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EDITORIALS
Jun 16, 2005

Shantytown outrage in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe continues its slide toward destruction. In the most recent outrage, President Robert Mugabe has evicted tens of thousands of traders from their shacks and razed their houses. It is hardly a coincidence that this "cleanup campaign" targets supporters of the opposition Movement for Democratic...
BUSINESS
Jun 15, 2005

Shareholders' meetings poised for takeover debates

The season for general shareholders' meetings is just around the corner, and a growing number of companies plan to use them to propose measures against hostile takeovers.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 11, 2005

Indian growth must co-opt the bypassed

MANILA -- India is a paradox. The successes of a select group of sectors -- from information technology to industr and services -- are creating an urban elite showcased as the builders of a modern and vibrant country on the cusp of joining the major economic powers of the world.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 11, 2005

'Artistic space consultant' unites walls and works

Nob Hagiwara is a brave man indeed. How many top-rank executives decide one day to chuck it all in and pursue personal goals? Not many -- and especially not in Japan.
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2005

Vinegar fad shows no signs of souring as more take to drinking it straight up

Japanese tend to be quick to warm to a new fad and just as fast to abandon it.
EDITORIALS
Jun 11, 2005

Democratic dilemmas in Mideast

Two election results pose deep dilemmas for democrats who support reconciliation in the Middle East. In recent municipal ballots in the Gaza Strip, the Islamic militant group Hamas made a surprisingly strong showing. Soon after, a coalition of parties led by Hezbollah swept elections in southern Lebanon....
COMMENTARY
Jun 11, 2005

Hilariously ineffective charm offensive

LOS ANGELES -- Watch out, the Chinese oil-saboteurs may be coming. Hold on to your derricks! Western newspapers are reporting that the giant China National Offshore Oil Corp. may make a bid to acquire the U.S. oil group Unocal. If the effort is successful (note: the U.S. oil giant Chevron may have a...
JAPAN
Jun 10, 2005

Ministry touts perks of growing prison system workforce

Need workers? Japan's penal system has the answer: prison labor.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Jun 9, 2005

TM bolsters notion of a Japanese mind-set over mortality

As we heard in a government white paper on the elderly last week, the number of people aged 90 or over topped 1 million in Japan for the first time in 2004. Japan has long held the record for its citizens having the longest life expectancy in the world. And the government is only too aware of the graying...
JAPAN
Jun 8, 2005

Hiring of disabled people lagging

Disabled people employed in the private sector made up only 1.46 percent of the national workforce last year, falling short of the minimum rate of 1.8 percent set by the government, according to a white paper released Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2005

Upper House cancels mad cow meeting

A lack of key witnesses caused the House of Councilors agriculture panel to cancel a meeting Tuesday in which a resolution calling for "caution" in resuming beef imports from the U.S. was expected to be adopted.
JAPAN
Jun 7, 2005

Bone-marrow bank probed for having too much money

Internal reserves held by a foundation operating the nation's only bone-marrow bank have swollen to more than 500 million yen, exceeding a government-set ceiling for a nonprofit entity, sources said Monday.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Jun 6, 2005

Income gap among Japanese expanding, but not by much

Traditionally, the income gap between the rich and the poor has been rather small in Japan, creating what has become known as the "all-Japanese-as-middle class" mentality.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Jun 5, 2005

Seiji Hirao: Mr. Rugby

At the Rugby World Cup Sevens in Hong Kong in March, a group of eminent rugby journalists were talking about Japan's bid to host Rugby World Cup 2011.
BUSINESS
Jun 4, 2005

New blood sought to fill worker void

The country needs to foster young workers in the manufacturing sector as a large number of baby boomers will retire in the near future, the government said in a report submitted Friday.
JAPAN
Jun 3, 2005

Suicides top 30,000 for seventh year

Suicides in Japan topped 30,000 for the seventh straight year in 2004, with men accounting for more than two-thirds of the number, according to a report released by the National Police Agency on Thursday.
JAPAN
Jun 2, 2005

Birthrate yet again falls to record

Japan's total fertility rate sank to 1.28 in calendar 2004, marking an all-time low for the fourth straight year, with the number of babies born in the year also falling to a record low 1.11 million, the government said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jun 1, 2005

Jobless rate improves to a 76-month low of 4.4%

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to a 76-month low of 4.4 percent in April, down 0.1 percentage point from March, the government said Tuesday, suggesting that employment is steadily improving on the back of economic recovery.
BUSINESS
May 31, 2005

Life insurers still suffer but rays of hope seen

Business volumes of Japan's six largest life insurers continued to shrink in the financial year that ended March 31 due to intensifying competition with U.S. rivals and the still feeble economy, according to earnings reports released Monday.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
May 30, 2005

China wasn't always so critical of Japan

NEW YORK -- Yet another round of Chinese and Korean protests against Japan for allegedly downplaying its past deeds in historical reconstruction came and went (or almost). This time, though, I was reminded of one thing I should have remembered from four decades ago: China used to turn a completely different...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 29, 2005

The Alban Berg Quartett know Schubert inside out

The Alban Berg Quartett occupies a near-legendary position among string quartets. Their technical fluency, the beauty of their playing, the harmony of their interpretation -- have left critics searching for superlatives and ensured their constant demand in recital halls around the world.
BUSINESS
May 28, 2005

FSA to test new system to rate banks

The Financial Services Agency will start a new bank rating system in July that will allow regular bank inspections to be used more flexibly, agency officials said Friday.
BUSINESS
May 26, 2005

OIE rules not tough enough on BSE? Prove it: adviser

Japan will need to provide sound scientific evidence if it plans to have stricter regulations to combat mad cow disease than the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), according to an honorary adviser to the international body.
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
May 24, 2005

Here comes the fear

Japan is following other developed countries in drafting antiterrorism laws.
BUSINESS
May 24, 2005

More foreign aid cuts urged

An advisory panel to Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki drafted a proposal Monday urging more cuts in foreign aid in fiscal 2006, citing the nation's troubled finances.
Japan Times
Features
May 22, 2005

Retirees lead the way back to nature

Yoshishige Nagayama started farming when he retired nine years ago at age 60.
BUSINESS
May 21, 2005

Tokyo twisted BSE safety report: panel member

The government "used" an independent Food Safety Commission panel to partially lift its import ban on U.S. and Canadian beef, a Japanese expert on mad cow disease said Friday.
COMMENTARY
May 20, 2005

The right leader for Britain

LONDON -- British politics is now in a fluid state. The May 5 general election, which should have settled things, at least for four or five years, has unsettled everything in a very puzzling way.
Japan Times
Features
May 15, 2005

A hands-on approach to healing in a trice

Lying on your back, you pull up your shirt and push down your pants a bit. Your partner gently touches your navel, then moves their fingers slightly down.

Longform

A mushroom cloud from the atomic bombing on Hiroshima taken from a U.S. military aircraft on Aug. 6, 1945. Copying the photo without permission is prohibited.
80 years on, a Japanese American hibakusha recalls the day the bomb dropped