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James Pearson
For James Pearson's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Jan 12, 2016
Despite poverty, sanctions North Korea nuclear program thrives with low-cost labor
North Korea has developed a nuclear weapons program despite poverty and international sanctions, using home-grown technology and virtually free labor to cut costs, experts said.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 11, 2015
Comrade capitalism: North Korea seeks investors for brewery
For the boldest frontier market investor: North Korea is looking to raise $39 million from foreign investors to fund a new brewery in Wonsan, an eastern port city where leader Kim Jong Un has big development ambitions.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 4, 2015
Grassroots capitalism an economic reality in North Korea
From the dark alleys of Pyongyang, the showpiece North Korean capital, tiny specks of torchlight shine carefully into the eyes of passersby, leading to bustling and illegal street markets where traders, usually women, call out "buy, buy!"
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
May 31, 2015
Drought-hit North Korea seen as staving off food crisis
North Korea has updated farming methods and switched crops that could help soften the blow of drought and avert a disastrous food shortage, an aid worker and an analyst said Sunday, after a U.N. official warned of another "huge food deficit."
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
May 20, 2015
North Korea 'modified' submarine missile launch photos, top Pentagon official says
Photos showing a North Korean missile launched from a submarine were manipulated by state propagandists, and the isolated country may still be years away from developing the technology, a top U.S. military official said Tuesday.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Apr 22, 2015
North Korea's solar panel boom brings power to the people
In a country notorious for a lack of electricity, many North Koreans are taking power into their hands by installing cheap household solar panels to charge mobile phones and light up their homes.
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 5, 2014
North Korea's hackers are a hand-picked elite
Despite its poverty and isolation, North Korea has poured resources into a sophisticated cyber warfare cell called Bureau 121, defectors from the secretive state said as Pyongyang came under the microscope for a crippling hack into computers at Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Nov 28, 2014
North Korean 'princess' moves closer to center of power
In her slim-fitting pantsuits and black-heeled shoes, Kim Yo Jong cuts a contrasting figure to her pudgy older brother, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Sep 22, 2014
Jailed American lived enigmatic life
Matthew Miller, the U.S. citizen imprisoned in North Korea on espionage charges, spent months in South Korea pretending to be an Englishman named "Preston Somerset," acquaintances who met or worked with him say.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 12, 2014
As visitor numbers boom, North Korea becomes ultimate tourist trap
"Taking you to places where your mother would rather you stayed away from." That's how one Western travel agency advertises its tours to North Korea.

Longform

When trying to trace your lineage in Japan, the "koseki" is the most important form of document you'll encounter.
Climbing the branches of a Japanese family tree