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JAPAN / ELECTION 2000
Jun 3, 2000

Ruling coalition awaits voters' judgment at polls

The coming Lower House election will give voters their first chance to express their support, or lack thereof, for the tripartite coalition led by the Liberal Democratic Party.
JAPAN
Jun 3, 2000

Hospital staff error leaves patient in coma

A surgery patient fell into a coma in mid-May at Tokyo Medical and Dental University Hospital due to suspected malpractice, informed sources said Friday.
JAPAN / ELECTION 2000
Jun 3, 2000

Public spending unproductive, economist says

Masaru Kaneko, an economics professor at Hosei University, is harshly critical of the way the Liberal Democratic Party has been spending taxpayers' money on public works projects and to bail out big banks.
JAPAN
Jun 2, 2000

Kiriyenko urges isle flexibility

Japan should not set a time limit on the settlement of its territorial row with Russia so that the people of both countries can be fully satisfied with the final resolution, according to former Russian Prime Minister Sergei Kiriyenko.
JAPAN
Jun 2, 2000

New school brings outsiders to town

BEPPU, Oita Pref. — "A friend of mine began using some hair cream and perfume after he was asked for directions by a young lady. He is too old to attract coeds, though," chuckled Kiminori Kumada, in a leisurely local dialect.
JAPAN
May 31, 2000

Globe's population set to gray in next 50 years

The percentage of the world's population aged 65 or older will soar to 16.4 percent in 2050 from 6.9 percent in 2000, according to a white paper submitted and approved at Tuesday's Cabinet meeting.
JAPAN
May 31, 2000

Report suggests environment tax to combat global warming

The 2000 white paper on the environment released Tuesday called for the introduction of an environment tax so Japan can more vigorously combat global warming and waste dumping, government officials said.
COMMENTARY
May 31, 2000

Japan-Taiwan ties are not China's affair

Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara attended the May 20 inaugural ceremony for Taiwan's new president, Chen Shui-bian. While in Taipei, Ishihara talked with Chen and his predecessor, Lee Teng-hui, about various issues between Japan and Taiwan. This was good for Japan-Taiwan relations.
JAPAN
May 30, 2000

Global warming to strike hard: IPCC

Global warming may cause large-scale flooding after 2100, leading to water shortages and the spread of infectious diseases, according to the draft of a report to be issued next year by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
CULTURE / Music
May 30, 2000

Rocking out to bicultural rhythms

BANGKOK -- Hundreds of kids line up patiently outside the air-conditioned convention hall for an hour, only to learn the hottest, cheapest concert of the month has just been sold out. The logo for the event is the Japanese flag, a red sun on a field of white, bearing the English words: Asia 2000 Music...
BUSINESS
May 29, 2000

Coleman ventures beyond camping to stamp image on new generation

For many outside Japan, the name Coleman is likely to conjure up images of tents and weekend camping trips by a roaring campfire.
ENVIRONMENT
May 29, 2000

Japan getting into some very deep water

"Deep seawater" is a magic word that seems to make consumers believe any product made with it will be healthier and of higher quality.
JAPAN
May 28, 2000

Osaka homeless have nowhere else to go, World Cup eviction or no

OSAKA -- In the back streets of Osaka's Nishinari district, thousands of elderly men loiter, stopping only to eat at a 100 yen ramen stand or join in a yakuza-run floating craps game.
JAPAN
May 28, 2000

48% oppose stereotyped gender roles

A survey on gender equality conducted earlier this year showed that 48.3 percent of respondents do not support the stereotypical image of men as breadwinners and women as housewives, up from 26.9 percent in 1987, the Prime Minister's Office announced Saturday.
CULTURE / Art
May 28, 2000

Reinventing the art of exhibition making

Harald Szeemann's recent visit to Japan, at the invitation of the Benesse House on Naoshima Island and Kanazawa City's museum construction office, was a rare chance to hear the freelance curator's views on exhibition creation.
CULTURE / Art
May 27, 2000

