Australia Will Repatriate Human Remains to Japan

SAPPORO, JAPAN—The Asahi Shimbun reports that two museums in Australia will repatriate the skeletal remains of Ainu people in their collections. The Ainu people are indigenous to northern Japan, and particularly the island of Hokkaido. Their remains are known to be held in collections in countries including Britain, the United States, and Germany. The three sets of remains known to be held in the two Australian museums are thought to have been shipped overseas between 1911 and 1936. “The repatriation process with Australia will be important in making guidelines for further returns from overseas,” explained Hirofumi Kato of the Center for Ainu and Indigenous Studies at Hokkaido University. For more, go to “Japan’s Early Anglers.”