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Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Jan 22, 2019

The Todai Riots: 1968-69

A photographer who documented the occupation of the University of Tokyo from inside the barricades half a century ago remembers the final days of resistance
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 22, 2019

British academic says he was forced by UAE to confess to spying charges

British academic Matthew Hedges said he had "no other option but to confess" during nearly seven months of detention in the United Arab Emirates on espionage charges.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / davos special 2019
Jan 22, 2019

Innovative ideas to address global challenges

As a forerunner facing various social challenges, including addressing the aging population, as well as environmental and energy issues, Japan is poised to find solutions and share them with other countries that are also expected to be confronted with these complex problems.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / davos special 2019
Jan 22, 2019

Shifting to a decarbonized society amid climate change

Since the adoption of the Paris agreement in December 2015, the role of non-state players with the aim of realizing a decarbonized society has become more significant than ever. Non-state parties include companies, local governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and others, who have not necessarily...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jan 21, 2019

Factory night views of Yokkaichi a tourist draw and a bitter legacy of pollution

Factory night view cruises in Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture, are recently attracting visitors from across the nation. While the city's tourism association hopes the tour will help make the city become a major tourist destination, people who suffered from industrial pollution in the 1960s say they don't want...
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Jan 19, 2019

The University of Tokyo riots of 1968-69: A photographer remembers the final days of resistance

Riot police at the University of Tokyo haul off a man wearing a white helmet, cuffed hands clasped above his bowed head. His expression is a mixture of resignation and defiance, but the fine details are hard to discern, obscured by the dark shades of the monochrome photograph he is depicted in — where...
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Jan 16, 2019

First human rights TV channel vows to 'give a voice to voiceless'

The world's first television channel dedicated to human rights was launched in London on Tuesday with a promise to deliver hidden stories ignored by mainstream media into people's living rooms.
Japan Times
Figure Skating / ICE TIME
Jan 15, 2019

Takahiko Kozuka aiming to enrich skating

When a skater's career comes to an end, they are often faced with a difficult choice about how to proceed with their life.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Jan 15, 2019

People in flood-hit western Japan area frustrated by sluggish recovery and population loss

With Jan. 6 marking six months since deadly floods devastated parts of western Japan, many residents in the area are still living in temporary housing, towns with declining populations are seeing more people leave and some farmers with destroyed fields have decided to quit farming.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jan 14, 2019

Torn between airplanes and Japanese arts, former Air Self-Defense Force officer debuts as geisha in Gifu

A 32-year-old woman who used to serve in the Air Self-Defense Force debuted last month as a geiko — another term used to refer to geisha — in Gifu, a city known for having a unique tradition of entertaining guests on riverboats with geisha performances and ukai cormorant fishing.
Japan Times
SATOYAMA CONSORTIUM
Jan 13, 2019

Many chances for success across rural areas

The Japan Times Satoyama Consortium, the Chugoku Region Governors Association and the town of Jinsekikogen in Hiroshima Prefecture co-hosted a two-day event at the Jinseki Kogen Hotel on Oct. 20 and 21.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 13, 2019

New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger: 'Following the truth, wherever it leads'

In the spring of 2014, a low rumble could be felt deep in the media landscape. An in-house report about the need for digital innovation at The New York Times was leaked by competitors, and what it revealed was a major news organization clearly struggling to overcome internal stasis and catch up with...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Jan 13, 2019

Students tasked with developing dishes using Fukushima produce to promote prefecture's recovery

A group of elementary, junior high and high school students in the city of Fukushima are taking part in an initiative to develop original recipes using local agricultural products as part of a broader project to highlight the city's recovery from the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 12, 2019

A rare glimpse into the world of Japan's cozy snack bars

Cigarette smoke wafts across rows of whisky and shōchū bottles with dedicated name tags draped around the necks as an elderly man, microphone in hand, belts out a Showa Era enka tune playing on the karaoke machine.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / NPB NOTEBOOK
Jan 12, 2019

Eagles announce plans to make Rakuten Seimei Park Miyagi world's first cashless stadium

The Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles want you to leave your cash at home.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 10, 2019

Russia's press poses a problem for Putin

Semi-authoritarian regimes don't fully control the people's behavior and Russia's media is stirring more anger than outsiders may expect.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Jan 10, 2019

Mayor blasts Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki as Ginowan city abstains from vote on Henoko land reclamation

Amid long-standing political wrangling over construction of a new U.S. base in Okinawa, the mayor of the city of Ginowan in the prefecture has said the municipality will not participate in a prefectural referendum set to be held over reclamation of land in order to build the new military facility, and...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 10, 2019

China says trade talks with U.S. have set foundation to resolve concerns, without giving details

Trade talks between China and the United States this week were extensive and helped establish a foundation for the resolution of each others' concerns, China's commerce ministry said on Thursday, but gave no details on the issues at stake.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 7, 2019

Bailed out or not, Carlos Ghosn's role at Renault becomes more untenable

Carlos Ghosn will get a chance Tuesday to make his case to the Tokyo District Court that he should be released on bail from his 50-day detention. But 9,500 km away in Paris, his future as head of Renault SA is increasingly in doubt.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jan 7, 2019

Traffic safety-conscious group of bald men in Mie Prefecture breaks up due to aging

In 1985, about 30 bald men in their 30s who were running businesses in Matsusaka, Mie Prefecture, created a group called Hagetemo Katsura wo Kaburan Kai, which roughly translates to a group of men who won't wear wigs even if they go bald.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jan 3, 2019

Japanese kamikiri performer's elaborate pieces draw interest from readers of Nagoya newspaper

Hayashiya Niraku is a 51-year-old practitioner of kamikiri, a Japanese performance art that involves cutting silhouette images out of a plain piece of paper based on requests from the audience. Adding to the challenge, artists create their pieces without drawing an outline beforehand.
Japan Times
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Jan 2, 2019

Scandals allowing sumo to ID, rid sport of bad elements

It's that time once again to make predictions, and state hopes and wishes for the year ahead in sumo.
Japan Times
SATOYAMA CONSORTIUM
Dec 30, 2018

Outdated ideas a heavy burden on society

A two-day event on topics related to satoyama (mountains and woods shared and maintained by residents of the adjacent rural communities) was held at the Jinseki Kogen Hotel in the town of Jinsekikogen, Hiroshima Prefecture, on Oct. 20 and 21. The event was hosted by the Japan Times Satoyama Consortium,...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Dec 24, 2018

Nagoya community effort to recycle food waste wins U.N.-related award

A decade-old community effort in Nagoya to recycle food waste from supermarkets and school lunches to make compost for vegetable farming has been awarded the Biodiversity Action Award by the Japan Committee for United Nations Decade on Biodiversity (UNDB).
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 24, 2018

What happens when Alexa gets too smart or too human?

Millions of users of Amazon's Echo speakers have grown accustomed to the soothing strains of Alexa, the human-sounding virtual assistant that can tell them the weather, order takeout and handle other basic tasks in response to a voice command.

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