A vision of hope in a life of disaster

Painting the kind of life he would like to live instead of the hard one he actually has, artist Andrew Boerger creates an appealing, serene world on canvas that has art buyers snapping up his work.
EDITORIALS
May 25, 2000

At long last, silence in Aceh

After nearly a quarter of a century of fighting, the Indonesian government and rebels in the province of Aceh have taken a first, albeit shaky, step toward a peaceful solution to their conflict. Earlier this month, the two sides signed a ceasefire agreement that opens the way for dialogue and negotiations...
COMMUNITY / How-tos / GETTING THINGS DONE
May 24, 2000

Contrasts everywhere

We all know generalizations are dangerous, we shouldn't make them, but we do, especially when there is considerable evidence to support them. Japanese conformity is an example, though we must acknowledge that there is much to suggest a contrasting, imaginative individuality. For example, five perfectly...
LIFE / Travel
May 24, 2000

Echoes of Gandhara and ancient Rome

LANZHOU, China -- Four hundred kilometers from Dunhuang the Jiayuguan Pass, the "Greatest Pass Under Heaven," marks the old border between China proper and the Western Territories. The Chinese considered it the outer limit of civilization. In the 5th century B.C. the legendary Taoist master Laozi, aged...
CULTURE / Music / MUSIC NOMAD
May 23, 2000

Have guitars, will travel -- extensively across Europe

Hurtling toward Vienna on the German autobahns, I have two passengers. One is Okinawan, Takashi Hirayasu. The other, Bob Brozman, is American. Both are playing Bolivian charangos to pass the time, which makes for an interesting multicultural soundtrack for driving. Something like Indian Ocean rhythms...
BUSINESS
May 22, 2000

Ishihara tax reflects paralysis caused by national tax scheme

The new size-based tax on big banks that has been introduced by Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara is causing major repercussions and prompting Osaka Prefecture to consider a similar tax.
EDITORIALS
May 22, 2000

China's hope, Beijing's anger

Saturday was a historic moment in Chinese history. For the first time in that country's long past, the leader of the opposition party took power democratically and peacefully. The inauguration of Mr. Chen Shui-bian as president was celebrated -- and feared. The government in Beijing has made it clear...
COMMUNITY
May 21, 2000

Monkey mugs teacher juggling long way home

After eight months traveling in Asia, Leslie Davis is back in Japan for 2 1/2 weeks. She is using this time "to get grounded": sorting out taxes and boxes, seeing friends and reorganizing her backpack for the next stage of her journey. This will take her through Indonesia to Australia, New Zealand...
JAPAN
May 21, 2000

Cult used Unzen to solicit followers in Nagasaki

The founder of the Honohana Sanpogyo religious group met with the governor of Nagasaki Prefecture in the spring of 1992 and maintained that a "voice from heaven" said the eruption of Mount Unzen would stop by the year's end if prefectural residents "awaken to the real way of life," it was learned Saturday....
COMMUNITY / How-tos / GETTING THINGS DONE
May 21, 2000

Dreams come true

Today I am happy to tell you about one of this column's most successful accomplishments. It began last October when I received a heartfelt letter from Chip Bozek, a teacher in Hokkaido. He wanted to find someone who could give him a "chonmage" haircut like the old-time samurai wore. He had asked his...
COMMENTARY / World
May 21, 2000

Making mountains out of molehills

SYDNEY -- China's opening to the world amid its economic reform and modernization has brought immeasurable benefits to many of its citizens who are being enriched through growing trade linkages. Trading with the rest of the world and even the lukewarm welcoming of foreign investment capital have improved...
COMMENTARY
May 21, 2000

Much ado about nothing?

Claims that Tokyo's governor, Shintaro Ishihara, is racist because he recently described Asians here as "sankoku-jin" (third-country nationals) -- a fairly neutral Occupation-era term used to distinguish resident Koreans and Taiwanese from Westerners -- were a bit far-fetched.

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear