search

 
 
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2000

Crown Princess will miss funeral

The Crown Princess will be absent from today's funeral ceremony for the Empress Dowager and related events that will run until Wednesday, the Imperial Household Agency said Monday.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2000

5.5 magnitude earthquake shakes Shikine, Kozu islands

An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.5 jolted the islands of Shikine and Kozu in the Izu Islands chain south of Tokyo on Monday morning, the Meteorological Agency said.
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2000

Supermarket sales plummet 4.4%

First-half sales at Japan's supermarkets totaled 7.86 trillion yen, down 4.4 percent from the same period the previous year, an industry association said Monday.
CULTURE / Music / MUSIC NOMAD
Jul 25, 2000

From the streets of Tokyo to Royal Albert Hall

The night before they left for Europe, Japanese group Cicala Mvta (pronounced Chicala Muta) played for about 50 people in Tokyo -- about par for the course for them. When they arrived in London the next day, theirs was the hottest ticket in town. Sort of.
CULTURE / Books
Jul 25, 2000

The debate on Nanjing is now closed

DOCUMENTS ON THE RAPE OF NANKING, edited by Timothy Brook. Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan Press, 1999, 301 pp., 2,616 yen. AMERICAN GODDESS AT THE RAPE OF NANKING: The Courage of Minnie Vautrin, by Hua-ling Hu. Carbondale, Ill.: Southern Illinois University Press, 2000, 184 pp. The adversity...
CULTURE / Books
Jul 25, 2000

Making peace in Cambodia

EXITING INDOCHINA: U.S. Leadership of the Cambodia Settlement & Normalization with Vietnam, by Richard H. Solomon, with a foreword by Stanley Karnow. United States Institute of Peace Press, 2000, 113 pp. (paper). Contrary to popular opinion, America's involvement with Vietnam did not end with the hurried...
CULTURE / Music
Jul 25, 2000

So you wanna be a glam-sleaze superstar?

As befits artists whose chosen mode of expression is more or less a comment on somebody else's mode of expression, Swedish pop groups definitely have the best names. The Trampolines play bouncy, never-less-than-fun British pop while the Wannadies mine the rich vein of teenage angst in straightforward...
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2000

JAL, ANA to join airlines in e-market for goods, parts

Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways said Monday that they will join eight other international airlines in establishing a venture to operate an online market to help them procure goods and services.
COMMENTARY
Jul 25, 2000

Media credibility is at risk

Two recent incidents have revealed the cozy relationship between government and the media in Japan. One is the appointment of a former Yomiuri Shimbun chief editorialist as a member of the National Public Safety Commission. The other is the fact that a member of the Cabinet press club wrote a memo for...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jul 25, 2000

Fenollosa's study of art is art

EPOCHS OF CHINESE AND JAPANESE ART, by Ernest F. Fenollosa. A facsimile of the 1913 edition. New York, Tokyo, Osaka: ICG Muse, Inc. 440 pp., with original plates, 2,100 yen. Ernest Fenollosa, the man who taught the West about traditional Japanese art, first came to Japan in 1878, when he was invited...
BUSINESS
Jul 24, 2000

Dollar likely to test upper limit against yen this week: dealers

The U.S. dollar will likely test its upper limit against the yen this week amid lingering doubts over the health of the Japanese economy.
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2000

Magnitude 5 quake hits isles; no casualties seen

An earthquake measuring a preliminary magnitude of 5 hit the Izu Islands chain south of Tokyo on Sunday, the Meteorological Agency said. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2000

Mori seeking contact with Kim Jong Il

NAGO, Okinawa Pref. — Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori indicated his readiness Sunday to have direct contact with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il as Tokyo pursues normalized ties with Pyongyang.
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2000

Global partnership urged in summit communique

NAGO, Okinawa Pref. — The leaders of the Group of Eight major nations adopted a communique Sunday calling for a "new partnership" with other countries — especially developing ones, international organizations and the public in order to cope with the increasingly complex challenges of globalization....
SUMO
Jul 24, 2000

Nagoya Basho ends in both triumph and disappointment

Akebono wrapped up the Nagoya Basho on both triumphant and disappointing notes, losing to fellow-yokozuna Musashimaru in the final bout but finishing his first yusho in more than three years with an excellent 13-2 record and reaching his long-awaited goal of 10 championships.
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2000

Putin to make Sept. 3-5 Tokyo visit

NAGO, Okinawa Pref. — Russian President Vladimir Putin will make an official visit to Japan from Sept. 3 to Sept. 5, Tokyo and Moscow formally agreed Sunday.
BUSINESS
Jul 24, 2000

Forecast optimistic for Japan despite rapidly aging society

Japan's population has been increasing steadily since 1945, but the most pessimistic government estimates indicate that it will decline after peaking at 127 million in 2004. By 2025, the nation's population is expected to shrink by roughly 10 million.
EDITORIALS
Jul 24, 2000

Reaping the whirlwind in Fiji

Fiji has long sought the world's attention as a vacation getaway. It has won the headlines in recent months, but for the wrong reasons. Fiji is in the midst of political turmoil that threatens to divide the country, uproot the rule of law and damage relations with neighbors and friends.
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2000

NGOs eye future cooperation

NAGO, Okinawa Pref. — With the official closing of the Group of Eight summit here Sunday, some nongovernmental organizations say they have strengthened their ties and will cooperate in working toward — among other things — resolved conflicts, a healthy environment and human rights.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Jul 24, 2000

Persistent organic pollutants: toxic chemicals here to stay

The acronym POPs sounds harmless enough, bringing to mind glasses of bubbly champagne and harmless fireworks. The reality is far less celebratory.
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2000

Summit Mori's career high?

NAGO, Okinawa Pref. — Concluding the Group of Eight summit with a smile under the scorching sun, Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori may boast he has cleared a key hurdle for his administration — but it is just one hurdle of many.

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