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EDITORIALS
May 20, 2001

Congratulations -- and questions

There was barely a pause after the good news of the pregnancy of the Crown Princess was announced before widespread discussion broke out on whether the law should be changed to allow a woman to succeed to the Chrysanthemum Throne.
COMMUNITY
May 20, 2001

The Tiger's meow

Anti-mainstream, anti-centralism, a love of losers. Such is the stuff of a Hanshin Tigers fan.
CULTURE / Books
May 20, 2001

Fortress Japan? Blame MacArthur and his team

THE GENESIS OF THE JAPANESE FOREIGN INVESTMENT LAW OF 1950, by Richard Rabinowitz. German-Japanese Lawyers' Association Vol. 10, 1999, 11,000 yen, $ 84.50. In 1853, Commodore Perry sailed into Tokyo Bay and demanded that Japan's quasi-military government allow foreign trade. The resulting interactions...
CULTURE / Music
May 20, 2001

Is you is or is you ain't . . . ?

Stephen Malkmus, formally known as SM, formally known as that tall, skinny guy who knows more neat metal guitar riffs than anyone in Stockton, Calif., was the leader by default of Amerindie's greatest band, Pavement, which called it quits last fall after a year of waffling.
COMMENTARY
May 20, 2001

Koizumi honeymoon rolls on

Three weeks after its debut, the administration of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi continues to command high popularity. In opinion polls immediately after its inauguration April 26, the new administration received record approval ratings of over 80 percent. The "Koizumi boom" is likely to last for...
JAPAN
May 19, 2001

Hansen's ruling appeal, deal eyed

The government is considering starting negotiations with former Hansen's disease patients for an out-of-court settlement after filing an appeal against a court ruling last week ordering the state to pay them compensation, government sources said Friday.
EDITORIALS
May 19, 2001

India's opposition turns up the heat

India's prime minister, Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee, insists that the results of last week's state elections are of no concern to his government. Technically speaking, he is right; the vote was for 823 seats in local legislatures in five states. But while voting for state candidates, Indians sent a message...
JAPAN
May 19, 2001

Panel chair nixes call for Nakamura to quit over bribery

The House of Councilors Steering Committee on Friday killed an opposition-proposed resolution calling on former Construction Minister Kishiro Nakamura to resign from Parliament over a conviction for bribe-taking, which he has appealed, arguing he is not guilty.
COMMENTARY / World
May 19, 2001

Koreans' dream of unity is still remote

SEOUL -- In less than a month, Koreans will commemorate the first anniversary of the historic inter-Korean summit. In mid-June last year, the leaders of the divided country met for the first time and vowed to open a new chapter in peninsular relations. Numerous political and academic events will take...
JAPAN
May 19, 2001

Farmers' land improvement unions diverted membership dues to LDP

Government-subsidized "land improvement unions" of farmers in 17 prefectures have misappropriated union membership fees worth 46.13 million yen since fiscal 1996 to pay for union leaders' membership fees for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and to aid LDP lawmakers, the Agriculture Ministry said this...
JAPAN
May 18, 2001

Group aims to help stalking victims

KYOTO -- In an effort to provide more effective help to stalking victims in the Kansai region, a six-member network, including lawyers, public notaries and a security firm, was formed Thursday.
JAPAN
May 18, 2001

Ministry soliciting ideas for environmental policy

The Environment Ministry is looking for new ideas to help formulate innovative environmental policies.
JAPAN
May 18, 2001

WHO names envoy to fight spread of Hansen's disease

The World Health Organization has appointed Nippon Foundation President Yohei Sasakawa as special ambassador for its fight against Hansen's disease, officials of the foundation said Thursday.
JAPAN
May 17, 2001

IOC: Osaka can continue bid

From wire and staff reports The IOC late Wednesday decided in Lausanne, Switzerland, to let Osaka and Istanbul, Turkey, stay in the race for the 2008 Summer Olympics.
COMMENTARY
May 16, 2001

New metaphors for Europe

LONDON -- German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and his Social Democratic Party have done Europe a great service -- although it may not have been the one Schroeder intended.
CULTURE / Music
May 16, 2001

The Sonig circuit

Back in 1960 when he was a strapping egghead of 31, Karlheinz Stockhausen, the father of taped electronic music, had a vision: Every major city in the world would build an auditorium for the appreciation of "space music." Stockhausen's prediction was simply the optimistic ramblings of an intellectual...
JAPAN
May 15, 2001

Surname rigidity frustrates

Kyodo News Before Akiko Orita got married in the fall of 1998, she planned to have an equal partnership with her husband, rather than, in her words, "an absorbed merger."
BASEBALL / MLB
May 15, 2001

Ichiro show rolls on in Canada

TORONTO -- The Ichiro Show has played to rave reviews in the U.S. for the first six weeks of the baseball season. This past weekend, it was a smash hit in its Canadian debut.
JAPAN
May 15, 2001

Former Australian prime minister hits U.S. over missile shield

AWAJI ISLAND, Hyogo Pref. -- A former Australian prime minister has slammed the decision of U.S. President George W. Bush to deploy an as-yet undeveloped missile defense system in Asia, saying it poses a "significant" threat to stability in the region.
BASEBALL / MLB
May 15, 2001

'Wave takes over PL lead

Nobuyuki Ebisu (2-2) gave up five hits and struck out seven in six innings and Yoshitomo Tani blasted a two-run homer as the Orix BlueWave won their sixth straight game and took the Pacific League lead by defeating the Kintetsu Buffaloes 5-1 on Monday night at Green Stadium Kobe.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
May 13, 2001

Everybody can't get stoned

Kenji Ogasawara returned from a visit to Hawaii seven years ago on a natural high. Partially paralyzed by multiple sclerosis in mid-1994, he left for Honolulu later that year in a wheelchair. On his return to Narita two weeks later, he stepped off the plane on his own two feet.
CULTURE / Music / MUSIC NOMAD
May 13, 2001

Lonesome Strings come out of the shadows

Like anyone who's really good at something, Yoshiki Sakurai makes it look easy. On stage, as he lets fly with complicated riffs and rhythms in any variety of styles, he stands expressionless.
JAPAN
May 12, 2001

LDP agrees to Diet vote on foreign suffrage bill

In a move designed to flatter its key coalition ally, the Liberal Democratic Party will agree to hold a Lower House vote during the current Diet session on a bill to grant foreign residents suffrage, LDP policy affairs chief Taro Aso said Friday.
BUSINESS
May 12, 2001

Korean residents give green light to bid for new bank

Korean residents in Japan decided Friday to apply in late June for the establishment of a bank to take over the healthy assets of failed credit unions serving their community, officials said.

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