predictions like that have forced kiribati's government to take drastic measures. officials are planning to buy land in fiji, 2,000 kilometers away. they've identified a 2,000 hectare plot. the plan is to grow food on the land, but the government does not rule out the idea of using the site for relocating kiribati's residents who have lost their homes. >> we see that the projection for total submission and total loss of land will become an eventuality for us, so we need to prepare, and we need the international community to assist us as we prepare for all eventualities. >> reporter: kiribati is

preparing for the worst-case scenario. the tide is rising, and these island people know one day leaving their homeland may be the only option left. nhk world, kiribati. investors in industrialized countries watched stock markets rally in 2013. central banks helped drive the recovery with monetary easing. the bank of japan, the u.s. federal reserve, and the european central bank all pumped money into the economy. hopes for an economic recovery in the u.s. also pushed up share prices. tokyo's benchmark surged 66.7%, the biggest annual gain in 41 years. new york's dow jones industrial average was up 26.5%, and the

frankfurt stock market rose 25.4%, but emerging economies ended the year with mixed results. mumbai market rose 8.9%, but the shanghai system dropped by 6.7%, in worries brazil was pushing steam. the federal reserve decided to start tapering off its monetary easing program. investors are now shifting their money back to the u.s. emerging funds could trigger volatility. japan is developing a small, low-cost satellite to meet demand in emerging countries. the space launch is planned for this summer. japan's new satellite will go into space by august using a russian rocket. the price will be less than $95 million. that's around one-third the price of a western made satellite with the same

performance. the low cost is due to downsizing and use of ordinary electric instruments. asanaro is fitted with a powerful camera. it can identify small details on earth, such as the make of a car from 500 kilometers. the satellite is especially useful in urban planning and analyzing disaster zones. >> translator: the asian region experiences many disasters, so this year will probably be one of our target areas among emerging nations. >> ministry officials start to plan full scale promotion after about a year. japan's population is shrinking at its fastest pace. it's been declining for seven consecutive years. a health ministry survey shows that about 1,031,000 babies were born in 2013. that's down 6,000 from the

previous year, and the fewest since the end of world war ii. in contrast, around 1,275,000 died last year. that's an increase of about 19,000 since 2012. it's the largest number in the post-war era. these figures show japan's population dropped by more than 240,000 last year. ministry officials say the population is projected to further decrease. the nation is aging and the number of women of child-bearing age is falling. bangkok residents are seeing the downside of development on their streets. more people have cars and more cars mean more traffic jams. it's forced police to get extra training and equipment to deal with unexpected challenges. nhk world explains. >> reporter: bangkok is often

dubbed the capital of gridlock, and its traffic problems are only getting worse. at times, it crawls around at an average of 2.67 kilometers per hour. the city streets can hold only 1.2 million vehicles, but over 7.5 million cars are registered. >> translator: traffic really stresses me out. i need music to calm down. >> reporter: but heavy traffic can lead to more than stress. passengers sometimes seek out a surprising kind of roadside assistance. >> reporter: traffic police

officer is stationed at one of bangkok's busiest sections, where he's lent a helping hand in many such emergencies, that is, helping women in labor give birth inside cars. mana has delivered more babies than any officer on the force, 50 and counting. police say at least 114 emergency births in cars have been recorded since 1997. this is a thai traffic police motorbike, and unlike those in other countries, in a storage department, you'll be able to find commitment that police use to help women give birth. standard issue to traffic police includes latex clubs, an umbilical cord clamp, suction ball, and a sterile scalpel. >> translator: when a woman is in labor, we have to be more

than just police. i want people to know that the thai police can do anything. >> reporter: as bangkok's traffic has grown worse, for the last 16 years, traffic cops have been trained in midwife techniques. they learn from doctors how to support the baby's head and body and immediately remove excess fluids that may cause it to choke. 20-year-old is mother to 11-month-old arawan. with the help of police, she gave birth to her daughter in the back of a taxi. >> translator: i was so worried that the baby and i wouldn't

survive, because there was so much traffic. i was shocked when i learned that a cop would deliver my baby. what could he do? i certainly never thought i would give birth in a taxi. >> reporter: officer mana was the one who came to the rescue. she says without his help, her blessed event might have turned into a nightmare. >> translator: i want to thank officer mana for seeing that my baby was delivered safely. we were far from the hospital at the time, and if he hadn't shown up, our lives would have been in danger. >> translator: the problem is simply that there are a lot of cars on the road. our main responsibility is to help everyone drive safely, but i am also happy to help deliver babies when necessary. >> reporter: with no end in sight for heavy traffic, authorities have yet to come up with a way to conflict. get news and insight on south

