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EDITORIALS

Mar 15, 2005

New leadership in Hong Kong

Hong Kong's chief executive, Mr. Tung Chee-hwa, resigned last week. His departure was in keeping with his entire term as chief executive: confused, messy and ultimately damaging to his office and Hong Kong itself. His replacement must break that tradition and restore the luster to Hong Kong's image....

EDITORIALS

Mar 13, 2005

From Pretoria to Tshwane

Last week the city council of South Africa's capital, Pretoria, decided it was time the place had a name change. If the South African Geographic Names Council approves, as expected, the city as a whole will henceforth be known as Tshwane, which according to its Web site means "We are the same" or "We...

EDITORIALS

Mar 12, 2005

Cedar Revolution? Knock on wood

The murder of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri has unleashed mass protests in Lebanon. The demonstrations calling for the departure of Syrian forces from Lebanon have been tagged the "Cedar Revolution" in the West as if they, too, reflect the spirit of the democratic movements that swept Eastern Europe...

EDITORIALS

Mar 11, 2005

Recalling the alternative to peace

It has been 60 years since U.S. bombers destroyed much of Tokyo in the spring of 1945. Survivors of the "Great Tokyo Air Raids" -- most of them now in their 70s and 80s -- are few and far between. Words like "B-nijuku" (B-29), "bokugo" (air-raid shelter) and "shoidan" (incendiary bomb) are no longer...

EDITORIALS

Mar 10, 2005

Last chance for Daiei's survival

Daiei Inc., Japan's ailing supermarket operator, is ready to make its third -- and final -- attempt at rehabilitation. On Monday, the state-run Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan (IRCJ) formally selected trading house Marubeni Corp. and investment fund Advantage Partners as Daiei's business sponsors....

EDITORIALS

Mar 9, 2005

Weak link in nuclear safety

The government's nuclear energy report for 2004 is a dismal reminder that public confidence in nuclear safety remains low. The report, prepared by the Atomic Energy Commission, follows the accident last August in which five workers died because of exposure to bursts of superheated steam from a ruptured...

EDITORIALS

Mar 8, 2005

Military threat is counterproductive

The agenda for the current National People's Congress of China reportedly includes an antisecession bill for preventing the independence of Taiwan. The Chinese leadership wants to have the bill enacted by the end of the session on March 14. The contents of the draft legislation have not been made public,...

EDITORIALS

Mar 7, 2005

Risk-free deposit era nears dusk

With Japanese banks regaining financial health, the ad hoc regime of full-deposit insurance is about to end. Beginning April 1, deposits will be protected only up to 10 million yen in principal plus interest -- the same limit that was in force until 1996 when it was removed temporarily amid growing instability...

EDITORIALS

Mar 6, 2005

Dolls without borders

'T here is no new thing under the sun," said the preacher (Ecclesiastes, 1:9). Well, the preacher had it half right. Sometimes people come up with a brand-new thing in response to an age-old reality. Consider the case of Hong Kong-based software developer Eberhard Schoeneburg. According to recent reports,...

EDITORIALS

Mar 5, 2005

Mr. Tsutsumi called to account

Mr. Yoshiaki Tsutsumi, the former leader of the scandal-tainted Seibu Railway group, has been arrested on charges of presenting false financial reports and selling stock to clients without sufficient information disclosure. His arrest, carried out Thursday jointly by the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors...

EDITORIALS

Mar 4, 2005

Ailment needs a national response

For sufferers of kafunshou (pollen allergy) or hay fever, this is shaping up into a really bad year. Because of last summer's sweltering heat, the amount of cedar pollen in the air is forecast to rise two or three times above average, possibly exceeding the worst-ever level of 1995. Reports say that,...

EDITORIALS

Mar 3, 2005

Increase pressure on North Korea

Talks with North Korea are deadlocked on two make-or-break issues: that country's nuclear weapons program and its past abduction of Japanese nationals. Last month, declaring that it has nuclear weapons, Pyongyang threatened an indefinite boycott of the six-party talks. It also refused to discuss the...

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Dangami House is a 180-year-old former samurai residence of the Kato clan, who ruled over Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, until the Meiji Restoration.

A house, a legacy and the quiet work of restoration in rural Japan

By Hanako Lowry

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