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JAPAN
Sep 7, 2002

Upcoming meeting with Kim a ratings winner for Koizumi

The public approval rating for the Cabinet of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi stood at 53.9 percent this week, up 8.7 percentage points from a month ago, according to a Kyodo News survey released Friday.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 6, 2002

Zico wants full squad for friendly

Europe-based Japanese players will get a call-up to play Jamaica in an international friendly next month, Zico's debut match as Japan coach, the Brazilian coach said Wednesday in Tokyo.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Sep 6, 2002

New transfer rule won't help rumor mill

LONDON -- The FIFA-imposed transfer window, which means Premiership clubs will not be able to sign any new players until Jan. 1, has brought different reactions from various parties.
JAPAN
Sep 6, 2002

Tepco in-house probe reveals division chiefs' coverup role

An internal probe by Tokyo Electric Power Co. has determined that division chiefs ordered at least three coverups of structural problems at Tepco nuclear plants, company sources said Thursday.
JAPAN
Sep 5, 2002

Koizumi may invite Kim to visit Japan

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi may invite North Korean leader Kim Jong Il to Japan when he visits Pyongyang on Sept. 17, a top government spokesman said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Sep 4, 2002

Hiranuma sorry for delay in probe of Tepco scandal

Industry minister Takeo Hiranuma apologized Tuesday for the government's failure to quickly announce the results of its probe into Tokyo Electric Power Co., which is suspected of falsifying damage reports on its nuclear power plants.
BUSINESS
Sep 4, 2002

Yanagisawa pushes banks to introduce new settlement account

Financial Services Minister Hakuo Yanagisawa expressed hope Tuesday that financial institutions will introduce a new settlement-specific bank account next April whose deposits are fully protected by the government, although doing so is not mandatory.
COMMENTARY
Sep 4, 2002

Asian stereotypes die hard in U.S. national psyche

LOS ANGELES -- One of the best reading experiences in the United States this summer is the thriller "Absolute Rage," certainly a rage among applauding reviewers from Publishers Weekly to the Los Angeles Times. The 14th in a series of crime thrillers, it tells a well-informed tale about America's brutal...
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2002

Maehara agrees to drop candidacy, support Noda in DPJ presidency race

Weeks of jostling among younger Democratic Party of Japan lawmakers aiming to run in this month's election for party president effectively ended Monday after Seiji Maehara agreed to give up his candidacy and support rival Yoshihiko Noda.
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2002

Nuclear hosts demand investigation into Tepco

The discovery last week that Tokyo Electric Power Co. falsified data regarding inspections at some of its nuclear power plants has sparked a strong burst of indignation from municipalities hosting the facilities.
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2002

Journalists meet to discuss role of media in building peace

Young journalists from a number of politically unstable areas met in Tokyo late last week to discuss the media's role in building peace.
BUSINESS
Sep 3, 2002

Toyota and Nissan forge hybrid tieup

Toyota Motor Corp. will provide Nissan Motor Co. with technology aimed at developing eco-friendly hybrid cars over a period of more than 10 years, the automakers said Monday.
BUSINESS
Sep 3, 2002

Finance Ministry plans to issue inflation-linked bonds

The Finance Ministry is studying measures to issue inflation-linked bonds, the ministry's top bureaucrat said Monday.
BUSINESS / ON MANAGEMENT
Sep 3, 2002

Big raise, big head: Save the new executive from himself

A flattering article on an up-and-coming executive appeared in the business pages, followed by copycat stories in other media. When I complimented the boss on cultivating what seemed to be an extraordinary young talent, she looked me straight in the face and shook her head. "A major, major mistake. I...
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2002

'Spy ship' to be delivered this month

The wreckage of a suspected North Korean spy ship that sank in the East China Sea after exchanging fire with Japan Coast Guard vessels in December is expected to be brought to Japan for inspection late this month, the transport ministry said Monday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / WEEKEND WISDOM
Sep 1, 2002

'Dialect broadcaster' leads revival of Okinawan tongue

NAHA, Okinawa Pref. -- Fumiko Ikari used to spend hours listening to Japanese radio, mimicking broadcasters' inflections and trying to purge all traces of the Okinawa dialect from her speech.
JAPAN
Sep 1, 2002

Iraqi painter exhibiting in Tokyo

An Iraqi painter will hold an exhibition in Tokyo in September to help Japanese gain a different view of the Middle East, the organizers of the art show said Saturday.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
Sep 1, 2002

How can we be No. 3?

In a revelation no less stunning than if Mount Everest was suddenly surpassed as the world's tallest mountain or the Nile outstretched as the world's longest river, a July news report announced that Tokyo is no longer the world's most expensive city.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 1, 2002

Hitting English language-learning overdrive

The Japanese media is in the middle of another of its sporadic English-language learning frenzies, which, this time, seems to have been sparked by an Education Ministry decision to promote English conversation lessons in public elementary schools.
JAPAN
Aug 31, 2002

Koizumi, Hiranuma blast Tepco over alleged nuclear-hazard coverup

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi slammed Tokyo Electric Power Co. on Friday for allegedly falsifying reports on problems discovered at its nuclear plants.
BUSINESS
Aug 31, 2002

Deposit-guarantee loophole averred

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and Financial Services Minister Hakuo Yanagisawa on Friday confirmed that the government will exclude checking accounts used for settlements from plans to limit government protection of bank deposits.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 31, 2002

Fear and loathing in XXL Las Vegas

The combination of classic American kitsch and the Japanese love for it makes Las Vegas a mandatory stop on any Japanese person's tour of the U.S. This is how I find myself in Las Vegas now with two Japanese home stay students.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Aug 29, 2002

Fruit bats boiled in milk may be tasty, but . . .

After World War II, the Pacific island of Guam was taken over by the United States military. In the years that followed, a mysterious, debilitating and incurable brain disease struck increasing numbers of the indigenous Chamorro people, hitting the men especially hard.

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