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JAPAN
May 19, 2004

Japan's greenhouse gas emissions up 2% in '02; first rise in two years

The nation's emissions of carbon dioxide and other gases linked to global warming increased 2.2 percent in fiscal 2002 from the previous year, marking the first rise in two years, the government said Tuesday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 19, 2004

Spirited away to a romance from the past

Sekai no Chushin De Ai o Sakebu Rating: * * * 1/2 (out of 5) Director: Isao Yukisada Running time: 138 minutes Language: Japanese Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] What does the audience want? What does it really want? The easy answer for producers has always been "more...
EDITORIALS
May 18, 2004

'India Shining' loses its luster

In a stunning upset, the Congress Party topped the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to win India's parliamentary elections. The results reflect the failure of the government's reform program to better the lives of the 70 percent of Indians who live in the countryside. Now Congress must see that the...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
May 18, 2004

Students pay price in visa crackdown

When American students Angela Luna and Richard Nishizawa tried to board a plane bound for San Francisco in March, airport authorities threw them in a small holding cell and held them incommunicado for several days before banishing them from Japan for five years.
COMMENTARY / World
May 18, 2004

Myanmar's thorn in the ASEM process

CHIANG MAI, Thailand -- Once again, the experiment known as the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) enters the limelight for the wrong reasons. With preparation under way for a summit meeting in Hanoi next October, the focus is not so much on real issues as on the format for participation. Characteristically,...
OLYMPICS
May 17, 2004

Volleyball winning streak ends

Japan's six-match winning run came to an end Sunday after a 3-0 defeat by Russia on the final day of the women's volleyball final qualifying tournament for this summer's Athens Olympics.
MORE SPORTS
May 16, 2004

Japan's women remain undefeated

Undefeated Japan notched its sixth straight win at the women's volleyball final qualifying tournament for this summer's Athens Olympics with a 3-1 win over Taiwan on Saturday.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
May 16, 2004

Whispers as loud as shouts

BREASTS OF SNOW: Fumiko Nakajo -- Her Tanka and Her Life, by Hatsue Kawamura and Jane Reichhold, preface by Makoto Ueda. Tokyo: The Japan Times, 2004. 152 pp., 2,000 yen (paper). Fumiko Nakajo's short life (1922-54) was both illustrated and illuminated by the tanka that she began writing after she developed...
CULTURE / Music
May 16, 2004

Avril under the skin of consumers

Walking out of Shibuya Station on May 12, you couldn't help but be aware that Avril Lavigne's second album, "Under My Skin," had just gone on sale. There she was, belting out her new single, "Don't Tell Me," up there on the big screen above the 109 Building. Tsutaya had a booth set up with Avril's kohl-eyed...
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
May 16, 2004

EU stretching the envelope

MOSCOW -- Nobody truly knows where Europe ends. Geographically, it is supposed to run all the way east to the Ural Mountains, but few would argue that this definition should be taken seriously. What matters is culture and politics and the allegiances resulting from both. With the recent expansion of...
EDITORIALS
May 15, 2004

A reprieve on interest rates

As expected, the U.S. Federal Reserve Board last week decided to keep short-term interest rates at a 46-year low. Concerns about the fragility of the U.S. economic recovery prevailed over fears of a new bout of inflation. But the Fed signaled its readiness to raise interest rates soon if prices appear...
MORE SPORTS
May 15, 2004

Japan books Athens ticket

Undefeated Japan booked a spot in this summer's Athens Olympics on Friday with a convincing 3-0 victory over South Korea in the final women's volleyball qualifying tournament in Tokyo.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
May 14, 2004

Arsenal one game away from setting new standard in England

LONDON -- Arsenal stands on the verge of what manager Arsene Wenger called "sporting immortality" with just Leicester blocking its path to the record books.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
May 14, 2004

