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JAPAN
Sep 8, 1997

Reclamation takes away favored nesting ground

The tidelands of Isahaya Bay, Nagasaki Prefecture, were home to the largest number of migrant birds in Japan in 1996 -- a year before a controversial reclamation project cut it off from the bay's life-giving waters with a gate, the Environment Agency said Sept. 8.
JAPAN
Sep 4, 1997

Analysts forecast slow growth in July-September quarter

The economy will return to a growth path in the July-September quarter after a sharp plunge in the April-June quarter that think tank analysts have linked to the consumption tax increase in April.
JAPAN
Sep 1, 1997

Group urges ban on school animal pens

A Tokyo animal rights group requested Aug. 29 that the government discontinue the practice of keeping rabbits and other animals at primary schools.
JAPAN
Aug 22, 1997

Division of posts ministry proposed by reform council

The Administrative Reform Council has proposed privatizing the life insurance business operated by the Posts and Telecommunications Ministry and placing two of its other major operations -- postal savings and delivery -- under a new governmental agency.
JAPAN
Aug 21, 1997

Panel gives glimpse of next government

The government's blue-ribbon panel on administrative reform concluded Aug. 21 that the government should be revamped into a Cabinet Office, 10 ministries and two agencies by January 2001.
JAPAN
Aug 20, 1997

Reform bang may be too soft to shake up insurance sector

Staff writer
JAPAN
Aug 14, 1997

Draft plan aims to cut ministries to 15

Japan's 22 ministries and agencies will be reorganized into either 13 or 15 by January 2001, with a new Economic Ministry to be created by a merger of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry and the monetary policy division of the Finance Ministry, according to a draft plan being discussed by...
JAPAN
Aug 5, 1997

Poll reveals a sleep-needy populace

If you had one extra hour a day, how would you spend it?
JAPAN
Aug 5, 1997

Man admits harassing female Diet member

A 54-year-old man from Sapporo was arrested August 5 on suspicion of making repeated harassment calls to a Lower House lawmaker, police said.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 1997

Posts ministry halts dealings

In a concerted action with financial authorities, the Posts and Telecommunications Ministry said July 30 it will suspend its transactions with Nomura Securities Co. and Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank from Aug. 6 through Dec. 31 as punishment for their illegal dealings with a "sokaiya" racketeer.
JAPAN / History
Jul 23, 1997

Scholar’s New Testament intro opens eyes

Kenzo Tagawa, 61, a leading New Testament scholar, finds the sales of his latest book ‘‘encouraging’’ and ‘‘surprising.’’
JAPAN
Jul 23, 1997

Prune 'zaito' loans, advisory panel urges

Not only does the Fiscal Investment and Loan Program -- the government's "second budget" -- need to be trimmed but it also needs to sever its financial life support to problematic entities such as the Japan National Railways Settlement Corp., an advisory body said July 23.
JAPAN
Jul 11, 1997

Japan submits financial liberalization plan to WTO

Japan was to submit to a World Trade Organization committee in Geneva on July 11 its package of initial offers to liberalize financial services, including steps for greater deregulation in the areas of insurance and foreign exchange control.
JAPAN
Jul 9, 1997

Japan Art Association honors five for cultural contributions

The Japan Art Association on July 9 announced five recipients of the Ninth Praemium Imperiale awards.
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1997

Hashimoto elated with LDP wins; JCP surges

Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto expressed confidence July 7 over his Liberal Democratic Party's continued reign over national politics following his party's victory in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly race July 6.
JAPAN
Jul 3, 1997

Environmental groups worry about bay's wildlife

Environmental groups expressed concern about the potential negative effects oil spilled from a supertanker in Tokyo Bay would have on animal life and tidal flats in the area.
JAPAN
Jul 1, 1997

Gender equality still elusive, white paper says

Women in Japan continue to face a wide range of difficulties in the workplace as well as in other aspects of life, according to a 1997 white paper on gender equality submitted July 1 to the Cabinet.
JAPAN
Jun 26, 1997

Russian boat shoots, wounds Japanese fishermen

A Russian patrol vessel fired on a Japanese fishing boat off Nosappu Cape in Nemuro, Hokkaido, late June 25, seriously wounding two crew members, the Maritime Safety Agency office in Nemuro said June 26.
JAPAN
Jun 23, 1997

Wild goat herds face culling to save Ogasawaras

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government will begin thinning out wild goats on four uninhabited small islands in the Ogasawara chain, about 1,000 km south of Tokyo, to preserve vegetation, coral and bird life, officials said June 23.
JAPAN
Jun 23, 1997

...Isahaya Bay protesters swing

NEW YORK -- An environmental group protesting the land reclamation project at Isahaya Bay in Nagasaki Prefecture is applying pressure on Tokyo by lobbying participants in a United Nations General Assembly session called "Earth Summit Plus Five."
JAPAN
Jun 16, 1997

Analysis: Health system reform falls short

With the Diet's approval of a revision to the Health Insurance Law, many observers are frustrated with the less-than-anticipated results of well over half a year of heated and repeated discussions.
JAPAN
Jun 13, 1997

Top surgeon backs brain-dead transplants

Full disclosure of information, fairness and the best efforts of those involved will be crucial when the nation resumes organ transplants from brain-dead donors, a liver transplant expert told a Diet hearing June 13.
JAPAN
Jun 11, 1997

Windsor takes in ailing Hokkaido hotel

Windsor Hotels International Co. will take over the operation of Hotel Apex Toya, a troubled high-class resort hotel in Hokkaido, it was announced June 11.
JAPAN
Jun 11, 1997

Rescued sailor resumes quest to save killer whales

Disappointed, but relieved -- that is how Michael Reppy characterizes his state of mind. Disappointed because his bid for a single-handed trans-Pacific sailing record fell short, but relieved to have survived and be in Japan working to free five killer whales captured last February.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 1997

Sansei cop urges revival of traditional Japanese values

Good, old Japanese values are dying out in Japan but still thrive outside the country, says a former Los Angeles police detective who led an international probe into a 1981 murder case widely known here as "L.A. suspicion."
JAPAN
Jun 5, 1997

Perishing Isahaya marine life looks to court for salvation

ISAHAYA, Nagasaki Pref. -- As authorities stand idle and let the entire ecosystem on this tideland perish by the day, marine creatures on the brink of extinction are fighting back against the human race -- in court.
JAPAN
Jun 4, 1997

Reclamation claims Isahaya ecosystem

ISAHAYA, Nagasaki Pref. -- As far as the eye can see, cracks running through dried soil have taken over what was a resource-rich wetland only 50 days ago.
JAPAN
Jun 3, 1997

Outdoor gear: love of nature or fashion craze?

Outdoor products originally designed for taking on a trip to the wilderness have become a common sight in the big city. During the past few years, the fashion-driven young -- clad in colorful outdoor jackets and sporting brand-name day-packs and hiking boots -- have given the concrete jungle a new look....
JAPAN
May 29, 1997

Hospitals free to inflate charges for uninsured patients

A 54-year-old Filipino woman living in Inage, Chiba Prefecture, was taken ill in April and had to use an ambulance to go to a hospital in the city of Chiba. She was suffering from acute appendicitis and needed immediate surgery.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

Survey of foreigners leaves Tokyo officials amazed

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government unveiled May 23 the results of its first comprehensive poll on living conditions for foreign residents in Tokyo, which it says is one of the largest ever conducted on foreigners in Japan.

Longform

Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.
Inside Japan’s arena boom: Sports, sound and city-building