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COMMENTARY / World
Dec 20, 2004

NGO builds bridges between Japan, U.S.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Most Americans still think of Japan as having a "weak" economy. Japan's reputation in the United States from an economic standpoint has not fully recovered from the bursting of the 1980s' "bubble."
JAPAN
Dec 19, 2004

Seibu Rail shirked board meetings

Seibu Railway Co. did not hold a board of directors meeting for about seven years until this spring in violation of the Commercial Code, officials of the railway operator said Saturday.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 19, 2004

Final warning: The horror of horrors medical TV show

The medical industry has become as scary as the diseases it treats. On Dec. 10, the government released a list of 7,000 medical institutions nationwide that handled tainted blood products before 1994, and on the same day a judge ordered the Tokyo Medical University Hospital to preserve evidence related...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Dec 19, 2004

Stamp of identity for artist of a troubled double heritage

THE LIFE OF ISAMU NOGUCHI: Journey Without Borders, by Masayo Duus, translated by Peter Duus. Princeton University Press, 2004, 340 pp., 36 half-tone photos, $29.95 (cloth). ISAMU NOGUCHI: Master Sculptor, by Valerie J. Fletcher, with contributions by Dana Miller and Bonnie Rychlak. London: Scala Publishers,...
JAPAN
Dec 18, 2004

Koizumi, Roh back six-way talks, in no hurry for sanctions

IBUSUKI, Kagoshima Pref. -- Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun said Friday they will seek an early resumption of six-way talks on North Korea's nuclear threat.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 18, 2004

Japanese school gets more asylum-seekers

Seven asylum-seekers believed to be North Korean entered a Japanese school in Beijing on Friday morning, according to Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Dec 18, 2004

Mourinho's moaning about Henry's goal just a diversion

LONDON -- There should have been no controversy.
Dec 18, 2004

Koizumi, Roh back six-way talks, in no hurry for sanctions

IBUSUKI, Kagoshima Pref. -- Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun said Friday they will seek an early resumption of six-way talks on North Korea's nuclear threat.
Japan Times
Dec 18, 2004

Japanese school gets more asylum-seekers

Seven asylum-seekers believed to be North Korean entered a Japanese school in Beijing on Friday morning, according to Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda.
CULTURE / Books / THE BOOK REPORT
Dec 17, 2004

Book Trade Booms in 2004

2004 was a prosperous year for the Japanese book trade with revenues exceeding the previous year's figures for the first time in seven years. Despite many small bookstores going out of business, innovative marketing from publishers and book retailers produced several million-sellers.
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2004

State may downgrade economy

The government will probably downgrade the economy in its December report, making it clear things are slowing down, sources at the Cabinet Office said Thursday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2004

Tokyo to grant Lee entry by year's end

Japan said Thursday it will issue an entry visa to former Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui for a private trip by the end of the month, in a move that could further aggravate its already strained relationship with China.
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2004

NPA to launch unsolved-crime DNA database

The National Police Agency will launch a DNA database Friday of evidence found at unsolved crime scenes nationwide.
JAPAN
Dec 16, 2004

'Tankan' sees first slide in 21 months; recovery past peak

Business confidence at Japan's large manufacturers in the October-December quarter worsened for the first time in 21 months, and the outlook for next quarter is even dimmer, according to the Bank of Japan's closely watched "tankan" survey released Wednesday.
JAPAN
Dec 16, 2004

Obituary: Roger Allen

Roger Allen, a longtime resident of Tokyo and vice chairman of the Foreign Community Support Committee of YMCA in Japan, died Tuesday of heart attack at a hospital in Tokyo. He was 59.
BUSINESS
Dec 16, 2004

Kokudo to void Seibu stock transactions

Kokudo Corp. is willing to void stock transaction deals worth 62 billion yen with about 70 firms that bought Seibu Railway Co. shares without knowing that Seibu had underreported shareholder ratio figures, company sources said Wednesday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 16, 2004

ASIMO one step closer to acquiring human touch

The latest version of ASIMO, the humanoid robot developed by Honda Motor Co., has taken a step closer to humanity.
JAPAN
Dec 14, 2004

Widow seeks damages over Monju leak

The widow of an official who committed suicide after lying during a probe into a 1995 accident at the Monju fast-breeder reactor demanded on Monday 148 million yen in damages from the reactor's operator.
BUSINESS
Dec 14, 2004

Tokyo, Seoul sign customs pact

Japan and South Korea signed an agreement Monday authorizing mutual assistance between their customs authorities, the Finance Ministry said.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Dec 14, 2004

Flax law, dog care and ISPs

Flax laws MW, who was trying to find a coppersmith (Lifelines; Nov. 30) writes: "Many thanks for the advice . Although I've been in Tokyo since forever, I still managed to neglect to check with the Traditional Craft Center."
JAPAN / BY THE NUMBERS
Dec 14, 2004

Sake trendy abroad but hard sell here to young

It has a deep, delicate and definitely cultural flavor. Yet sake does not appeal to many of today's Japanese, who would rather clink glasses of "shochu" liquor or wine.
JAPAN
Dec 12, 2004

Stricter limits eyed for farmed tuna

The Fisheries Agency has decided to impose tougher limits on imports of farmed bluefin tuna due to criticism that tuna farms have caused environment pollution and overexploitation, agency sources said Saturday.
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2004

Hotline flooded with calls over tainted blood fears

A health ministry hotline has been flooded with calls from people nationwide worried about whether they have hepatitis C, after the government announced Thursday that it has a list of nearly 7,000 medical institutions that handled the tainted blood coagulant fibrinogen before 1994.
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2004

Defense policy overhauled to meet new global threats

The government announced Friday plans to conduct a sweeping overhaul of its defense policy, adjusting Japan's armed forces to better handle new threats such as terrorism and giving them a greater global role.
BUSINESS
Dec 11, 2004

Seibu Railway listing hopes dashed

Seibu Railway Co. said Friday it has abandoned efforts to get its shares listed on the Jasdaq over-the-counter market by the end of the current fiscal year.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 10, 2004

Schroeder, Koizumi agree to back each other's UNSC candidacy bid

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder agreed Thursday to support each other's candidacies for permanent membership in the United Nations Security Council.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / VINELAND
Dec 10, 2004

Six sure-fire gift ideas for fellow wine-lovers

There appears to be an entire cottage industry dedicated to making the kind of wine-themed gifts that imbibers everywhere are hoping not to receive this season -- our favorite of which is the doormat which says, "We love good wine. Did you bring any?"
JAPAN
Dec 9, 2004

State looks to photograph, fingerprint all foreign arrivals

A government task force has drafted an antiterrorism plan that includes fingerprinting and photographing all foreign visitors upon entry into Japan, government sources said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Dec 9, 2004

NPA report lists the usual suspects: Islamic terrorists, Aum, Pyongyang

International terrorist organizations run by Islamic extremists are expected to continue carrying out attacks worldwide, and the possibility of Japan becoming a target cannot be ruled out, the National Police Agency reckoned in an annual report on security released this week.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes