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Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Dec 27, 2019

Critics assail secrecy over unexploded chemical weapons left by Imperial Japanese Army

At the end of World War II, the Imperial Japanese Army left a number of unexploded shells filled with poison gas used as munitions. In the 2000s, when such artillery shells were discovered and retrieved from the seabed off the coastal town of Kanda, Fukuoka Prefecture, the central government issued an...
EDITORIALS
Dec 27, 2019

Better legal protection for sex crime victims

The Shiori Ito verdict marked an important milestone for women's rights in Japan, but it also revealed how far behind this country is at protecting sex crime victims.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 27, 2019

Falling output and retail sales signal Japan's economic strains

Industrial output slipped for the second straight month in November, raising the likelihood that the economy will contract in the fourth quarter due to slowing demand abroad and at home.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 27, 2019

Nurture Japan's strength to innovate

Japan is lagging behind many other countries when it comes to innovation.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 27, 2019

What happens when the internet gets less American?

The popularity of Chinese-owned TikTok raises concerns about security and values.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 27, 2019

Deepening negative rates would do more harm than good, says Bank of Japan ex-deputy

The Bank of Japan has nearly exhausted its policy ammunition for boosting the economy, as deepening negative interest rates — seen as the most likely step if it were to expand stimulus — will do more harm than good, former BOJ Deputy Gov. Toshiro Mutoh has said.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 27, 2019

Drones need tracking network for expanded flights, U.S. agency says

All but the smallest civilian drones would have to broadcast radio tracking data to ensure greater safety and prevent terrorism under a sweeping proposal unveiled by U.S. regulators on Thursday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Dec 27, 2019

VR builds bridge between staff and young detainees with developmental disorders in Japan

One day in mid-November, instructors at the Miyagawa medical reformatory, which treats delinquent teenage boys with developmental disorders, in Ise, Mie Prefecture, experienced how people with the disabilities perceive the world by wearing virtual reality goggles and watching a video.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Dec 27, 2019

Okinawa residents live in fear of stray munitions from U.S. practice range

The proximity of Okinawa Prefecture's Igei Ward in the town of Kin to a U.S. Marine Corps live shooting range puts residents at constant risk of stray bullets and other munitions landing on private property, ripping through roofs or even injuring civilians.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 27, 2019

Lawson to allow New Year's store closures in Japan on trial basis

Lawson Inc. plans to allow some outlets to close during the New Year's holiday period on a trial basis, said Sadanobu Takemasu, president and chief executive officer of the convenience store chain, in a recent interview.
BUSINESS
Dec 27, 2019

Robots cleaning up at stations and airports in labor-hungry Japan

More and more unmanned cleaning robots are being used in Japan, mainly at public transportation facilities, amid severe labor shortages.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 27, 2019

With image at stake, Seven-Eleven cautious about store closures

Seven-Eleven Japan Co. is cautious about allowing its franchise convenience stores to close, its president, Fumihiko Nagamatsu, indicated in a recent interview.
Japan Times
SPORTS
Dec 27, 2019

Skier Lindsey Vonn gives engagement ring to Devils defenseman P.K. Subban

Olympic ski champion Lindsey Vonn believes women aren't the only ones who should get engagement rings. So on Christmas Day she gave one to boyfriend P.K. Subban, the Canadian-born New Jersey Devils defenseman.
BUSINESS
Dec 27, 2019

Abe and Bank of Japan's Kuroda apply more pressure on firms to raise wages

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda piled pressure on the country's business leaders Thursday, urging them to lift wages to help boost the economy.
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 27, 2019

Alleged killings of Muslims by Indian police fuel anger in national protests

Zaheer Ahmed had just returned home from work in northern India and stepped out for a smoke before lunch. Minutes later, he was dead, shot in the head.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Dec 27, 2019

Tokyo Olympic torchbearers from Fukushima hope event showcases recovery

Applicants across Japan have begun receiving notification that they were selected to run in the Japan leg of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic torch relay that will kick off on March 26 at the J-Village soccer facility in Fukushima Prefecture, where efforts to recover from the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 27, 2019

Asahi Breweries to lift ban on regular workers taking side jobs from Jan. 1

Asahi Breweries Ltd. said Thursday it will allow most of its regular workers to take casual side jobs from Jan. 1.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 27, 2019

Arrested lawmaker Akimoto's 2018 Hokkaido trip linked to Sapporo firm planning casino resort

A family trip to Hokkaido made in 2018 by ruling Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Tsukasa Akimoto, who was arrested Wednesday over bribery allegations, was apparently prompted by a request from a Sapporo tourism company that planned to launch a project to build a casino resort there, it was learned...
Reader Mail
Dec 27, 2019

Remembering a landmark and life-saving kidney transplant

The hospital information packet advised me to bring my own chopsticks, but I prefer a knife and fork. That was just the start of my experience as the first-ever Western woman to donate a kidney at Osaka University Hospital, in Japan.
Reader Mail
Dec 27, 2019

A disturbing lack of awareness

The Mitsukoshi cashiers are very polite, as one would expect from staff in an organization that has strived for over three centuries "to nurture a 'customer first' corporate philosophy" (according to the department store chain's website).
Reader Mail
Dec 27, 2019

Racism both subtle and overt

Baye McNeil's column in the Dec. 10 edition headlined "The push for real change in the 2010s" was all too familiar for people like me. Everything McNeil said was true. It's a never-ending struggle for darker people in Japan. I won't pretend to fully comprehend that struggle because I'm not black or brown....
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 27, 2019

Ruling against France's Orange over suicides sets precedent for corporate responsibility

A landmark ruling against the former French telecommunications monopoly could pave the way for similar collective procedures.

Longform

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?