Search - 2004

 
 
JAPAN
Oct 27, 2005

Political donations to be capped

The House of Councilors on Wednesday passed amendments to the Political Funds Control Law that put an annual 50 million yen cap on donations made between political organizations, excluding political parties and their campaign fundraising units.
JAPAN
Oct 26, 2005

New carbon tax plan limits levy

The Environment Ministry on Tuesday released a revised version of its carbon tax plan, aimed at discouraging fossil fuel use so Japan can fulfill its Kyoto Protocol obligation to cut global greenhouse gas emissions.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 26, 2005

Tokyo Star Bank has weak TSE debut

Tokyo Star Bank debuted Tuesday on the Tokyo Stock Exchange to become the nation's second revived bank to go public.
JAPAN
Oct 25, 2005

Issues involved in U.S.-Japan base talks

The following questions and answers deal with the deadlock between Japan and the United States over the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture -- the main topic of bilateral working-level talks that began Monday in Tokyo.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Oct 23, 2005

Genghis Khan: Greatest leader or brutal monster?

GENGHIS KHAN: Conqueror of the World, by Leo de Hartog. London/New York: Tauris Parke, 2004, 230 pp., with maps, $12.99 (paper). The warrior who united the Mongol tribes and created an empire that was the largest the world has known, has long defied historians.
Japan Times
Features
Oct 23, 2005

A more dignified way to die

Many of us struggle with difficult decisions regarding, say, our careers or relationships. But one decision that many of us avoid is "How do I want to die?"
JAPAN
Oct 23, 2005

Broad-based effort to help 'NEETs' find jobs

A group drawn from industry, local government and academia has launched a project to help youths not in employment, education or training -- known as "NEETs" -- find jobs.
COMMENTARY
Oct 23, 2005

Look for change next year

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's determination to visit Tokyo's controversial Yasukuni Shrine needs to be seen in the perspective. The visit was not necessarily, as Beijing and Seoul seem to believe, a final proof of prime-ministerial evil.
JAPAN
Oct 22, 2005

NPA plans hotline for 'harmful' Internet content

The National Police Agency plans to set up an online hotline for the public to report illegal or harmful content they spot on the Internet, such as that related to drug trafficking, child pornography or the production of explosives, NPA officials said Friday.
JAPAN
Oct 20, 2005

GSDF to train at U.S. base in Okinawa

Japan and the United States have agreed in principle to relocate some training of a Ground Self-Defense Force unit to the U.S. Marine Corps' Camp Hansen in Okinawa Prefecture in the hope of improving the interoperability of the two militaries and leading to a future reduction in U.S. bases, informed...
JAPAN
Oct 20, 2005

Empress, turning 71, talks of Princess Nori

Empress Michiko, on the occasion of her 71st birthday Thursday, recounted memories of the time she spent with Princess Nori and told of how she would miss her when she leaves the Imperial household to get married Nov. 15.
JAPAN
Oct 20, 2005

Takefuji suit only trying to shut up critics: court

The Tokyo High Court on Wednesday upheld a lower court ruling that a lawsuit filed by Takefuji Corp. was aimed at suppressing freedom of expression and ordered the firm to pay 4.8 million yen in damages to a group of lawyers and a publisher.
BUSINESS
Oct 20, 2005

New Daimler chief optimistic on expanding MMC ties

CHIBA -- The incoming head of DaimlerChrysler AG said Wednesday the giant automaker is willing to expand joint projects with Mitsubishi Motors Corp., regardless of what happens to its stake in the ailing Japanese firm.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 20, 2005

PIFF: Asia's magnet for movies

The Pusan International Film Festival, which took place Oct. 6-14, marked its 10th year with its biggest program ever -- 307 films from 73 countries. These numbers alone make PIFF the largest annual film-related event in Asia, and with the Pusan Promotion Plan (PPP) taking place in the Korean port city...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 20, 2005

Proposals threaten South Korean growth

NEW DELHI -- Han Duck Soo, South Korea's deputy prime minister and minister of finance and economy, has unleashed a perfect storm of destructive policy proposals that may ensure that his country's economy remains stuck in under-performance mode. His declarations reveal him to be an inept custodian of...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 19, 2005

U.N. University takes on environmental challenges

Few realize that in the three decades of its existence, United Nations University (UNU) has been developing into a global organization comprising UNU enter in To- kyo and 12 Research and Training Centers and Programs (RTC/Ps) around the world, working in cooperation with a large, global network of associated...
JAPAN
Oct 18, 2005

Osaka's scandal-hit mayor to resign, run again in snap poll

OSAKA -- Osaka Mayor Junichi Seki announced Monday he will resign his post and then run again in a snap election that he said will determine voter faith in his proposed reforms.
BUSINESS
Oct 18, 2005

First-half bankruptcies below 6,500

The number of corporate bankruptcies in the first half of fiscal 2005 dropped below 6,500 for the first time in 14 years on a half-year basis, Tokyo Shoko Research said Monday.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 17, 2005

On the precipice in Iraq

WASHINGTON-- How are things going in Iraq? The short answer, unfortunately -- based on Brookings' Iraq Index and my own assessments -- is not very well. There is still considerable hope, and much that does go well in Iraq. But on balance, there is more reason for worry than optimism right now.
Japan Times
Features / WEEK 3
Oct 16, 2005

UNEAR THING FACT IN CLASSIC FICTION

'Robinson Crusoe" has fascinated explorer Daisuke Takahashi ever since his elementary school days, when he first read the classic adventure tale about a British sailor who lived on a desert island for 28 years. Imagining that he, too, was marooned on an isolated island, the young Takahashi would roast...

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past