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Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Dec 1, 2014

Campaigns under way but outcome no surprise

Two weeks after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's decision to dissolve the Lower House and call a snap election, campaigning has officially kicked off with more than 1,000 candidates vying for the 475 seats in the Diet's lower chamber.
EDITORIALS
Nov 26, 2014

Revitalizing local economies

Can the Abe administrative accomplish what past governments have tried and failed to do, and revitalize Japan's regional economies?
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Nov 24, 2014

Long-term African expats and new migrants alike face growing 'integration gap' in Japan

With dysfunctional Japanese immigration policies having led to a sharp increase in incarceration rates among African immigrants, a growing number have given up on integration in favor of living a double life: married with children in both Japan and Africa.
EDITORIALS
Nov 21, 2014

ASEAN needs a united front

ASEAN members should cast aside their differences and take a strong stance toward China on the issue of regional maritime security.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues
Nov 12, 2014

Mayor blazes trail with radical child-friendly vision for local government

Every time I try to read or write about local government in Japan I get so easily distra— say, is that paint drying over there? You see the problem?!
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 7, 2014

U.S. government up for sale

The dominating significance of the midterm American legislative elections just finished has been the occasion's dramatic confirmation of the corruption of the American electoral system.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 7, 2014

Tanzania probes alleged ivory smuggling during Chinese state visit

Tanzania is studying a report alleging that Chinese officials bought large amounts of illegal ivory during a visit by President Xi Jinping last year and smuggled it out in diplomatic bags aboard his plane, a Tanzanian government official said on Thursday.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 5, 2014

Is Ukraine's crisis the U.S. and Europe's fault?

The question at the heart of the Ukraine crisis remains whether Russia should have special right to determine the policies and governments of its neighboring countries.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Nov 3, 2014

Redaction of a 'comfort woman' story

One of the Japanese stories sometimes mentioned in the 'comfort women' controversy was written by the late Taijiro Tamura in the spring of 1947. It depicted Korean 'comfort women,' but the U.S. Occupation 'suppressed' it.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Oct 25, 2014

Two U.S. states to quarantine health workers returning from Ebola zones

New York and New Jersey will automatically quarantine medical workers returning from Ebola-hit West African countries, and the U.S. government is considering the same step after a doctor who treated patients in Guinea came back infected, officials said on Friday.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 21, 2014

In bid to keep control over messages, interviews, Modi retains state media

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has anointed India's state-backed broadcaster as his media brand of choice, helping to shield his government from tough questions and prompting private news outlets to complain that they are being kept out of the loop.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 20, 2014

China need not dominate new bank for Asia

If America's allies — and even the U.S. itself — would join China's initiative for an Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Beijing could not dominate it as some fear.
EDITORIALS
Oct 14, 2014

A shift in defense posture

A Japan-U.S. interim report proposes that geographical restrictions on the activities of the Self-Defense Forces in support of U.S. military operations be removed as part of a tremendous shift in Japan's defense posture.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Oct 8, 2014

Australian PM orders crackdown on visas for radical Islamist preachers

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said on Wednesday that he was ordering a crackdown to prevent radical Islamist preachers entering the country, amidst rising tension with the Muslim community following a series of security-related raids.
JAPAN
Sep 29, 2014

Is the Asahi a scapegoat of nationalist media or victim of own missteps?

One of the nation's leading newspapers has been in crisis mode of late — a situation that may bode ill for liberal journalism at a time when nationalism appears to be making public inroads.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 28, 2014

Abe to shift gears as Diet session kicks off

After drawing a storm of criticism and causing controversy with his Cabinet's reinterpretation of the Constitution earlier this year, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party now look ready to avoid contentious security issues and refocus on revitalizing rural economies during the extraordinary...
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Sep 25, 2014

China's anti-graft drive puts the squeeze on Macau's casino junkets

Macau's casino junket operators are feeling the squeeze as China's anti-corruption drive has blown a hole in the world's biggest gambling hub. Some are shifting players elsewhere, like the Philippines and Vietnam; others are quitting the business.
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Sep 21, 2014

Rather than boon for Japan, U.S. shale oil is still rip-off

Japan's national wealth is draining away as its trading companies keeping paying premium prices for the oil on offer from the U.S. and the Middle East.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Sep 21, 2014

After Scottish vote, U.K. faces monumental shift in governance — and all that comes with it

When 3.6 million Scots voted Thursday on whether to leave or stay within the United Kingdom, they were answering one simple question: Should Scotland be an independent country?
WORLD / Science & Health
Sep 12, 2014

Wildlife activists say new U.S. lynx protections fall short

The federal government will extend protections to all imperiled Canada lynx in the lower 48 U.S. states, but wildlife advocates said on Thursday it was ignoring important parts of the rare cats' range and they vowed to challenge the move in court.
BUSINESS / THE VIEW FROM EUROPE
Sep 6, 2014

Automakers may miss boat on modularization

Toyota successfully defended its status as the world's largest automaker in the first half of 2014. However, Volkswagen has gotten very close and is widely expected to overtake Toyota either by the end of the year or in 2015 at latest.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Sep 5, 2014

Can Japan level its problem with vacant buildings?

On July 29, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications released the results of its latest survey on Japanese housing, which it completed last fall and conducts every five years. The statistic that caught the media's attention was the one for akiya, or vacant homes. As of the end of October 2013,...

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan