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EDITORIALS
Apr 27, 2003

Iraqis and their antiquities

The looting, ransacking and burning of Baghdad's great repositories of historical antiquities came as a shock to many -- including, apparently, U.S. troops in the field -- even though scholars all over the world had warned that a war could cause catastrophic cultural damage in Iraq. But now the damage...
COMMUNITY
Apr 27, 2003

Japan slow to get in the swim

In Japan, DAT is still a newcomer.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Apr 27, 2003

University exam pressure

JAPANESE HIGHER EDUCATION AS MYTH, by Brian J. McVeigh. M.E. Sharpe: Armonk, NY, 2002, 301 pp., $25.95 (cloth) In this withering critique, Japanese universities are portrayed as an educational Potemkin village. McVeigh's excellent analysis of institutional dysfunction focuses on how learning is sacrificed...
MORE SPORTS
Apr 26, 2003

Kitajima cruises to third title

World record holder Kosuke Kitajima cruised to his third straight title in the men's 200 meters breaststroke at the swimming National Championships Friday.
JAPAN
Apr 26, 2003

Science minister to visit Europe

The state minister of science and technology policy said Friday he will visit four European countries next week to ask them to participate in a global science and technology convention to be held in Japan in September 2004.
MORE SPORTS
Apr 26, 2003

Japan wraps it up

Japan's Saori Obata defeated Hong Kong's Lee Si-nga Friday as the host nation improved to 4-0 at the Fed Cup Asia-Oceania zone qualifying tournament.
COMMENTARY
Apr 26, 2003

An opportunity for APEC

HONOLULU -- The rapid spread of SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, is a compelling demonstration of the need for a truly global health network to fight future epidemics. The particulars of this outbreak also highlight the role that the Asia-Pacific region will have to play in this effort. The...
COMMENTARY
Apr 26, 2003

A Pyrrhic victory in Iraq

When the war in Iraq began March 19, speculation was rife about its likely duration. Predictions ranged from very short (less than 10 days) to fairly long (over a month) to very long (a protracted Vietnam-type war). As it turned out, the fighting effectively ended in a little over three weeks. But it's...
MORE SPORTS
Apr 25, 2003

Nishikori smashes Japan's oldest swimming record

Atsushi Nishikori, a gold medalist in last fall's Asian Games, broke Japan's oldest swimming record in the semifinal of the men's 100-meter backstroke at the swimming National Championships Thursday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 25, 2003

ASEAN needs to rise from '97 ashes

With many of its member nations still unable to recover from the impact of the region-wide financial crisis of the late 1990s, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations must "reinvent" itself so it can play a significant role in the regionalism that is emerging in East Asia, a think tank expert from...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 25, 2003

Court rejects lawsuit on wartime rape

The Tokyo District Court said Thursday it had no choice in rejecting a lawsuit filed by wartime sex slaves, but it issued strong words to the government to settle the issue.
JAPAN
Apr 25, 2003

Foreign Ministry upgrades travel alert for Toronto

The Foreign Ministry upgraded Thursday its travel warning for Toronto, adding it to the growing list of areas that Japanese travelers are advised to avoid due to the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 25, 2003

Aum Shinrikyo plagued by guru's whims, journalist says

The crimes perpetrated by the disciples of Shoko Asahara and those allegedly committed by the Aum Shinrikyo guru himself were the product of one man's whimsical impulses and not a concerted quest for power, according to journalist Shoko Egawa.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 25, 2003

SARS may lift Japan's leadership role

MEDFORD, Massachusetts -- At the height of the Asian financial crisis in 1997, two stories surrounded the role of China. One attested to China's positive role as a stabilizer; the other pointed to China's unsavory economic practice. According to the latter, China had intentionally devalued its currency...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 25, 2003

Travel agencies open theme branches to lick SARS, Iraq war

Amid the sharp decline in the number of Japanese taking overseas trips, travel agencies are opening novelty branches to lure customers.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Apr 25, 2003

Un Cafe: I'm falling in love again

Going back to favorite restaurants after a gap of several years is much like meeting up with an old flame after being out of touch for too long. Anticipation is likely to be tempered by a good measure of anxiety. How have they changed? What if they don't look so good any more, or they've gone to fat,...
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 24, 2003

Responding to provocations

SINGAPORE -- In late February and early March, North Korea launched two antiship cruise missiles in the direction of Japan. Japan tried its best to downplay the events. In the first instance, it said the 90-km test did not technically violate the North's moratorium on ballistic-missile tests. After the...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 23, 2003

Europe-based executive MBA program pitched at Japanese

European business school INSEAD has recently begun offering an exclusive executive MBA program -- and is hoping to attract some Japanese students.
COMMENTARY
Apr 23, 2003

A bigger Europe may not be any better

LONDON -- A few days ago in Athens, the birthplace of democracy, EU leaders approved a major expansion of the European Union that will embrace 10 new members and 73 million more European citizens.
JAPAN
Apr 23, 2003

Shiokawa pushes idea of Iraq fund

Japan should urge other countries and international organizations to set up a fund to handle reconstruction aid for Iraq, Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Apr 23, 2003

10 of 12 suspected cases of SARS turn out to be negative

A health ministry panel said Tuesday that 10 of the 12 SARS cases in Japan classified as either "suspected" or "probable" are not the deadly virus, but judgment is being withheld on the remaining two cases.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / NEW ART SEEN
Apr 23, 2003

Could it be you, baby?

My mind is weary, and this is because since last weekend I have been thinking hard about how different the world would be if men could get pregnant.
JAPAN
Apr 23, 2003

74 members of Diet visit Yasukuni

Seventy-four Diet members, including a Cabinet minister, visited the controversial Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Tuesday during its annual spring festival.
JAPAN
Apr 22, 2003

Japanese national in Beijing may have SARS virus

The government is trying to determine the condition of a Japanese national in Beijing who Chinese authorities say may be infected with SARS, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda said Monday.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 22, 2003

Regulation remains a problem

In his policy speech to the Diet earlier this year, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi announced that the government would double foreign direct investment in Japan in five years to increase employment.
EDITORIALS
Apr 21, 2003

Joyless anniversary in N. Ireland

The fifth anniversary of the Northern Ireland peace accords came and went with little to celebrate. The peace process remains in a state of suspension over the Irish Republican Army's failure to commit to a permanent end to violence. Hopes that Britain and Ireland would be able to unveil a plan that...
COMMENTARY
Apr 21, 2003

Peacemaker for Sri Lanka

Japan plans to play a leading role in rebuilding strife-torn Sri Lanka. Peace talks are under way to end more than 20 years of ethnic conflict between the Sinhalese (Buddhist) majority and the Tamil (Hindu) minority. An international conference on Sri Lankan reconstruction and development is scheduled...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Apr 20, 2003

Changing narratives of Korean history

COLONIAL MODERNITY IN KOREA, edited by Gi Wook Shin and Michael Robinson. Harvard University Press, 2000, 466 pp., $49.50 (cloth) Until very recently most English-language general histories of Korea treated Japanese colonial rule or "Japanese occupation" as a rupture or distortion of the "natural development"...

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