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JAPAN / Politics
Feb 26, 2015

Education chief denies report he received illegal funds

Education minister Hakubun Shimomura denies allegations by a muck-raking magazine that he received illegal political donations, accusing it of failing to check the facts.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 26, 2015

Korean-American activist raps Suga's response to failed lawsuit against 'comfort woman' statue

A Korean-American leader in California criticizes Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga's regret after a lawsuit failed to remove Glendale's 'comfort women' war memorial.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 26, 2015

Ruling bloc may seek Diet nod for any overseas SDF dispatch as precondition to permanent law

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the government will consider requiring advance Diet approval for the dispatch of Self-Defense Forces overseas as a condition for seeking a permanent law on their missions, NHK reported Thursday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media
Feb 25, 2015

Under Abe's reign, media self-censorship in Japan is rising

Worries are growing in Japan about a trend toward media self-censorship as journalists and experts say news organizations are toning down criticism of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government for fear of sparking ire and losing access to sources.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Feb 23, 2015

Japan looks to boost defense attaches after hostage crisis reveals major weakness

The Abe administration wants to strengthen Japan's intelligence-gathering capabilities in the Middle East after the recent hostage disaster revealed its shortcomings in gaining information through military channels.
EDITORIALS
Feb 22, 2015

Nuclear waste disposal problem

Even as the Abe administration pushes for the reactivation of idled nuclear power reactors once they're declared safe, it has yet to address the question of how Japan will dispose of highly radioactive nuclear waste so as not to endanger future generations.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 22, 2015

A fast-track to future losses

By calling on Congress to grant him fast-track trade authority for the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement, President Barack Obama appears to want to expand on a flawed trade model and extend it to other countries.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 22, 2015

Singapore's first prime minister hospitalised with pneumonia

Singapore's first prime minister and the man widely credited with the city state's economic success, Lee Kuan Yew, is hospitalized with severe pneumonia.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 20, 2015

LDP, Komeito split on SDF's overseas role

The Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner Komeito remained far apart Friday over how far to expand the Self-Defense Forces' overseas activities in line with the Abe administration's controversial reinterpretation of the pacifist Constitution last summer.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 20, 2015

Japan's constitutional millstone

If there is one factor that could help the Abe administration overcome the constitutional millstone against modernizing Japan's military defense, it would be Obama administration support. Japan is the only power that can block China from gaining ascendancy in the region.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Feb 20, 2015

Gay marriage push in Japan faces constitutional barrier

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who has fought to alter the Constitution on matters of security, is less eager to oppose its principles when it comes to same-sex marriage.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 18, 2015

Abe's JA reforms no salve for core problems, experts say

Takashi Tomita, who heads an agricultural cooperative in Echizen, Fukui Prefecture, is considered a ray of hope for a farming sector on the brink of collapse.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 18, 2015

'Commie-loving' mainlanders targeted in election at Hong Kong's top university

A campus election at a top Hong Kong university has degenerated into an acrimonious campaign against mainland Chinese candidates, highlighting simmering tensions two months after prodemocracy protests led by local students paralyzed parts of the city.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 16, 2015

Abe affirms bid to revise Constitution

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has confirmed his administration aims to revise the Constitution, saying in the Diet that amending the pacifist charter is one of his party's most sought-after goals.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Feb 15, 2015

Nationality no barrier for spouses seeking protection from violence

An American resident writes: 'My husband hasn't done much physically yet, but he has threatened to kill me on one occasion. Is it possible to file a restraining order?'
Japan Times
JAPAN / FUKUSHIMA FILE
Feb 15, 2015

New Fukushima bus service broadens options for residents near no-go zones

Local residents in Fukushima Prefecture saw the return of public transportation on Jan. 31 after East Japan Railway Co. began a bus service that passes through the exclusion zone around the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant.
EDITORIALS
Feb 13, 2015

Negative savings rates loom

The first-ever annual drop in Japan's household savings rate into negative territory might have been the result of people's rush to buy goods before the consumption tax hike last April. Yet, the long-term downtrend in the savings rate is forecast to continue.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 13, 2015

BOJ sees extra stimulus as counterproductive for now

Bank of Japan policymakers view further monetary easing to shore up inflation as a counterproductive step at present, amid concern it could trigger declines in the yen that damage confidence, sources said.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 12, 2015

Abe sidesteps expanded SDF role in Diet policy speech

Delivering a key policy speech at the Diet, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reiterated his determination Thursday to push for economic reforms but avoided touching the most controversial issue expected at this year's ordinary Diet session: security bills to expand the scope of Self-Defense Forces missions....
JAPAN
Feb 12, 2015

Author Sono calls for racial segregation in op-ed piece

A prominent author and former government adviser calls for Japan to adopt a system to force immigrants to live separately from Japanese in zones based on race.
JAPAN
Feb 12, 2015

Syria-bound photographer fears passport confiscation sets dangerous precedent

A freelance photographer who was prevented from going to Syria when the Foreign Ministry confiscated his passport in the wake of the Islamic State hostage crisis this month expressed concern Thursday his case will set a precedent that will undermine freedom of the press in Japan.

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight