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JAPAN
Mar 12, 1997

Dockworkers stage short strike against U.S. threats

Dockworkers staged a 24-hour nationwide strike Mar. 12, halting nearly all loading and unloading operations as they protested U.S. pressure to open up Japanese port services to greater competition.
JAPAN
Mar 12, 1997

High-speed trains may solve more than timing problems

OKAYAMA -- Building better bullet trains will be the solution to difficult environmental issues and other industrial problems, participants at the two-day International High-Speed Railway Conference 1997 said Mar. 12.
JAPAN
Mar 11, 1997

Orange Kyosai victims ask politicians for help

Representatives of about 1,500 people taken in by the massive fraud allegedly committed by Upper House member Tatsuo Tomobe on Mar. 11 visited senior politicians from various parties to request measures to help the victims.
JAPAN
Mar 11, 1997

Gore to visit Japan later this month

U.S. Vice President Al Gore will visit Japan on March 23 and 24 to discuss a wide range of bilateral and Asian issues with Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto and other leaders, Foreign Ministry officials said Mar. 11.
JAPAN
Mar 11, 1997

Tomobe tied to shady cash deposit to politician

Investigators have learned that 50 million yen was deposited into the bank account of a Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly member who is believed to have introduced arrested lawmaker Tatsuo Tomobe to Shinshinto, informed sources said Mar. 11.
JAPAN
Mar 7, 1997

Bridge authority moves offices out of Tokyo

Honshu-Shikoku Bridge Authorities, the first special corporation to relocate its head office outside the capital, stepped up its moving operations Mar. 7 in preparation for beginning business at its new head office in Kobe's Chuo Ward on Mar. 5.
JAPAN
Mar 7, 1997

Kyoto cab firm offers Tokyo top-service taxis, discount fares

Neatly dressed in a uniform designed by Hanae Mori, Japan's leading fashion designer, an MK Taxi driver can make you feel like you are riding in a limousine. The driver will greet you as you climb aboard and, upon arrival at your destination, open the door for you, instead of relying on the automatic...
JAPAN
Mar 7, 1997

Osaka plans to cut pay of top officials

OSAKA -- The Osaka Prefectural Government on Mar. 7 presented to the prefectural assembly a bill that would cut the salaries of Gov. "Knock" Yokoyama and 4,900 other senior officials by between 2 percent and 5 percent in fiscal 1997.
JAPAN
Mar 7, 1997

IBM targets potential of electronic commerce

IBM Corp. will focus on the growing potential of electronic commerce by using its strengths in the field of enterprise network computing, according to Louis Gerstner, the firm's chairman and chief executive officer.
JAPAN
Mar 6, 1997

Hong Kong unit wins Tokyo Station plot for 86.8 billion yen

A 4,854-sq. meter plot in front of of JR Tokyo Station's Yaesu exit was auctioned Mar. 6 by JNR Settlement Corp. to a Japanese unit of a Hong Kong-based investment group for 86.8 billion yen.
JAPAN
Mar 6, 1997

U.S. hopes to settle paper products row, Greenwood says

The U.S hopes it will be able to resolve a disagreement with Tokyo over an existing bilateral agreement on expanding foreign access to Japan's paper and paper products market, according to Lawrence Greenwood, economic minister counselor of the U.S. Embassy.
JAPAN
Mar 6, 1997

Transport doles out new Haneda flight slots

In a move aimed at promoting further competition in the nation's aviation industry, the Transport Ministry has favored small and fledgling airlines over the dominant All Nippon Airlines in its final distribution of slots for new flights at Haneda airport.
JAPAN
Mar 6, 1997

Land-mine conference gets under way

A two-day international conference to address the problem of antipersonnel land mines kicked off Mar. 6 in Tokyo with participation of officials from 38 countries and 11 international organizations, including the United Nations.
JAPAN
Mar 5, 1997

Izu tourism begins to tail off

Almost 12,000 people have canceled reservations at hotels and inns in the hot spring resort city of Ito, Shizuoka Prefecture, due to the series of earthquakes that has been shaking the Izu Peninsula since Mar. 3.
JAPAN
Mar 5, 1997