and southeast asia every week day live from bangkok, only on nhk world "newsline." people in asia celebrated the arrival of the new year with fireworks. in shanghai, they brightened the sky in the city's bund district. some chinese cities have banned new year's fireworks because of serious air pollution. lights illuminated a section of the great wall. >> translator: celebrations, it's quite special that we are celebrating the new year at the great wall. it's nice. >> translator: i hope everyone can go green in our daily lives and do something to help reduce smog in beijing in the year 2014. >> in taipei, colorful fireworks

lit up the taipei 101 building after the clock struck midnight. japanese traditionally mark midnight on new year's eve by gathering at shrines and temples. worshippers have been flocking to a major shrine in tokyo to pray for good luck for the coming year. the sound of a drum resinated throughout michi shrine at midnight. this is the cue for worshipers to begin prayers and throw monetary offerings. many japanese visit temples and shrines during the first few days of the new year. >> translator: my dream is to play an important role abroad, so i want to study english hard. >> translator: it's best if everyone can promote peace and be healthy. >> worshipers usually buy good

luck charms. they also write their wishes on wooden plaques. they expect about 3 million visitors between wednesday and friday. another new year tradition in japan involves billions of postcards and stamps. workers left the post office in central tokyo after a ceremony to start deliveries of the cards. some of them wore uniforms from more than a century ago. where japan's modern postal service began in the late 19th century. an owner of a nearby japanese sweets shop says it's wonderful to receive lots of new year's cards. he hopes to see further economic recovery this year. >> translator: we really hope 2014 will be a good year. i think things are gradually getting better in japan, but

anyway, i really hope no disaster will hit the country. >> japan post spokespersons say workers will deliver about 1.3 billion new year's cards on wednesday alone, or 14 for every person in the country. that's down slightly from last year. it's hard not to see selfies, or self photographs on social media these days. nika myth gou what is one who took them, along with a variety of other photos. she is now one of the leading photographers here in japan. her colorful, striking images have gained attention at home and around the world. we spoke with her about the evolution of her unique style.

>> reporter: mika has positioned herself at the forefront of photography with a bold and distinctive aesthetic. she's published more than 80 books of her work. they are among the best selling photographic books in japan. her pictures feature rich, vivid colors. flowers, goldfish, household goods, and other objects all glow with a dazzling intensity. the effect is almost unnatural. some pictures are also daringly out of focus. in many pictures, the subjects are difficult to identify. >> translator: i always try to photograph things that truly move me. it doesn't bother me if my results are different to what other people might see. when i take photographs, i think nothing else exists in the world other than my subject and myself. almost as if our existences were about to merge.

>> reporter: when she was in high school, nin gou what bought a camera and got serious about taking pictures. when she graduated from art school, photography was extremely fashionable. there were many young women taking photographs, particularly self portraits and exhibiting their works. ninagawa was already building a profile for herself, but she feared she might be lost in this trend. >> translator: i wasn't running out of inspiration, but i was very anxious. i thought maybe i had reached my limit, because there were many other young women taking photographs around the same time. that's when i thought i should take a trip, go backpacking for two or three years after graduating from college, whenever i had spare time, i would buy cheap airline tickets, stay in cheap hotels, and take pictures. >> by the end of her 20s, ninagowa had roamed through

nearly 20 countries. she shunned picturesque landscapes for objects that moved her, no matter how mundane they seemed. >> translator: even when i was at the foot of the himalayas, i was not interested in the majestic scenery, i was taking a close-up of a cup in my hand. i don't have the mindset i should be photographing gorgeous scenery just because i traveled all the way to be there. i think part of it has to do with my personality. >> reporter: she was beginning to establish her own style. in japan, her reputation continued to grow, and before long, she was one of the most acclaimed photographers in the country. in 2007, ninagawa gave birth to her first child, a boy. this event drastically influenced her photographic

style. in a book published in 2010, she turned her camera away from colorful images to dark and gloomy subjects. even the flowers appear shadowy and somber, and the picture of this goldfish emphasizes its animalistic grotesqueness. >> translator: i was really annoyed by the general notion that motherhood should be holy, so i produced many works that were more audacious than usual. in order to focus on life, i was inspired by death. in simple terms, it's like saying there is an element of danger in beauty, or grotesque things are, in truth, beautiful. i want to continue to have that element of duality in my works. >> reporter: ninagawa has worked hard to develop a highly original style, but she says

she'll keep searching for new ways to give deeper expression to her ideas. and now here's the weather forecast.

that's "newsline" for this hour. i'm gene otani in tokyo. from all of us here at nhk world, happy holidays. a7guc

>> the situation is south sudan as they get ready for peace talks that are still unsure. top stories, a french priest held hostage for several weeks returned home. father georges vandenbeusch was kidnapped by islamic militants in cameroon. also coming up for you, in this bulletin, happy 2014. we will take a closer look at celebrations that rang in the new year around the world. we will start the return of paris of the french priest georges vandenbeusch, released tuesday after being held hostage for seven weeks. haramamic group boko