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Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Apr 11, 2004

'Experimental novelist' kicks the regular rulebook into touch

During a recent tour to Guam, members of the Tsunami Teetotallers (a Japan-based ad hoc rugby team) were left speechless when, during prematch introductions, their scrumhalf Richard Beard declared himself to be an English "experimental novelist."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 11, 2004

On a High with Teens

Friday, March 19: There's an explosion of noise and color in the heart of the Ten-jin district in Fukuoka City and the locals don't know what has hit them.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 11, 2004

New Japan Philharmonic pops the cork

One thing is for sure: Composer Joe Hisaishi is bursting with confidence about his latest project. Best known for composing music for Hayao Miyazaki's Academy Award-winning "Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi (Spirited Away)" (2001), Hisaishi was recently appointed musical director of a new popular music...
JAPAN
Apr 9, 2004

Diet ponders ramifications of ruling on Yasukuni visit

A district court ruling Wednesday that a visit to Yasukuni Shrine by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi was unconstitutional has ignited debate on the need for an independent court that specializes in constitutionality.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 9, 2004

Local governments crack down on pilferers of recyclable paper

Vexed by rampant thefts of used paper, many local governments have tightened patrols of trash-collection sites and have issued new regulations claiming ownership of discarded newspapers, magazines and other printed matter.
JAPAN
Apr 9, 2004

Dialysis-linked hepatitis C spread alarming

About 2.2 percent of patients who underwent dialysis in 2001 were infected with the hepatitis C virus because some facilities apparently failed to take proper precautions to prevent infection, according to a government study, which did not identify the institutions were the infections occurred.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Apr 9, 2004

International Street Performers Festival: Hit the streets and party!

The International Street Performers Festival was hatched in Papa John. In 1984, Ikuo Mitsuhashi -- a mime artist just back in Yokohama from a decade-long French sojourn -- dropped by the venerable jazz shot bar and listened to the proprietor describe the Association for Fostering Noge Culture. He was...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 7, 2004

Korean love story heats up Japan

As a milestone in Japan's ongoing love affair with Korean entertainment, which has been deepening over the past few years, "The Hotel Venus" is a big one.
JAPAN
Apr 7, 2004

Kids' English education business thrives

Private English schools catering to children are thriving, reflecting a growing number of parents, especially younger mothers, who want their kids to start learning the language at an early age.
JAPAN
Apr 7, 2004

Nikkei tops 12,000 line amid optimism, yen fall

Tokyo stocks advanced Tuesday on growing optimism over the economy, pushing the key Nikkei index above the 12,000 line for the first time in 32 months.
JAPAN
Apr 7, 2004

Four arrested over gold-smuggling

Tokyo prosecutors arrested four people Tuesday on suspicion of smuggling 500 kg of gold bullion from Hong Kong and evading 35 million yen in consumption tax.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 6, 2004

Fukuda set for longevity record

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda on Tuesday will tie the record as the longest-serving official to work as a prime minister's right-hand man.
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 4, 2004

Valentine's Marines take over lead in PL

Former New York Mets players Benny Agbayani and Matt Franco combined for all five runs Saturday as the Chiba Lotte Marines downed the defending Japan Series champion Daiei Hawks 5-2 at Chiba Marine Stadium.
BUSINESS
Apr 3, 2004

Senior executive of MMC leaves firm under a cloud

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said Friday that Steven Torok, executive vice president in charge of overseas sales, left the company the same day to return to the Chrysler Group.
JAPAN
Apr 3, 2004

NKK may have paid off mob to quell incinerator outcry

Steelmaker NKK Corp., now known as JFE Engineering Corp., is suspected of using some 500 million yen in undeclared income to quell opposition to its construction of two waste incinerators.
OLYMPICS
Apr 2, 2004

JOC angered over domestic row

responded negatively Thursday to sending taekwondo fighter Yoriko Okamoto to the Athens Olympics after rival domestic bodies administering the sport failed to form an umbrella organization by the deadline. Last month, the JOC said it will allow the participation of no athletes in taekwondo at this summer's...
JAPAN
Apr 2, 2004

Mori to fight monster in screen debut, but will he get lines?

Gaffe-prone former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, who was forced in April 2001 to bow out as his star fell among the public, hopes it rises as he takes to the silver screen to take on a monster.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 31, 2004

It's a wonderful dog's life

Quill Rating: * * * 1/2 (out of 5) Director: Yoichi Sai Running time: 100 minutes Language: Japanese Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] Now Yoichi Sai directs a dog movie for kids? This is the guy who made "Tsuki wa Docchi ni Deteiru (All Under the Moon)," a picaresque...
JAPAN
Mar 31, 2004

China aid to be based on ties, growth

Japan will consider bilateral ties as well as China's economic development in its policy on future economic aid to Beijing, the Foreign Ministry said in an annual white paper on official development assistance.
JAPAN
Mar 31, 2004

Kids to learn about North Korea abductions, Sept. 11 attacks

The abduction of Japanese nationals to North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s and the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the United States have been included for the first time in elementary school textbooks.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / NEW ART SEEN
Mar 31, 2004

Ishiwata's hands make 'Lightworks' at Uplink

In the event that you find yourself up in Edogawabashi, be aware that the northern Shinjuku neighborhood is not completely off the map, art-wise. Two very pleasant spaces occupy a building just a few minutes walk from its eponymous station -- the Uplink Gallery and La Galerie des Nakamura.
EDITORIALS
Mar 30, 2004

A test for Taiwan's democracy

Ten days after Taiwan's presidential election yielded a contested result, there are signs of progress in resolving the political crisis it created. The winner of the vote, President Chen Shui-bian, last weekend promised a recount to defuse mounting tensions. The recount is a vital step in sorting out...
JAPAN
Mar 27, 2004

Asylum-seeker prefers death before detention

An Afghan asylum-seeker suffering depression and posttraumatic stress disorder tried to kill himself last week while being moved from a hospital in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, to a detention facility, it was learned Friday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 27, 2004

Ex-North Korean spy wants hand in collapse of Kim's empire

KITAKYUSHU -- On Aug. 30, 1993, four North Korean agents slipped over the 38th parallel into South Korea. Disguised as South Korean soldiers, their mission was to spy on U.S. and South Korean forces near Panmunjun.
JAPAN
Mar 27, 2004

Is the Senkaku row about nationalism -- or oil?

The Senkaku Islands are a group of rocky, deserted islets in the East China Sea that are known as a home for albatrosses.
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 27, 2004

Yankees, Rays set to hit Tokyo

Even halfway around the world, the New York Yankees bring a buzz.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2004

NPA claims 83 women trafficked in for sex in '03

The National Police Agency claimed Thursday that 83 women were trafficked into Japan and forced to work in the sex industry in 2003, up 28 from the previous year.

Longform

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?