Japan Red Cross in hot water over waylaid donations

KOBE -- Neither Australian nor British Red Cross officials were told by the Japan Red Cross that some of the more than 20 million yen they donated to victims of the Great Hanshin Earthquake would not be given directly to those in need but would instead be set aside to build future disaster facilities....
JAPAN
Mar 4, 1997

Japan to help fund Indochina road plan

In the first application of its new aid policy, Japan will provide official development assistance to help finance a major road project linking Thailand, Laos and Vietnam to promote the development of the greater Mekong subregion, Foreign Ministry officials said Mar. 10.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 1997

Abe pleads not guilty as HIV trial gets under way

Takeshi Abe, the nation's leading hemophilia expert, pleaded not guilty Mar. 10 to professional negligence in connection with the 1991 death of a hemophiliac.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 1997

Ambulance crews hassled by youths

The Tokyo Fire Department said Mar. 3 there have been 13 recent cases of youngsters confronting or attacking members of ambulance units rushing to emergencies in entertainment districts.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 1997

Women take the fight to Girl's Day

About 100 female activists on Mar. 3, Girl's Day, formed a human chain and surrounded the Labor Ministry building in Tokyo to demand equal rights.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 1997

QE2 receives regal greeting during visit to Kobe

KOBE -- The British luxury liner Queen Elizabeth 2 arrived at Kobe port Mar. 3, marking her first visit to the city since the Great Hanshin Earthquake crippled the major shipping center.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 1997

Fledgling paper demonstrates how sometimes less is better

HAKODATE, Hokkaido -- Lacking a thing or two can sometimes have a positive side. A freshly born newspaper in Hakodate is in the works of proving it.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 1997

The Date 'miracle' is acceptance

DATE, Hokkaido -- Some people refer to this city as "Japan's miracle." Not because of its splendid weather or beautiful scenery, but because someone like Takako Nagahama can lead a comfortable life here.
JAPAN
Feb 28, 1997

Unorthodox barber doesn't do dos

Kuniyoshi Konishi has struck gold with his new barbershop venture -- by adopting such oddball ideas as vacuuming the heads of customers after cutting their hair.
JAPAN
Feb 28, 1997

Osaka government to repay misused funds

OSAKA -- The Osaka Prefectural Government will comply with the prefectural audit committee's recommendation that its officials return about 157 million yen they had channeled from public funds and pooled at liquor shops to fund wining-and-dining expenses, it was learned Feb. 28.
JAPAN
Feb 28, 1997

Cultist says Asahara ordered killing of Sakamoto

A former Aum Shinrikyo follower who has admitted being involved in the killing of an anti-Aum lawyer said Feb. 28 he believed at the time that cult founder Shoko Asahara had ordered the man to be killed.
JAPAN
Feb 27, 1997

Pair denied return of plots trickily taken in Tanaka era

The Supreme Court upheld on Feb. 27 a high court ruling that denied two men the right to recover plots of land they sold to a company affiliated with the late Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka.
JAPAN
Feb 27, 1997

Asahara continues antics in court

Aum Shinrikyo founder Shoko Asahara mumbled throughout his 27th hearing Feb. 27 as police testified about their investigation into the 1989 murder of a Yokohama lawyer and his family.
JAPAN
Feb 27, 1997

U.S. student visas become increasingly elusive

Yumiko Hara, a 29-year-old insurance company employee, decided recently that she needed to study English to advance her career.
JAPAN
Feb 26, 1997

Video game makers fight a battle over hardware

There is a lesson to be learned from how VHS overthrew Sony Corp.'s Beta system and Microsoft Corp.'s Windows has nearly finished off Apple Computer Inc.'s Macintosh. Now it is being taught in the home video-game market. The lesson: To survive, forming alliances is essential.
JAPAN
Feb 26, 1997

Chain stores call for more freedom

As a government review of the Large-Scale Retail Store Law looms, an association of chain stores called Feb. 26 for greater freedom in choosing closing times, business days and opening new stores.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’