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COMMENTARY
Mar 23, 2004

A decade of empty slogans

For all the shouting from the rooftops, political reform in Japan has made little headway. The latest reminder is the arrest of Kanju Sato, a former Lower House veteran of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan, on charges of embezzling the salary of a state-paid secretary.
BUSINESS
Mar 23, 2004

Mitsubishi Fuso's recall likely to include city buses

The imminent recall of large vehicles by Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corp. is likely to include city buses excluded from its initial recall plan.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 21, 2004

Nothing lost in translation of mum music

It's important to say the band's name correctly: mum, which is always written without an initial capital letter, is pronounced "moom." The band itself is from Iceland, and the name has no meaning.
JAPAN
Mar 20, 2004

Avian flu genes match South Korea's

The genes of Japan's avian flu virus are almost identical to those of South Korea's, the farm ministry said Friday.
JAPAN
Mar 18, 2004

Japan detainee meets family in China

A Japanese man detained in China for allegedly engaging in smuggling people by helping them flee from North Korea has met members of his family, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Mar 18, 2004

Professional bowling coming to an alley near you

When first approached to interview Steve Miller, President and CEO of the Pro Bowling Association Tour (PBA), I was reluctant to put it politely. Bowling for me was always something of a last resort if a date was going badly, a sport in which my average closely resembled what it takes me to get around...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Mar 17, 2004

A 'kitchen sink' filled deep

Strange, but true: These days, the chance of seeing a quality Japanese "kitchen sink" (domestic) drama about ordinary people's everyday lives is rarer than the opportunity of watching yet another reworking of Shakespeare, Chekhov or Tennessee Williams. Now, though, and until the end of the month, theatergoers...
Japan Times
JAPAN / POLITICS IN FOCUS
Mar 16, 2004

LDP policy panel calls the shots, not Diet

The Diet shall be the highest organ of state power, and shall be the sole lawmaking organ of the State. Thus reads Article 41 of the Constitution.
EDITORIALS
Mar 8, 2004

No end to political scandals?

Once again, a lawmaker has had to resign from the Diet after admitting to having borrowed somebody's name to misappropriate the state-paid salary of a bogus secretary. This time, the scandal involves Mr. Kanju Sato of the Democratic Party of Japan, a former minister of home affairs and chairman of the...
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2004

Group cranks up rhetoric over isles

A group of former and current Diet members demanded Friday that Japan Post issue stamp sheets featuring images of three sets of islands embroiled in territorial disputes.
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2004

Seibu execs allegedly sold bargain land to racketeers

An investigation into alleged payoffs by Seibu Railway Co. to "sokaiya" corporate extortionists has revealed that three executives of the firm sold two land plots in Kanagawa Prefecture shortly after turning down a real estate company's purchase offer, Tokyo police sources said Thursday.
Japan Times
Features
Feb 29, 2004

Pooch paradise

A dog's life in Japan can be about as close to canine heaven on earth as it gets.
JAPAN
Feb 28, 2004

Breakdown of district court ruling on Aum guru Asahara

Tokyo subway gas attack
COMMENTARY
Feb 28, 2004

Rough sailing ahead for EU

PARIS -- On May 1, eight former communist countries, plus the islands of Malta and Cyprus, will join the European Union, expanding its membership from 15 to 25 countries.
COMMUNITY
Feb 28, 2004

Peace Winds: doing tough things in tough places

Cameron Noble, assistant on peace-building issues to the CEO of the Japanese nongovernmental organization Peace Winds, is in a state of shock. He has just been told he can say goodbye to desk work for at least six months.
JAPAN
Feb 26, 2004

German expert pushes renewable energy

Japan's abundant renewable energy sources have not been sufficiently tapped due to a lack of government initiatives, Hans-Josef Fell, a member of the German parliament and the Green Party's spokesman for research and technology issues, said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Feb 26, 2004

Aum's organization just a shell of its old flush self

Doomsday may soon be a self-fulfilling prophecy for Japan's infamous cult.
JAPAN
Feb 25, 2004

Asahara a social fiend or doting guru?

Over the course of Aum Shinrikyo founder Shoko Asahara's eight-year criminal trial, Tokyo prosecutors have portrayed him as a religious charlatan who used his teachings only to feed his lust for power and fame.
JAPAN
Feb 24, 2004

Japan's Iraq role wins praise of Annan

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Monday won a desperately needed endorsement from U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan for Japan's engagement in postwar aid missions in Iraq.
JAPAN
Feb 21, 2004

Diet dean Yamanaka, LDP's sales tax champion, dies at 82

Liberal Democratic Party heavyweight Sadanori Yamanaka, who influenced the nation's tax policies in the 1980s as a champion for the consumption tax, died Friday at Juntendo University Hospital in Tokyo. He was 82.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 21, 2004

'Gaijin' skier wipes out on group 'wa'

Even after mastering the Japanese language, it's still sometimes hard to understand it. It's like, I hear the words coming out of your mouth, I can even see the "kanji," but I have no idea what you're saying. Indeed, understanding the meaning behind the words is just as important as the words themselves....
Japan Times
JAPAN / POLITICS IN FOCUS
Feb 17, 2004

Koizumi, Kan warm to unicameral system

Whenever a Diet session convenes, the Emperor gives a short speech at the House of Councilors' opening ceremony -- a tradition that should demonstrate the chamber's status.
MORE SPORTS
Feb 14, 2004

Sakamoto to take part in ekiden

Naoko Sakamoto, who won the Osaka International Women's Marathon last month, will take part in the Yokohama International Women's Ekiden later this month as a member of the Japanese national team.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 11, 2004

Politicians mark war centenary

Forty-three Diet members visited Meiji Shrine in Tokyo on Tuesday to mark the centennial anniversary of Japan's declaration of war against Russia that led to the 1904-1905 Russo-Japanese War.
COMMENTARY
Feb 4, 2004

The not-so cordial entente

LONDON -- 2004 marks the 100th anniversary of the Entente Cordiale -- the accord between Britain and France of 1904 that marked a new era of friendship, the ending of numerous disputes and, as it turned out, intimate military alliance in two world wars.

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