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JAPAN
Jan 15, 2009

46 Hanshin quake survivors died solitary deaths in public housing in 2008

KOBE (Kyodo) Forty-six survivors of the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake died alone last year in the public housing complexes set up after the disaster in Hyogo Prefecture, data compiled by Kyodo News showed Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jan 14, 2009

Watanabe resigns from LDP, cites rejected reform proposals

Making good on his threats, former administrative reform minister Yoshimi Watanabe resigned Tuesday from the Liberal Democratic Party.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 13, 2009

Graduate job search in full swing, despite recession

Each year, the cherry blossoms of April are accompanied by the nervous march of over 400,000 fresh-faced graduates on their way to their new jobs.
BASKETBALL
Jan 12, 2009

Parker, Kawazura combine to lead Fukuoka to OT victory over Shiga

Michael Parker handled the heavy-duty offensive workload, scoring 44 points, and teammate Tsuyoshi Kawazura reminded us that quality is just as important as quantity in sports.
Japan Times
LIFE
Jan 11, 2009

Asia University for Women: magic in the making

Perhaps it is only fitting in this time of dismal economic news that Bangladesh, a country known principally for natural disasters and human misery, provides an inspiring and uplifting story to relieve the gathering gloom.
BUSINESS
Jan 10, 2009

Foreign investors may receive exemption from capital gains tax

Japan may scrap a 40 percent capital gains tax for most foreign investors, a move the government expects could spur Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds and private equity firms such as Carlyle Group to pump ¥10 trillion into its sagging markets.
EDITORIALS
Jan 9, 2009

Emperor's spirit of peace

Twenty years ago on Jan. 7, 1989, the Emperor ascended to the Chrysanthemum Throne immediately after the death of his father, the Emperor Showa. This year, the 20th anniversary of the Emperor's enthronement will be followed on April 10 by the 50th anniversary of his marriage with the Empress. We pray...
JAPAN
Jan 9, 2009

Somali kidnappers release Japan doctor, Dutch nurse

Somali kidnappers have freed a Japanese doctor and a Dutch nurse after holding them in captivity for more than three months, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Jan 9, 2009

Toyota cut output and now takes aim at pay

Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday it is negotiating with its workers in Japan to slash salaries as it stops production to adjust to slumping global demand.
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2009

Osaka school mobile ban resonates

OSAKA — Each morning, Hisako Kuroda sends her sons, Kenichi, 11, and Jun, 8, off to elementary school in Osaka. The kids depart with their textbooks and homework. But one item they are not carrying is a cell phone.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 7, 2009

Managing fads, frenzies and finance markets

BARCELONA — The financial crisis, credit crunch and ensuing economic downturn have severely damaged the credibility of financial markets, institutions and traders. More and more people are claiming that markets are characterized by irrationality, bubbles, fads and frenzies, and that economic actors...
BUSINESS
Jan 7, 2009

Work-sharing could protect jobs: Mitarai

Big business needs to take every measure possible to improve the rapidly deteriorating employment conditions, and work-sharing is an option that should be considered, Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren) Chairman Fujio Mitarai said Tuesday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 6, 2009

Lessons from when the bubble burst

With the current global financial crisis, there is much talk in the international economic communities about how to prevent the kind of prolonged slump that hit Japan after the end of the bubble economy years.
COMMENTARY
Jan 6, 2009

Prophet of world-culture clashes is dead

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — A giant died early last week. His name was Samuel Huntington, a Harvard professor whose gigantism was intellectual. His ideas left huge footprints on our intellectual landscape, the way giant storms impact the Earth. Minds were shaken, sometimes stirred, and never left untouched....
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2009

Aso: No election until budget passes

Prime Minister Taro Aso said Sunday that the fiscal 2009 budget is his top priority and he won't dissolve the Diet until the budget and related bills make it through the Diet.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jan 4, 2009

Yomiuri Giants prepare to commemorate 75th anniversary in 2009

A Happy New Year to all readers of the Baseball Bullet-In.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Jan 3, 2009

Wishes for 2009: Less unfair criticism of referees, fewer fake injuries

LONDON — Apart from England's failure to qualify for Euro 2008 the year could hardly have gone better for English football. In fact, the World Cup-winning year of 1966 excepted, 2008 is probably the most successful 12 months the sport has ever enjoyed.
Reader Mail
Jan 1, 2009

Public apathy in sumo death

The Japan Times forgot to include the judgment recently handed down in a sumo death as one of the most important news events of 2008. Three senior sumo wrestlers who admitted to beating a 17-year-old child to death after tormenting and torturing the victim for hours on end received only a suspended sentence...
Reader Mail
Jan 1, 2009

Why attend an Indian school?

Regarding the Dec. 28 article "More parents send kids to Indian, Chinese schools": This would perhaps be very encouraging news to the Indian community in Japan and to Indians in general. But I am only in partial agreement with the views of Little Angels International School founder Angelina Jeevarani....
JAPAN
Jan 1, 2009

Aso set to lead LDP's last stand?

In 2007 it was Shinzo Abe. In 2008 it was Yasuo Fukuda and in 2009 it is Taro Aso.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years