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Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 1, 2003

Oshima steps down over aides' scandals

In another blow to the Cabinet of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, tarnished farm minister Tadamori Oshima stepped down Monday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 31, 2003

Strengthening military is worth discussing: Abe

The prospect of boosting Japan's military capabilities is worth discussing, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said Sunday.
JAPAN
Mar 27, 2003

U.S. request to shutter Iraqi Embassy declined

Japan will not shut down the Iraqi Embassy in Tokyo despite a request from the U.S. to do so, a senior Foreign Ministry official said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Mar 21, 2003

Koizumi cites security in backing attack

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi emphasized the importance of Japan's alliance with the United States on Thursday as he voiced support for the U.S.-led attack on Iraq less than two hours after the operation began.
COMMENTARY
Mar 4, 2003

Signs of a thaw in cross-Strait relations

HONG KONG -- In a potentially significant move, China is reported to have pulled back some of its missiles along the Fujian coast facing Taiwan, something that the United States and Taiwan have been urging China to do for some time. An article in Taiwan's United Daily News on Thursday reported that "the...
BUSINESS
Mar 1, 2003

With Sogo recovering Wada takes on Seibu

Shigeaki Wada, who has successfully navigated the Sogo department store chain out of bankruptcy, began his second successive resuscitation job Friday, taking the helm of now troubled Seibu Department Stores Ltd.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Feb 24, 2003

When is a war crime not a war crime?

NEW YORK -- Gunning down civilians on the ground in war may constitute a war crime, but blasting civilians out of existence from high in the sky does not. Or so the general rule seems to be.
BUSINESS
Feb 24, 2003

G7 cool to Japan's deflation concerns

PARIS — Japan's efforts to highlight concerns of a global deflation and the impact of a cheap Chinese currency on the global economy fell flat at the meeting of Group of Seven financial chiefs.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / NETWISE
Feb 13, 2003

Japanese get real on 2 Channel

It was 1975 when University of North Carolina graduate student Steve Bellovin developed a handful of short programs to facilitate communication via UUCP (Unix-to-Unix Copy) between the University of North Carolina and Duke University. The scripts were later rewritten in the computer language "C" and...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 6, 2003

North Korea escapees form help group

A group of escapees from North Korea announced Wednesday they have formed an association to help support them in Japan.
JAPAN
Feb 5, 2003

Kawaguchi pitches SDF role in U.N. peace efforts

Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi has proposed allowing the Self-Defense Forces to join multinational forces when they are part of U.N.-sanctioned international activities working for peace.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Feb 2, 2003

Can 007 fire up the Japanese on N. Korea?

As North Korea's threatening bluster continues to make international headlines, it seems almost bizarre that Japan, which would be in direct physical peril if a conflict erupted on the Korean Peninsula, has its mind on something else, namely Japanese citizens abducted by North Korean agents. Though important,...
EDITORIALS
Jan 26, 2003

Bananas on the brink

Bananas don't usually figure much in the news. True, there were a few occasions in recent years when the ubiquitous yellow fruit slipped off the health and food pages and onto Page 1. Mostly those stories concerned the long-running dispute between the United States and the European Union over barriers...
JAPAN
Jan 18, 2003

New Diet session opens up new questions

The Diet opens a 150-day session Monday amid widespread speculation in Nagata-cho that Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi may dissolve the House of Representatives and call a snap election sometime this year -- possibly even during the session.
JAPAN
Jan 14, 2003

Moscow summit a ratings winner for Koizumi

The public approval rating for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi now stands at 54.6 percent, up 4.6 percentage points from December, according to the results of a Kyodo News survey released Monday.
COMMENTARY
Jan 4, 2003

Pluses and minuses of 2002

LONDON -- "It could have been worse!" say the pundits. There was no repeat of Sept. 11, and there has not been a major conflict. Nor has there been a world-shaking financial crisis. But 2002 was not a good year for many people, and 2003 may not be any better. The balance sheet is not easy to calculate,...
COMMENTARY
Dec 29, 2002

Resist the potions of the past

LONDON -- "Capitulation bottom" is the ugly and inelegant phrase used by financial analysts in London to indicate the low point in the cycle of investor optimism and pessimism -- the point where investors give up in despair, sell their shrunken shareholdings, if they can find a buyer, and start putting...
JAPAN
Nov 30, 2002

Government wants Jenkins to be treated in Japan

The government has demanded that North Korea send Charles Robert Jenkins, a former U.S. soldier married to a returned Japanese abductee, to Japan to treat his illness at a hospital here, Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi said Friday.
BUSINESS
Nov 27, 2002

Banks pushed on restructure efforts

Cabinet ministers urged the nation's major banks Tuesday to make further restructuring efforts to improve their financial health.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 24, 2002

Blinded by dogma, or just poor journalism

One would have thought the media learned something from the Kim Hye Gyong debacle.
JAPAN
Nov 18, 2002

Yokota's father urges full investigation

The father of a Japanese woman who reportedly committed suicide in North Korea after being abducted to the country urged the government Saturday to conduct full investigations into her whereabouts.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 13, 2002

Bones not abductee's: Japan

In a finding that raises serious doubts over the credibility of Pyongyang's accounts of the kidnapping of Japanese nationals, authorities in Tokyo have concluded that bones North Korea claims are the remains of Kaoru Matsuki are probably not his.
BUSINESS
Sep 11, 2002

Minister wants tax cuts financed

Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said Tuesday he would tolerate proposed tax cuts of 2.5 trillion yen or more if the drop in tax revenues were to be balanced out in the long run.
BUSINESS
Sep 6, 2002

Shiokawa blunder creates confusion

There was temporary confusion Thursday afternoon over whether the government would release a fresh economic package in response to a recent plunge in stock prices before Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi visits the United States later this month.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / J-POPSICLE
Sep 4, 2002

X Japan pianist/drummer is now a global commodity

If you've walked by the Laforet building in Harajuku recently, you might have noticed a huge banner that draped the structure's exterior featuring a masked character, looking something like a pro wrestler, poking his head out of what appears to be a body of water.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2002

Law grad opts for freelance reporting, not elite track

With an average monthly income of just 150,000 yen, Maiko Morimoto is the exception among graduates of the University of Tokyo's law department, which has turned out a slew of elite bureaucrats and lawyers.
BUSINESS
Aug 20, 2002

Nasdaq withdrawal blamed on prolonged economic slump

The head of Nasdaq's international operations reiterated Monday that the prolonged domestic slump was behind Nasdaq Stock Market Inc.'s decision to pull out of Japan.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 11, 2002

We are more than just numbers, aren't we?

On Aug. 3, something interesting happened on the TBS newsmagazine "Broadcaster." Following a report on the new computerized resident registry network, commonly referred to as Juki Net, which would go into effect the following Monday, the show's presenter apologized for not covering the topic fully when...
BUSINESS
Jul 24, 2002

Japan stocks weathering U.S. downturn: ministers

Japanese stocks are showing resilience despite the ongoing plunge in U.S. share prices, key economic ministers in Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's Cabinet said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jul 18, 2002

Government denies media report of plans for ODA agency

The government denied a media report Wednesday that Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi is considering the creation of an agency outside her ministry to chiefly handle issues related to official development assistance.

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight