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BUSINESS
Apr 12, 2006

FamilyMart's net rose 12% in '05

Convenience store chain FamilyMart Co. said Tuesday its consolidated net profit jumped 12.5 percent to 14.20 billion yen in the year that ended in February on 9.3 percent sales growth to 276.44 billion yen.
Japan Times
Features
Apr 9, 2006

Off the road from Damascus

Megumi Yoshitake's experience of living with the Bedouin is quite probably unique. Although her primary medium is photography, here she also offers some written snippets of memory and expression from her numerous sojourns in the Syrian Desert since the 1980s.
JAPAN
Apr 8, 2006

Guru's son sues school over rejection

A son of Aum Shinrikyo founder Shoko Asahara filed a 50 million yen damages suit Friday against a private middle school that refused to admit him even though he passed the entrance exam earlier this year.
BUSINESS
Apr 8, 2006

Yoshinoya halves loss, harbors high hopes

Yoshinoya D&C Co. President Shuji Abe on Friday painted a rosy picture for his company, one in which United States beef imports resume by September, sharply boosting profit at the restaurant chain famed for its beef-on-rice bowl dishes in time for the latter half of the business year.
EDITORIALS
Apr 8, 2006

Problems in textbook screening

The Education, Science and Technology Ministry has screened and approved 306 textbooks, most of them for first-year high-school students, for use from next spring. Departing from the original screening policy, the ministry has accepted inclusion of topics and concepts beyond the scope of the current...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Apr 7, 2006

Flamenco dances with betrayal

Aida Gomez, the young and brilliant new star of flamenco, returns to Japan with her latest self-choreographed production of Georges Bizet's "Carmen" as well as her famed "Salome." Her run of performances starts April 14 in Tokyo.
EDITORIALS
Apr 6, 2006

Care of the terminally ill

Seven patients died between 2000 and 2005 at a hospital in Imizu, Toyama Prefecture, because doctors removed their respirators. Police have started an investigation. A 50-year-old chief surgeon responsible for taking the respirators from six of the patients said he acted on the will of the patients'...
SOCCER / J. League
Apr 6, 2006

Yanagisawa leaves hospital, seeks early comeback

Japan and Kashima Antlers striker Atsushi Yanagisawa left a hospital Wednesday after undergoing surgery for a fractured bone in his right foot.
JAPAN
Apr 6, 2006

Death-row pollees lament plight

Death-row inmates in the nation's prison system are confined to tiny cells with little access to sunlight or exercise, a gross violation of basic human rights, according to a lawyer group citing a recent study carried out with cooperation from prison authorities.
BUSINESS
Apr 6, 2006

Privatization of JR Tokai complete after 20 years

The Japan Railway Construction, Transport and Technology Agency said Wednesday it has sold all of its 12.77 percent stake in Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai), completing the privatization of the firm 20 years after the breakup of the Japanese National Railways.
JAPAN
Apr 5, 2006

Livedoor exec Kumagai free on bail

The Tokyo District Court decided Tuesday to grant bail to former Livedoor Co. Representative Director Fumito Kumagai, who has been indicted for corporate accounting fraud and has been in detention since his arrest Feb. 22, court officials said.
BUSINESS
Apr 5, 2006

Tanigaki worried about rate hike

Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki voiced concern Tuesday over recent rises in long-term interest rates, saying sharp increases are detrimental to growth, especially when the economy is still suffering mild deflation.
JAPAN
Apr 3, 2006

Aso: Troops to stay put in Iraq until stability restored

Japanese troops may stay in southern Iraq until a degree of political stability is restored in the country, Foreign Minister Taro Aso said Sunday, denying media reports they might pull out by May.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Apr 1, 2006

Play of young Guns illustrates Wenger's eye for talent

LONDON -- We should have known better than to question Arsene Wenger's judgment.
JAPAN
Apr 1, 2006

33 metro teachers hit for symbol snub

The Tokyo Metropolitan board of education Friday punished 33 public school teachers who refused to stand to face the national flag and sing "Kimigayo," the national anthem, at March graduation ceremonies.
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2006

Cost of living just got more expensive as fiscal 2006 begins

The April 1 start to the new fiscal year brings with it a number of increases in the cost of living.
JAPAN
Mar 31, 2006

Asahara lawyers protest appeal snub

Lawyers for Aum Shinrikyo founder Shoko Asahara lodged a public protest Thursday over Tokyo High Court Judge Masaru Suda's decision to throw out their appeal of the guru's death sentence.
CULTURE / Music
Mar 31, 2006

Kanye West

Well-known for his production work with Jay-Z, Ludacris and Alicia Keys, Kanye West became a household name with the release of his debut album, 2004's "The College Dropout." The multi-platinum recording exploded out of the gates and the massive cross-over appeal of West's rap anthems netted him 10 Grammy...
JAPAN
Mar 31, 2006

23,800 rights abuses tallied in Japan

The number of human rights violations reported to the Justice Ministry's regional legal affairs bureaus across Japan reached a record-high 23,800 in 2005, up 4 percent from the previous year, a ministry tally showed Thursday.
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Mar 31, 2006

Majestic entertainment

Subtitled "Adult Frustration!?" Yebisu Cultural Festival returns for its fifth installment to Tokyo nightspot Milk on April 1. As usual, it boasts a diverse lineup of live bands, DJs and special performances.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2006

Marines find hope in new diplomatic tool: English

URUMA, Okinawa Pref. -- At first glance, it looks like the typical English conversation school found throughout Japan -- students armed with pencils and notebooks listening to a Western instructor drill them in grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2006

Change to allow foreign political funds

Running for office doesn't come cheap. Politicians need money for posters, vans, venues for speeches and meals for volunteers. The problem for aspirants to office is that political donations are falling, and corporate money in particular is dwindling fast.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji