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JAPAN / THE OKINAWA FACTOR
May 17, 2002

School taps into popularity of jobs at U.S. facilities

NAHA, Okinawa Pref. -- Growing up near Kadena Air Base and witnessing the rough antics of American soldiers, Yasuhiko Toyozato could be forgiven if he harbored negative feelings toward U.S. forces here.
BUSINESS
May 17, 2002

Foreign companies slightly optimistic, survey shows

Most foreign companies in Japan expect business confidence to remain flat over the next six months, although there are signs of improvement on the horizon, according to a joint survey recently released by foreign chambers of commerce.
JAPAN
May 17, 2002

Unimat chief tops taxpayer list in 2001

Yoji Takahashi, head of the Unimat group, which operates major office coffee vendor Unimat Offisco Corp., was Japan's top individual taxpayer last year, according to a report listing the nation's top 100 taxpayers in 2001, released Thursday by the National Tax Agency.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 17, 2002

New auto industry chief to steer Japan toward cleaner technologies

The new chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association said Thursday he will work to promote fuel cells and other technologies less harmful to the environment than the combustion engine.
JAPAN
May 17, 2002

Prosecutors give Kato a break

Prosecutors are unlikely to establish a tax-evasion case against Koichi Kato, a former Liberal Democratic Party power broker, because they don't believe he had any malicious intent, sources close to the case said Thursday.
COMMENTARY / World
May 17, 2002

Rude awakening for East Timor

JAKARTA -- The world's youngest democracy will have to stand on its own feet from Sunday. On this day East Timor will become the first newly independent nation of the 21st century. After more than 400 years of colonial rule by Portugal, 25 years of Indonesian occupation and over two years under U.N....
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
May 17, 2002

Long-armed shrimp

* Japanese name: Tenaga-ebi * Scientific name: Macrobrachium nipponese * Description: Long-armed shrimp are accurately named. They are crustaceans in the family that includes lobsters and crabs, all of which have 10 pairs of legs. In the long-armed shrimp, the first five pairs are the walking legs,...
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
May 17, 2002

We're all narrow-minded

It's a commonly held belief that we lose brain cells as we age. But, in fact, although our brains may not work as well when we get older -- learning becomes harder, memories fuzzier -- the number of cells they contain remains the same, about 28 billion. Scientists think the real problem is that the myelin...
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 17, 2002

Contractor focuses on middle-aged hires

A small contractor in Yokohama is challenging the country's rigid labor market with an unusual strategy -- recruiting the middle-aged.
BUSINESS / ON THE FRONT LINE
May 17, 2002

Skepticism abounds over market direction

Despite signs of economic recovery, doubts remain over the Tokyo stock market's prospects.
BUSINESS
May 17, 2002

Japan dismisses credit ratings

Yasuo Fukuda, the top government spokesman, said Thursday that credit-rating agencies such as Moody's Investors Service Inc. have underestimated Japan's economic strength.
EDITORIALS
May 17, 2002

Cold War in cold storage

American President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed to a historic arms control treaty that will make drastic cuts in the two countries' nuclear arsenals. The agreement should be applauded, but it is long overdue: Domestic politics in both countries have conspired against...
LIFE / Lifestyle / MATTER OF COURSE
May 17, 2002

Language help lets foreign students fit in

You'd think my sons were the first gaijin kids ever to attend a Japanese elementary school, judging from the surprised responses we get from people. But there are lots of foreign children in Japanese schools, and their numbers are growing. Unfortunately, most schools aren't equipped to teach newcomers...
EDITORIALS
May 16, 2002

Lessons from the Shenyang incident

Japan and China have been locked in a diplomatic row over an incident May 8 in which Chinese police guards seized and removed five North Korean asylum seekers from the compound of the Japanese Consulate General in Shenyang, northeastern China. On Wednesday, however, it appeared that concerns over the...
COMMENTARY
May 16, 2002

Another crisis feeds distrust

HONG KONG -- It is the stuff of drama. Chinese policemen grabbed three North Koreans -- two women and a toddler -- who were trying to seek asylum in the Japanese Consulate General in Shenyang in northeastern China last Wednesday, but not before the two men with them succeeded in reaching the diplomatic...
Japan Times
JAPAN / THE OKINAWA FACTOR
May 16, 2002

Love-hate ties bind Okinawans, U.S. military

OKINAWA CITY, Okinawa Pref. -- Many former American soldiers who once stayed at the Diego Hotel near the U.S. Kadena Air Base here regard the hotel's manager with a reverence usually reserved for their own mothers.
SOCCER / World cup / COHOSTING
May 16, 2002

World Cup pie gets bigger

The head of soccer's world governing body FIFA is never likely to be called a shrinking violet. In the world of sport, perhaps only the head of the International Olympic Committee has a more powerful voice. When he talks, everyone listens.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
May 16, 2002

Expansion in Japan unlikely

Dear Wayne Graczyk: I'm writing to express support for the move of the Nippon Ham Fighters to Sapporo. I think this would be good not just for the Fighters and the city of Sapporo, but for all of Japanese baseball.
Japan Times
JAPAN / WHALE WATCHING
May 16, 2002

Legal mechanism flawed: wildlife expert

Japanese laws are ill-equipped to protect marine mammals and need an overhaul if these animals are to receive attention akin to their terrestrial counterparts, according to a leading wildlife expert.
BUSINESS
May 16, 2002

AIG to deal in securities in Japan

American International Group Inc. said Wednesday it will launch a securities business in Japan next week targeting institutional investors.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
May 16, 2002

Summer's serenaders of the moon, sun and stars

Summer really is here. It has spread north so rapidly that June- and July-like temperatures were reported in Hokkaido even before the end of April. The cherry blossom wave rushed northward, too, at such a pace it was as if it were trying to take a running jump at Sakhalin.
JAPAN
May 16, 2002

Ministry warns of drastic increase in pension premiums

Company employees will be forced to pay about a quarter of their salaries as pension premiums in fiscal 2025 if current pension levels are maintained, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
May 16, 2002

Sharp to form AC tieup in Egypt

OSAKA -- Sharp Corp. will form a technology tieup with an Egyptian company to produce air conditioners for sale in the Middle East and Africa, Sharp officials said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
May 16, 2002

Mazda returns to profitability

Mazda Motor Corp. said Wednesday it returned to the black in the 2001 business year thanks to cost-cutting measures and a weakened yen.

Longform

"Shake hands with Lima-chan," a statue that shares the name of the Peruvian capital looks in the direction of Peru, where a sister statue, "Sakura-chan," is located. Erected in Yokohama's Rinko Park in 1999, it commemorates Peruvian-Japanese friendship.
The journey of Peru’s Nikkei: Finding identity in Japan