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JAPAN
Sep 17, 1998

LDP to pursue criminal punishment for kids 14 and up

A subcommittee within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Thursday agreed to "actively pursue" a revision of the Juvenile Law to lower the minimum age at which juvenile offenders face criminal punishment from 16 to 14.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 1998

World Food Day set for Yokohama

A symposium on Asian environment and food issues will be held Oct. 18 in Yokohama to commemorate World Food Day.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 1998

DDI asks ministry to OK international rates

DDI Corp. applied to the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications for approval of its international telephone rates Thursday, aiming to start international service on Oct. 22.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 1998

The Asahara Trial: Testimony said to contradict charges

Testimony by former senior members of Aum Shinrikyo contradicts the prosecution's version of the cult's alleged crimes, the defense team for Aum founder Shoko Asahara said Thursday.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 1998

Defense chief admits staff moved scandal documents

Defense Agency chief Fukushiro Nukaga admitted Thursday that some agency officials removed documents related to a scandal involving its Central Procurement Office before prosecutors raided the agency earlier this month.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 1998

Auto industry downshifts on sales forecast

The Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association will revise its auto sales forecast downward for the year as the recession shows no sign of lifting, the head of the industry group said Thursday.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 1998

Attorney enters Osaka governor's race

OSAKA -- Attorney Seiichi Kato, 57, has announced he will run for Osaka governor in the April 1999 race, and called for drastic administrative reforms including privatization of many prefectural government jobs.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 1998

JAMA pointedly rebuffs USTR requests

Repeated requests by the United States Trade Representative to liberalize the Japanese auto market are unreasonable and do not reflect current market conditions in Japan, the head of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association said Thursday.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 1998

LDP offers plan to break deadlock

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party formally submitted a new compromise plan to opposition parties Thursday afternoon on key financial stabilization bills, hoping to break a deadlock in negotiations.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 1998

U.S. takes new tack in push for deregulation

Washington will present a list of industry sectors to Tokyo later this month that outlines where the U.S. would like to see further deregulation and opening of markets, officials of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry said Thursday.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

U.K. suggests exempting developing states from COP4 commitment

The ministerial meeting on climate change that starts today is an important event in laying the groundwork for the upcoming U.N. conference to fight global warming, visiting British Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott told Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

221 lawyers come to aid of twice-acquitted murder suspect

OSAKA -- A group of 221 lawyers has formed a coalition to support a former nursery school teacher who was twice acquitted of murdering one of her pupils in 1974 but has not been freed from the case because prosecutors again have appealed to a higher court.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Diet remains stalled over financial bills

Negotiations over key financial stabilization bills remained stagnant Wednesday, with the opposition camp criticizing the ruling Liberal Democratic Party for its lack of meaningful proposals.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Satellite or not, launch represents threat: South Korea

Regardless of whether North Korea launched a missile or a satellite late last month, the action was a threat to Northeast Asia because it proved that North Korea has the technological ability to develop a medium-range missile, South Korean Ambassador to Japan, Kim Suk Kyu, said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Fast reform is key, U.K. exchequer chancellor says

Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, expressed hope Wednesday that financial reform bills now before the Diet will be enacted and implemented as soon as possible.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

U.S. asks Japan to show some financial leadership

A senior U.S. economic official pressed Japan on Wednesday to demonstrate more of the global financial leadership it shares with the United States to help weather the current crises.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Typhoon No. 5 sweeps through Kanto; two die

A large typhoon, the season's fifth, swept through central, eastern and northern Japan on Wednesday, killing two people and flooding more than 3,200 houses.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

U.S. urges developing countries to join COP4

Developing countries should take part in the effort to combat global greenhouse gas emissions in ways commensurate with their stage of economic development, Stuart E. Eizenstat, U.S. Undersecretary of State for Economic, Business and Agricultural Affairs, said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Emperor takes trip to the future

The Emperor visited the Time 24 Building on the Tokyo waterfront in Koto Ward on Wednesday to get a firsthand look at future business activities and shopping via computer. The building mainly houses government organizations promoting future high-tech businesses.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Kim wants past cleared for sake of better future

South Korean President Kim Dae Jung hopes to hear Japan's "sincere apology and regret" over its past conduct toward Korean people during his visit to Tokyo next month, the country's ambassador to Japan said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Latin American crisis sparked G-7's emergency call

The economic crisis in Latin America was the biggest factor behind an emergency statement issued Tuesday by the Group of Seven industrialized countries, Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Yeltsin mourns Kurosawa's death

Russian President Boris Yeltsin sent a letter to Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi expressing regret over the death of film director Akira Kurosawa, Foreign Ministry officials said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Man denies youth's stabbing death was intentional

AMAGASAKI, Hyogo Pref. -- A homeless man charged with killing one teenager and wounding another in June admitted Wednesday during his first trial at the Amagasaki branch of the Kobe District Court that he assaulted a boy, but denied any intention to kill.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Japan Tobacco asks JAL, ANA to rethink smoking ban

Japan Tobacco Inc. asked Japan Airlines Wednesday to reconsider a plan announced last week to ban smoking on all international flights starting next spring.
JAPAN
Sep 14, 1998

Security concerns force U.S. to bow out of 'mikoshi' event

YOKOSUKA, Kanagawa Pref. -- For the first time in six years, the U.S. Navy will not host the closing ceremonies of this city's annual "mikoshi" parade Sept. 27 due to increased security measures against terrorist incidents directed against the United States.
JAPAN
Sep 14, 1998

Saito urges Norodom to mediate Cambodian unrest

Japan's ambassador to Cambodia, Masaki Saito, urged Cambodian King Norodom Sihanouk on Monday to exercise his power to settle confrontations between government leader Hun Sen and his political opponents, according to Vice Foreign Minister Shunji Yanai.
JAPAN
Sep 14, 1998

Current account surplus soars to 1.35 trillion yen

The nation's current account surplus soared 53.1 percent in July from a year earlier to 1.351 trillion yen, the Finance Ministry said Monday.
JAPAN
Sep 14, 1998

Prosecutors raid Defense Agency

Prosecutors raided the Defense Agency on Monday on suspicion that the agency destroyed documents relevant to a procurement billing scandal in an attempted coverup.
JAPAN
Sep 14, 1998

U.N. campus to offer international courses

United Nations University will offer international courses starting in February for university graduates and postgraduates, university officials in Tokyo said Monday.
JAPAN
Sep 14, 1998

LDP offers to dump public funds use laws

In an attempt to strike a deal with the opposition camp, the Liberal Democratic Party offered Monday to scrap two financial stabilization laws that allow the injection of public funds into troubled banks.

Longform

Japan's growing ranks of centenarians are redefining what it means to live in a super-aging society.
What comes after 100?