Search - 2004

 
 
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 24, 2005

'Manifesto' again holds cachet over platform

Political parties have made pledges ranging from disaster measures and local infrastructure development to education and the environment in the runup to the July 3 Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election.
JAPAN
Jun 24, 2005

GSDF vehicle windshield damaged in Iraq blast

An explosion took place Thursday morning near four Ground Self-Defense Force vehicles in southern Iraq, damaging one windshield, government officials in Tokyo said.
JAPAN
Jun 23, 2005

Japan plans to drop bid to host ITER

Japan plans to give up its bid to have the world's first nuclear fusion reactor built in Aomori Prefecture, paving the way for the multibillion dollar project to go to the European Union, government sources said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jun 23, 2005

Sony shareholders give nod to Stringer's team

Shareholders of Sony Corp. on Wednesday approved a new management team led by Howard Stringer, who pledged to turn around the company's struggling consumer electronics business.
JAPAN
Jun 23, 2005

Death, disease not linked to smoking: high court

The Tokyo High Court on Wednesday dismissed an appeal filed by former smokers, some now deceased, who were each demanding 10 million yen in compensation from Japan Tobacco Inc. and the government for tobacco-induced illnesses.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 23, 2005

Osaka 'curfew' plan rife with problems

OSAKA — It's a Saturday evening in early 2006, and four Osaka-area 15-year-old friends, Kenji, Taro, Yoko and Yuka, show up at a theater to see the latest movie. The time is 6:45 p.m., 15 minutes before the movie starts.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jun 22, 2005

Breathing the life into the dance

"I had a hard time finding the title," Pina Bausch tells me during an interview about her most recent work, "Nefes." The Turkish for "Breath" is the title of the latest in a series of works which the choreographer, who will turn 65 in July this year, has created in collaboration with theaters around...
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2005

Banks to adhere to planned law on theft compensation

Banks will amend their current business rules in line with legislation submitted to the Diet designed to offer broader compensation to victims of bank-card crimes, the head of the industry said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2005

Dependent tax breaks may end, but hike denied

The Tax Commission is recommending that spouse and adult offspring deductions be cut to help get rid of the nation's debt.
JAPAN
Jun 22, 2005

Private universities shine in 2005 civil service exam

A record 406 applicants from private universities passed the top level civil service exam this fiscal year, accounting for a record 24.3 percent of successful candidates, the National Personnel Authority said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2005

Kokudo, Prince show negative worth

Kokudo Corp. and Prince Hotels Inc., members of the Seibu Railway Co. group, each had a negative net worth in fiscal 2004 due to large extraordinary losses, company officials said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jun 22, 2005

10% of bureaucrats quit after subsidized sabbaticals

Out of 576 young career-track bureaucrats who studied abroad at government expense from fiscal 1997 through 2002, 56 quit within five years after returning home, according to a study by the National Personnel Authority.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 22, 2005

Sacred sounds of Ainu tonkori resurrected

Keeping traditions alive is not easy; it's even harder when there is no one to teach them. When Ainu musician Oki recently re-created traditional tunes on the tonkori, the stringed instrument of the Ainu people, his only guides were pre-1970s recordings of tonkori music collected by ethnomusicologists...
BUSINESS
Jun 21, 2005

Credit card companies urge calm over data theft in U.S.

Major credit card firms appealed Monday for calm after it was learned that personal information on tens of thousands of Japanese card holders may have been leaked as a result of a security breach in the United States.
JAPAN
Jun 21, 2005

Child-abuse consultations rise by 25%

Child consultation centers across the nation dealt with about a quarter more cases in fiscal 2004 than a year earlier, a preliminary survey by the welfare ministry showed Monday.
JAPAN
Jun 21, 2005

Ethnic Myanmar refugee pleads for policy change

A refugee from Myanmar belonging to an ethnic minority urged Japan on Monday to grant asylum to more of his compatriots, saying they face serious persecution back home.
JAPAN
Jun 21, 2005

Swindler Inagaki found guilty, avoids prison

Jitsuo Inagaki, a former state minister for Hokkaido and Okinawa development, was sentenced Monday to a suspended two-year prison term for illegally selling investment products that promised high returns and guaranteed the principal.
EDITORIALS
Jun 19, 2005

Inevitable need to be ready

Due to the geographic and geological characteristics of the Japanese archipelago, middle- to large-scale natural disasters can strike at any time. While military conflicts or terrorism may be thwarted through human efforts, typhoons and earthquakes are unstoppable, affecting all those residing in this...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jun 19, 2005

Man bites dogs like never before

Meeting Takeru Kobayashi is like coming face-to-face with someone who has slept with Julia Roberts or had a near-death experience: You long to ask what it felt like. How does it feel to cram 4 kg of food into your stomach in less time than it takes most people to walk to the pub?
JAPAN
Jun 19, 2005

Mental-related work comp hits all-time high

A record 130 people were deemed eligible in fiscal 2004 for workers' compensation due to suicide or mental illness induced by stress and excessive work, according to a labor ministry report.
BUSINESS
Jun 18, 2005

Mizuho mulls takeover of ailing Ashikaga Bank

Mizuho Financial Group Inc., the nation's biggest banking group by assets, is considering taking over Ashikaga Bank, which is undergoing rehabilitation under state control, sources said Friday.
EDITORIALS
Jun 18, 2005

New era of bank card security

Bank deposit safety in Japan is threatened increasingly by people using forged or stolen cards to make illegal withdrawals. Now, members of the Diet are preparing to introduce a bill that would require all financial institutions -- including commercial banks, post offices and credit unions -- to compensate...
BUSINESS
Jun 18, 2005

Japan offers Thailand FTA carrot

In a bid to make progress on a bilateral free-trade agreement, Japan has drawn up a package of cooperation programs aimed at boosting the industrialization of Thailand, Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Shoichi Nakagawa said Friday.
JAPAN
Jun 18, 2005

Muslim-American author takes aim at stereotypes

Concerned about the negative images of Muslims being generated by the actions of terrorist extremists in recent years, Muslim-American author Asma Gull Hasan said average Muslims, including those in Japan, need to speak up so people gain a fair understanding of Islam.
BUSINESS
Jun 18, 2005

Toyota, Honda fuel-cell cars certified

Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. said Friday their fuel-cell cars have become the first to receive motor-vehicle type certification from the government.

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