A special weekend in Izu to remember and enjoy

Last year was the 150th anniversary of the first appearance of U.S. Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry's "Black Ships" in Edo (now Tokyo) Bay. Their mission, by order of President Millard Fillmore, was to demand -- under threat of force if necessary -- that Japan, closed to the world for more than two...
JAPAN
May 13, 2004

Tokyo dismisses BSE proposals of global body

Japan has expressed opposition to a set of proposals related to mad cow disease by the World Organization for Animal Health, farm ministry officials said Wednesday.
COMMENTARY
May 13, 2004

Chinese nuclear deal buoys Islamabad

ISLAMABAD -- China's agreement to supply a second 300-megawatt nuclear power reactor to Pakistan encourages Islamabad's ruling establishment, which is eager to develop the country's nuclear energy potential in a significant way. The deal for the new reactor, to be located at Chashma in central Punjab...
BUSINESS
May 13, 2004

Taylor lauds economic recovery

John Taylor, U.S. Treasury undersecretary for international affairs, lauded Japan's improving economy during talks with Japanese ministers Wednesday, saying Tokyo's policies are helping to generate growth, Japanese government officials said.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 13, 2004

Lovable children of Edo -- where have you gone?

Being a Tokyoite doesn't have the same glamorous connotations as being a Parisian or New Yorker, but inside Japan, we've managed to rack up some notoriety. A Tokyo local, or Edokko (Child of Edo, as Tokyo was called before the 1868 Meiji Restoration) as many in the older generations still like to identify...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 12, 2004

Diving into feminine mystique

Swimming Pool Rating: * * * * (out of 5) Director: Francois Ozon Running time: 102 minutes Language: English Opens May 15 [See Japan Times movie listings] Extremely straight or very gay? For me, this has always been a burning question with regard to director Francois Ozon. His latest...
JAPAN
May 12, 2004

Honduran leader voices summit goal

Visiting Honduran President Ricardo Maduro Joest voiced hope Tuesday that a Japan-Central America summit will be held here on Aug. 19, 2005, during the 2005 Aichi World Exposition, a Japanese official said.
JAPAN
May 12, 2004

Police raid computer whiz's office

Police on Tuesday raided the office of an elite computer engineer who was arrested a day earlier on copyright-related charges for developing and offering software that allows people to swap movies and video games.
BUSINESS
May 11, 2004

Sumitomo Electric to make superconductive wire

Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd. said Monday it plans to launch commercial production by the end of the year of high-temperature superconductive wire whose electricity transfer capability is about 130 times that of conventional copper wire.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 11, 2004

These scientists stick to their harpoons

In a cramped laboratory, a biologist with the Institute of Cetacean Research prepares plugs taken from whales' ears for age analysis. Scientists study their reproductive habits and food sources, along with the mercury levels in their tissue.
OLYMPICS
May 11, 2004

Four Japanese triathletes set for Olympics

Machiko Nakanishi, Akiko Sekine and Kiyomi Niwata have virtually guaranteed themselves Olympic berths after finishing among the top 20 at the Triathlon World Championships in Portugal on Sunday.
JAPAN
May 10, 2004

New Saudi petro-complex planned

Sumitomo Chemical Co. and Saudi Arabian Oil Co. announced Sunday they have agreed to form an equally owned company to build a major integrated refining and petrochemical complex in the Saudi Red Sea town of Rabigh at an estimated cost of $4.3 billion.
COMMENTARY
May 10, 2004

Do all parties agree on CVID?

HONOLULU -- North Korea has agreed to participate in a six-party working group meeting Wednesday in Beijing to help lay the groundwork for the third session of the more senior-level Six-Party Talks (North and South Korea, China, Japan, Russia, and the United States) expected before the end of June. The...
COMMENTARY / World
May 10, 2004

Taiwan opposition must swallow loss to live

NEW YORK -- On March 20 the governing Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) ticket of Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian and Vice President Annette Lu won re-election over the pan-blue ticket of Kuomintang (KMT) chairman Lien Chan and the People First Party (PFP) chairman James Soong by a narrow margin of...

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