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JAPAN
Jun 2, 2007

Ex-farm bureaucrat takes helm at ministry

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has appointed a 48-year-old agriculture policy expert in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and a former farm ministry bureaucrat as the new farm minister to replace Toshikatsu Matsuoka, who committed suicide Monday.
BUSINESS
Jun 1, 2007

Stage now set for Hoya's Pentax tender offer in June

Hoya Corp. announced Thursday that it will launch a tender offer for Pentax Corp. as early as June 4 in an attempt to turn the camera maker into a wholly owned subsidiary, ending a two-month takeover battle that caused Pentax to replace its president.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 31, 2007

Photography now

The borderline between photojournalism and travel photography is hard to define.
JAPAN
May 29, 2007

Embattled farm minister kills himself at residence

Farm minister Toshikatsu Matsuoka, embroiled in a political funds scandal, committed suicide Monday at his residence in Tokyo's Akasaka district.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
May 29, 2007

Aso Mining's POW labor: the evidence

One year after media reports that Aso Mining used 300 Allied prisoners of war for forced labor in 1945, Foreign Minister Taro Aso is refusing to confirm that POWs dug coal for his family's firm — and even challenging reporters to produce evidence.
COMMENTARY
May 28, 2007

Apathetic clouds of smoke

Two years after the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) took effect, many countries are coordinating efforts to curb tobacco use.
BUSINESS / THE VIEW FROM EUROPE
May 28, 2007

Russian car boom catches eye of Japan, Germany

Look at any atlas, and it is plain to see that what is separating Germany from Japan is the world's largest country, Russia. As a land mass, it is indeed a behemoth, spanning over 10,000 km and eleven time zones.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
May 27, 2007

MLB should eliminate 'rookie' label for Japanese veterans

Last week an Associated Press photo appeared in these pages with a caption that began, "Boston Red Sox rookie hurler Daisuke Matsuzaka . . . "
BASKETBALL
May 26, 2007

Orimo joins new team

Takehiko Orimo and Ryota Sakurai will move to the Rera Kamuy Hokkaido of the Japan Basketball Association-led new league, the club announced Friday.
BUSINESS
May 26, 2007

SLR pioneer missed jump to digital

As the first Japanese company to commercialize a single-lens reflex camera for 35mm film, Pentax Corp. has a storied history. But that history may have prevented it from advancing into the digital age and delayed a crucial decision to be absorbed by Hoya Corp. for its own survival.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
May 26, 2007

In the darkness of our times

One night after visiting friends, I hopped on the local bus for a ride home. At the very first stop, the other passengers — a cane-clutching obaasan and a mother with her pre-schooler — stepped off, leaving me all alone as the bus barreled through the dark.
EDITORIALS
May 25, 2007

Juvenile Law revision

A bill to revise the Juvenile Law, which passed the Lower House with the backing of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito, is now in the Upper House. The bill is designed to provide harsher treatment of juvenile offenders. Lawmakers must question whether such a move will really help to prevent juvenile...
BUSINESS
May 25, 2007

Fujiya descends into 8 billion yen net loss

Fujiya Co. announced Thursday it posted a whopping net loss of 8 billion yen in the 2006 business year, down from a 1.8 billion yen loss the year before, after being hit by a sanitation scandal that forced the famous confectioner to suspend operations in about 890 shops and restaurants nationwide.
BUSINESS
May 24, 2007

Nonlife insurers take revenue hit

Six major domestic nonlife insurers on Wednesday reported mixed financial results for the business year to March 31 as earnings were affected by revelations of an industrywide failure to pay legitimate claims and payouts for typhoon damage.
JAPAN
May 23, 2007

Media needs to cover the Hawker case more: Beckett

British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett on Tuesday urged the Japanese media to give more coverage to the murder case of Briton Lindsay Ann Hawker in the hopes that it will help bring the killer to justice.
BUSINESS
May 23, 2007

MMC to reduce dealerships in domestic revamp

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said Tuesday it will start paring its group dealerships to five from 29 on July 1 to help streamline sales channels and turn around its money-losing operations at home.
JAPAN
May 23, 2007

Aso announces 'manga' award for foreign artists

want to make the award something like the Nobel Prize for manga (creators)," Aso told a news conference. "Not as much money will be given as for the Nobel Prize, but we'd like to invite (the winners) to Japan." Foreign Ministry officials said the purpose of the award is to promote Japanese-style comics...
BUSINESS
May 23, 2007

Mizuho group profit falls 4.4% on Orient's losses

Mizuho Financial Group said Tuesday its group net profit dropped 4.4 percent to 621 billion yen in the business year to March on losses incurred by consumer lender Orient Corp., Mizuho's affiliate known for its Orico card.

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