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EDITORIALS
Oct 2, 1999

A last chance for Indonesia

Nearly four months after the first free and fair elections in four decades, Indonesia's new Parliament, the People's Consultative Assembly, convened Friday. The opening session marked a new era in the nation's politics. The MPR, as the Parliament is known, is being seated at a difficult time. Indonesia...
COMMENTARY
Oct 2, 1999

Blair touts 'the vision thing'

LONDON -- Watching British Prime Minister Tony Blair is like watching a religious phenomenon. He has stepped off his platform on the backs of members of the Labor Party and has ascended into the clouds, where he hopes to be borne along by the rushing winds of the future. As he lifts off, he kicks away...
CULTURE / Art
Oct 2, 1999

The duality of light and shadow at the crossing of diverging roads

At first glance, the photographs of Ralph Gibson and those of Robert Mapplethorpe appear to have little in common. Gibson (b. 1939) is a graduate of the school of "straight photography" (the term applies to a classic approach, not one's sexual orientation, although further differences between the two...
CULTURE / Stage
Oct 2, 1999

Dancing in the footsteps of Ailey

Alvin Ailey was an American choreographer with a seismic impact on modern dance in this century. He revolutionized the way African-American rituals, experiences, music and literature were presented through dance and carved a niche for the voice of that community that continues through his company 10...
CULTURE / Art
Oct 2, 1999

Winged labors of love

Bird carvings have typically been thought of as a Western art form, but Haruo Uchiyama is challenging this assumption. Even the birds that have come into contact with his carvings have been made believers.
COMMUNITY
Oct 2, 1999

Grains of water and drops of sand

Every day, when the beach is quiet, a small figure can be seen walking on the sands of Hayama, gazing at the waves. She is Reika Iwami, an artist whose work is in museums in Britain and America, and who is only now, at the age of 72, becoming better known at home.
CULTURE / Music / HOGAKU TODAY
Oct 2, 1999

New audiences for Japanese music

It takes a lot of planning and creative effort to successfully present a public concert, and hogaku is no exception.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 2, 1999

Taiwan quake shakes China's mandate

BEIJING -- Chinese news coverage of the killer earthquake in Taiwan has been both muted and sporadic, ranging from solicitous concern for the rogue province to no news at all. When the earthquake did get print or air time in the week following the temblor, coverage tended to focus on what mainland authorities,...
JAPAN
Oct 1, 1999

Half-year trade surplus falls 13.6%

The nation's surplus in merchandise trade in the April-September period fell 13.6 percent from a year earlier to 6.39 trillion yen, the first decrease in five fiscal half-year periods, the Finance Ministry said Monday.
JAPAN
Oct 1, 1999

Tech forum plans DSL promo firm

The DSL Access Platform Forum, which was set up earlier this month by Internet service providers, telecommunications firms and electronics makers, is planning to establish a company within the year to promote businesses using digital subscriber line technology, it was learned Monday.
JAPAN
Oct 1, 1999

COP5 gathering to set rules for emissions goals

Staff writer
JAPAN
Oct 1, 1999

NEC posts loss for fiscal first half

NEC Corp. posted a 48.8 billion yen net loss on a consolidated basis in the first half of fiscal 1999 on 2.27 trillion yen in sales, the country's major computer and memory chip manufacturer reported Monday.
JAPAN
Oct 1, 1999

Tokyo answers U.S. criticism over WTO agenda

Tokyo has responded to U.S. criticism of Japanese proposals for the coming round of World Trade Organization negotiations by presenting Washington with a list of counter-arguments that underscore the need for the inclusion of discussions on antidumping measures if the talks are to be a success, Japanese...
EDITORIALS
Sep 30, 1999

The violence in East Timor

Intimidation failed in East Timor. Despite threats and violence, a stunning 98.6 percent of registered voters turned in ballots in Monday's referendum on the territory's future. Sadly, the peace on voting day was only a lull; violence resumed when the polls closed. Worse, it has become clear that the...
EDITORIALS
Sep 30, 1999

Russia's Chechen scapegoat

A wave of terrorist bombings in Moscow is pushing Russia once again toward war. No government can permit its citizens to be terrorized, and the scale of the recent attacks suggests that a formidable enemy is at work. Still, Moscow's response to the bombings seems ill-planned and desperate. Just as troubling...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 30, 1999

More reform needed to underpin Japan's economic recovery

Japan has made important progress in recent years in the area of regulatory and other structural reforms, but there is an urgent need for further and more rapid progress to strengthen future Japanese growth and prosperity.
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Y2K info on yearend flights on ministry Web site

The Transport Ministry today will begin posting information on foreign countries' Y2K preparations for New Year's flights on its Web site, amid high expectations of computer problems during the annual changeover.
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Chinese students embrace lessons of Japanese advertising

Staff writer
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

State reinsurance clause needs review, panel says

The government, nonlife insurance companies and traffic accident victims need to further discuss whether the state reinsurance provision of the compulsory automobile liability insurance system should be abolished before the system is revised, a Transport Ministry panel said in a report submitted Thursday...
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Cut in broker commissions to bring unheralded competition

Staff writer
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Tokai nuclear accident goes critical; remains out of control

A nuclear accident at a uranium-processing plant 125 km northeast of Tokyo on Thursday reached criticality, injuring three and pushing radiation levels up to 20,000 times beyond normal in Tokai, Ibaraki Prefecture.
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Campaign for Anti-Aum law to continue

The government remains committed to its plan to draw up a new law to specifically restrict the activities of Aum Shinrikyo, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiromu Nonaka said Thursday.
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Pressure on Jakarta urged to head off Timor debacle

Regional correspondent
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 30, 1999

Iron stomachs and chefs give it their all

Japan has produced a fair number of marathon stars. It's an achievement that probably has less to do with genetically bound physical attributes than with culturally bound psychological ones. The "gambaru" mentality that governs so many endeavors in Japan, especially in the world of sports, is central...
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Aum cultist given death sentence for part in subway attack

A senior Aum Shinrikyo member was sentenced to death Thursday for releasing deadly nerve gas on the Tokyo subway system in March 1995 and for illegally manufacturing a rifle.
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Obuchi cancels Cabinet reshuffle

Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi decided to delay the reshuffling of his Cabinet on Thursday due to the unfolding nuclear crisis in Tokai, Ibaraki Prefecture, although most of his picks were to be appointed today.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 30, 1999

Washington consensus cracks, but what is next?

WASHINGTON -- Is the so-called Washington consensus coming to an end?
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Green Cross execs face bars over HIV scandal

OSAKA -- Prosecutors Thursday demanded prison terms of between 2 1/2 and three years for three former presidents of Green Cross Corp. for alleged professional negligence that resulted in the deaths of patients who were administered HIV-tainted blood products produced by the company.
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Parties agree to tackle redenomination of yen

As part of their policy arrangements for launching a new coalition government, the Liberal Democratic Party, Liberal Party and New Komeito on Thursday agreed to consider redenominating the yen, beginning early in the 21st century.
JAPAN
Sep 30, 1999

Japan to tighten ties with Libya, send ambassador

Staff writer

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji