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CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Dec 16, 2001

Young Japanese struggle to find their way

As another year comes to an end, the Japanese media continue to wonder at the new generation at school and at work. The term "shinjinrui" (new species) seems to have fallen out of use but the prevailing attitude is still one of bemusement and even dismay.
COMMENTARY / World / GUEST FORUM
Dec 15, 2001

Image of reconciliation for Myanmar

With the confidence-building period between Myanmar's military regime and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi (Daw Suu) now past the one-year mark, most dissidents have grown more suspicious of the military regime as the country's economy deteriorates and the cost of living rises.
BUSINESS
Dec 15, 2001

Investment pact near for Tokyo, Seoul

Japan and South Korea are likely to agree on the outline of a bilateral investment accord by the end of this year and put it into force in summer, Japanese trade officials said.
JAPAN
Dec 15, 2001

Tax reforms to result in 30 billion yen revenue loss

The ruling coalition announced a package of tax reforms for fiscal 2002 on Friday evening that will result in an estimated revenue loss of about 30 billion yen.
JAPAN
Dec 14, 2001

Death penalty upheld for former cultist

The Tokyo High Court on Thursday upheld the death penalty for one-time senior Aum Shinrikyo figure Kazuaki Okazaki, 41, for his role in the 1989 murders of a Yokohama lawyer, the lawyer's family and a cultist who tried to defect.
BUSINESS
Dec 14, 2001

Japan plans new Chinese import curbs

Japan plans to make legal revisions to impose emergency import curbs that have become possible as a result of China's entry into the World Trade Organization, government officials said.
JAPAN
Dec 13, 2001

Ministry opens counterterrorism office

The Foreign Ministry said it set up a new division Wednesday to deal with the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terror attacks in the United States, centering around cooperating with the international community in the fight against terrorism.
JAPAN / READERS' FUND
Dec 13, 2001

Afghan aid groups persevere despite danger

Prospects for the upcoming winter in Afghanistan were bleak enough before Sept. 11, as years of drought destroyed crops and drove millions of people toward famine.
ENVIRONMENT / GARDENS FOR ALL
Dec 13, 2001

If you go down to the woods today . . .

By this time of year, with temperatures dropping fast and the wind whipping up, the leaves of deciduous trees have almost all fallen. I love to see them coming down, revealing intricate networks of boughs and branches.
BUSINESS
Dec 12, 2001

BOJ maverick urges purchasing of foreign bonds

Nobuyuki Nakahara, a dissident member of the Bank of Japan's policymaking board, said Tuesday that the central bank should begin purchasing foreign bonds in an attempt to devalue the yen.
BUSINESS
Dec 12, 2001

Gist of deregulation steps

The following is a summary of key deregulation measures proposed Tuesday in a report drafted by the Council for Regulatory Reform, a 15-member panel consisting of academics and business leaders:
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2001

Accusation filed against Jichiro

The Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau filed a criminal accusation Monday against the nationwide union of local government employees and former union executives for allegedly evading about 200 million yen in taxes, sources close to the tax authorities said.
Events
Dec 11, 2001

Kansai / Who & What

Herb park extends hours until Christmas Nunobiki Herb Park in Kobe's Chuo Ward will operate for extended hours from Wednesday until Dec. 25.
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2001

Mongolia monument honors prisoners

A monument honoring Japanese who died while in Soviet captivity after World War II has been erected in Mongolia, according to officials of the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry.
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Dec 9, 2001

And they call it puppy love

H igh on the cuteness scale this week is TBS's "Dobutsu Kiso Tengai (Unbelievable Animals)" (tonight, 8 p.m.), a variety-cum-quiz show that covers animals both wild and domesticated.
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Dec 9, 2001

A rough guide to buried local treasures

Even though many jazz players in Japan do get a chance to record, it can sometimes be a challenge to find their CDs -- even in the biggest stores. With limited pressings and uneven distribution, last month's release from a popular live performer in Tokyo can be harder to find than an obscure 1950s hard...
COMMENTARY
Dec 7, 2001

Koizumi takes aim at public corporations

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi believes the Japanese economy cannot recover without structural reform. As the first step in translating this political philosophy into action, he is working on reforming inefficient government-affiliated public corporations.
BUSINESS
Dec 7, 2001

No quick-fix seen in China farm trade dispute

Japan and China will begin a new round of bilateral talks over a lingering farm trade dispute in Beijing today, but a top Japanese trade representative indicated any quick resolution is unlikely.
LIFE / Lifestyle / LEARNING BY HEART
Dec 7, 2001

New b-boys and b-girls on the block

The hippest of hip-hop dancers perform pure magic. They do somersaults, cartwheels and flips. They're dramatic, eccentric, funny and highly creative. They slide in any direction, send electric shock waves through their limbs, glide across the ground like moonwalkers and twirl into body-punishing spins....
COMMENTARY
Dec 6, 2001

Taiwan's Lee 'flexes strength'

TAIPEI -- "The KMT is still the biggest opposition party in the legislature." With these words, Kuomintang party chairman Lien Chan tried, unconvincingly, to put a positive spin on the former ruling party's disastrous showing in last weekend's legislative elections in Taiwan.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 6, 2001

Israeli occupation spawns cycle of death

AL-BIREH, West Bank -- In the 48 hours following the horrific suicide bombings in Israel, hawkish Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon addressed the nation while simultaneously increasing, by yet another step, Israel's part of the violence in the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Sadly, no end...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 6, 2001

Sachiyo Nomura arrested in tax probe

Sachiyo Nomura, the high-profile wife of Hanshin Tigers manager Katsuya Nomura, was arrested Wednesday for allegedly hiding roughly 570 million yen in income and evading 210 million yen in taxes.
JAPAN
Dec 6, 2001

Ex-Itoman chief to pay 2 billion yen

OSAKA -- The Osaka District Court on Wednesday ordered a former president of the now-defunct trading house Itoman Corp. to pay 2 billion yen in damages to the trading firm that absorbed Itoman.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 2001

Debate likely on Imperial succession rules

The birth of a baby girl to the Crown Prince and Princess on Saturday, the first in the couple's 8 1/2-year marriage, is likely to refuel debate within political circles over whether the Imperial House Law should be revised to allow the nation to have a reigning empress.
COMMENTARY
Dec 2, 2001

Chirac's competitive edge

PARIS -- So far, 10 men and two women have entered the race for the French presidential election in April and May. Only one of them has a small chance of being present in the second round -- Jean-Pierre Chevenement, former socialist minister for domestic affairs, whose hostility to the European Union,...

Longform

A sinkhole in Yashio, which emerged in January, was triggered by a ruptured, aging sewer pipe. Authorities worry that similar sections of infrastructure across the country are also at risk of corrosion.
That sinking feeling: Japan’s aging sewers are an infrastructure time bomb