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JAPAN
Jun 11, 1999

Jobs, extra budget packages slated for current session

The current Diet session will be asked to approve a supplementary fiscal 1999 budget and other legislation that would finance a package of job-creating measures and implement steps aimed at reviving Japan's industrial competitiveness, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiromu Nonaka said Friday.
EDITORIALS
Jun 10, 1999

Peace and priorities in Kosovo

With peace tantalizingly close in Kosovo, it is important to remember why NATO has waged its air war against Yugoslavia: Over 1 million ethnic Albanian Kosovars have been murdered or driven from their homes in a brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing. Yugoslav security forces were the instrument of oppression;...
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Appliance recycling comes to fore

A throwaway society has produced mountains of waste, creating a nightmare that all dumps in this country may be filled in the next seven to eight years.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Analysis: Lofty administrative goals not attained by bills

It has been said that the two sets of administrative reform bills moving on to the Upper House will bring about Japan's most sweeping reforms in 100 years and end the bureaucracy's dominance over the administration.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Sri Lankans find way to share the scholarship

In the small southern Sri Lankan town of Kataragama, high school student Gamini Nawaratne eagerly awaits his monthly mail from Japan.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Japan remains top ODA donor

Japan remained the world's top economic aid donor in 1998 for the eighth consecutive year, providing a total of $10.68 billion in official development assistance, according to statistics released Friday by the Development Assistance Committee.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Revenues dip for midsize life insurers

The nation's seven midsize life insurance firms released their fiscal 1998 earnings reports Thursday, in which all but Daido Life Insurance Co. reported declines in premium revenues.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Aoba posts first fiscal year earnings

Aoba Life Insurance Co. logged premium revenues totaling 64.9 billion yen for fiscal 1998 ended March 31, the firm said in its first full-year earnings reports, released Thursday.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

GDP expanded 1.9% in January-March quarter

The nation's economy grew 1.9 percent in the January-March quarter — an annualized rate of 7.9 percent — breaking a string of five consecutive quarters of contraction, the Economic Planning Agency said Thursday.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Teachers to oppose flag, song bill

The Japan Teachers' Union began a three-day regular meeting Thursday in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward to discuss action plans with a special aim to oppose government moves to legally recognize the Hinomaru as the nation's flag and "Kimigayo" as the anthem.
EDITORIALS
Jun 10, 1999

Fear on the table

Europe is gripped by its worst food crisis since 1996. Then, scientists discovered that beef from Britain may have been infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or "mad cow disease." Now, new fears have been triggered by the discovery in Belgium that fat contaminated with dioxin -- a lethal carcinogen...
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Edo freighter replica to be tested in Osaka Bay

OSAKA — A replica of an Edo Period cargo vessel is nearly complete and will be tested in Osaka Bay early next month, according to city officials.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Cultist says Inoue lied about guru

An Aum Shinrikyo senior cultist on Thursday accused another former follower of giving false evidence in the alleged drugging-killing of a Tokyo notary public in February 1995.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Panel urges simplifying port service regulations

Regulations on port services should be gradually simplified, according to a recommendation made Thursday by an advisory panel to the transport minister.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

LDP OKs Hinomaru, 'Kimigayo' bill

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party approved a Cabinet plan Thursday to adopt a bill today to legally recognize the Hinomaru as the national flag and "Kimigayo" as the anthem.
CULTURE / Music
Jun 10, 1999

Rockers get down for Tibet Freedom weekend

What do an 11th-century Tibetan saint and a member of one of the world's more popular hip-hop groups have in common?
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Government outlines job-creation measures

The government on Thursday outlined its long-awaited emergency steps to bolster job security and revive industrial competitiveness, setting a target of 720,000 new jobs.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 1999

Analysis: Life insurers' credibility shaken

Major and second-tier life insurers' dismal earnings reports for fiscal 1998 have cast yet another shadow over the industry, already shaken by the recent collapse of midsize Toho Mutual Life Insurance Co.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1999

Kurushima Kaikyo Bridge walk set for August 1

The Japan National Tourist Organization is organizing a walk over the 4-km-long Kurushima Kaikyo Bridge, the world's first triple suspension span, on Aug. 1.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1999

Ready for 2000?: Line-by-line repairs not enough, expert says

Last in an occasional series on Japan's Y2K preparedness
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1999

C&W wins IDC stakes

Toyota Motor Corp. and Itochu Corp. on Wednesday announced their decisions to sell their 17.7 percent stakes in International Digital Communications Inc. to Britain's Cable and Wireless PLC.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Jun 9, 1999

The random walk

Hoping to tap into that Amazon.com magic right here in Japan, Softbank (a software and publishing company), Seven-Eleven, Yahoo! Japan and Tohan, a book publisher and distributor, last week announced a joint venture to sell books online. e-Shopping! Books (who thinks up these names?) plans to open for...
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1999

Hopes ride high on ibis chick's wings

After teetering on the edge of extinction domestically for several years, the Japanese crested ibis took a small step away from the brink when a chick cheeped its way into the world on May 21.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1999

Publisher to pay for exposing accused man

OSAKA — The Osaka District Court ordered the Tokyo-based publisher Shinchosha to pay 2.5 million yen in damages Wednesday to a 20-year-old man indicted for a murder he allegedly committed as a minor, for carrying his name and photo in one of its publications.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1999

Local governments, businesses form Kansai council

OSAKA — Local governments and business organizations in Kansai and surrounding areas set up a joint council Wednesday to revitalize the regional economy.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1999

Taxes to fund portion of Minamata payments

The government is expected to subsidize chemical firm Chisso Corp.'s compensation payments to victims of pollution-related diseases caused by the firm's plant in Minamata, Kumamoto Prefecture.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1999

Maki, others awarded Praemium Imperiale

The Japan Art Association on Wednesday announced this year's winners of its Praemium Imperiale awards, including Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki, who is widely known for his innovative and modern style.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1999

Upper House begins debate on wiretap bills

The House of Councilors on Wednesday began deliberating controversial bills that would allow law enforcement authorities to wiretap private communications during investigations into organized crime.
EDITORIALS
Jun 9, 1999

Dangerous posturing in Kashmir

One month has passed since fighting broke out between India and Pakistan over the disputed territory of Kashmir. Despite reassurances from both governments that the fighting will be contained, the conflict has intensified. The risk of escalation is ever-present, but neither government seems to take the...
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1999

Coalition talks sought with New Komeito

The Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner, the Liberal Party, must discuss common policies with New Komeito before the latter holds its convention in late July, when it is expected to decide whether to join the ruling bloc, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiromu Nonaka said Wednesday.

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