Search - japan

 
 
COMMUNITY
Oct 8, 2000

Occupational therapy via 'Women and Socks'

It is a rare thing to find any actress of middle years who has never been out of work for more than six months. Especially one willing to explore both biculturally and bilingually her country's history and the sensitive subject of postwar relations.
COMMENTARY
Oct 8, 2000

The Japanese people really are different

This year there were two Olympics. One was for the world generally. The other was for Japan, with audiences glued to events where hysterical announcers could declare a Japanese victory.
JAPAN
Oct 7, 2000

Better links to Pyongyang seen if Tokyo and Seoul get closer

One of the winners of this year's Japan Foundation Award said he hopes promoting closer ties between South Korea and Japan will also lead to stronger links between Tokyo and Pyongyang.
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2000

Taiwan shift away from reactors may deal blow to Japanese firms

Taiwan's Economics Ministry has taken a step toward loosening the island's reliance on nuclear power in a move that could be a major blow to Japanese firms in the atomic power industry.
JAPAN
Oct 5, 2000

Food aid to North Korea gains approval

A key Liberal Democratic Party panel approved a plan Wednesday to send 500,000 tons of rice as food aid to North Korea, effectively paving the way for an aid program the government hopes will add impetus to normalization talks.
EDITORIALS
Oct 4, 2000

Banks must get better, not just bigger

The official debut last week of the Mizuho financial group is a fresh reminder of the large-scale bank mergers and tie-ups now in the works in Japan. The group brings together Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank, Fuji Bank and the Industrial Bank of Japan under the umbrella of Mizuho Holdings Inc. Two years from now,...
JAPAN
Oct 4, 2000

Lage urges closer ties with Cuba

Visiting Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage on Tuesday called for strengthening bilateral relations with Japan on various fronts, ranging from tourism, sports and culture to business.
JAPAN
Oct 3, 2000

Mori plans more letters pitching UNSC seat bid

In yet another effort to promote Japan's quest for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori will write most of the U.N. member nations as early as next week to reiterate calls for UNSC reforms, government sources said.
JAPAN
Sep 28, 2000

AOL, DoCoMo form alliance

America Online Inc. and NTT DoCoMo Inc. announced Wednesday in Tokyo that they will form a strategic alliance to integrate their wireless and fixed-line Internet services, with NTT DoCoMo becoming AOL Japan's top shareholder.
BUSINESS
Sep 25, 2000

Global competitors face tough decisions

Although monetary policy has been tightened, the U.S. economy is still on a steady growth path, propelled by the expansion of its information technology industry, which is said to be far ahead of its counterparts in the European Union and Japan.
JAPAN
Sep 25, 2000

Kim urges Mori to help feed North Korea

ATAMI, Shizuoka Pref. -- South Korean President Kim Dae Jung on Sunday called on Japan to extend as much food aid to North Korea as it can.
JAPAN
Sep 24, 2000

Leaders agree to coordinate Pyongyang policies

ATAMI, Shizuoka Pref. -- Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori and South Korean President Kim Dae Jung reaffirmed the importance of coordinating their North Korea policies in their talks here Saturday, the first since the two Koreas' historic meeting in June.
CULTURE / Art
Sep 24, 2000

Impressions made in paper take form

When the semioticist Roland Barthes came to Japan, he decided to do what many foreigners do, which is to base his impressions of Japan on exactly that, his impressions. His book "The Empire of Signs" is ostensibly about Japan, but the author acknowledged (with no shame) that it actually was a collection...
JAPAN
Sep 23, 2000

Whales' diets threaten fish stocks, whaler says

The eating habits of whales are changing and are likely to affect the fishery industry, according to the head of Japan's "research whaling" fleet, which returned to port Thursday.
JAPAN
Sep 20, 2000

Flood of Chinese tourists expected

Tourism promoters backing the first authorized Chinese package tour to Japan say they foresee 1 million people from Beijing, Shanghai and other parts of China visiting each year.
COMMENTARY
Sep 20, 2000

Council's proposals bode well

For an inside view on how Japan Inc. really operates, take a look at the workings of the National People's Council on Education Reform, now winding up its discussions and of which I was made a member, although I am not a Japanese national.
CULTURE / Books
Sep 19, 2000

Poetry that brings countries together

THE WEATHER IN JAPAN, by Michael Longley. Jonathan Cape, 2000, 70 pp., 8 British pounds. HAY, by Paul MULDOON. Faber & Faber, 140 pp., 7.99 British pounds. A SMELL OF FISH, by Matthew Sweeney. Jonathan Cape, 2000, 64 pp., 8 British pounds. Irland and Japan: two countries at the far extremities of the...
COMMENTARY
Sep 19, 2000

Dispute defies quick solution

Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori and Russian President Vladimir Putin failed in their recent Tokyo summit to resolve the bilateral territorial dispute over the Northern Territories, stirring mixed reactions in the two countries. Although they agreed to continue peace-treaty talks toward the yearend deadline,...
JAPAN
Sep 17, 2000

Current 'soft' Myanmar policy was threatened by Suu Kyi's detention

Foreign-policy makers are relieved -- at least for now -- that their long-standing policy of "constructive engagement" toward Myanmar survived its biggest potential challenge with Thursday's release of prodemocracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from 12 days of effective house arrest.
CULTURE / Music / HOGAKU TODAY
Sep 16, 2000

Japanese music millennium: new music for the Heisei Era

As the days grow shorter and evenings cooler, the hogaku season begins to pick up. September, October and November are the best months for experiencing the arts in Japan as the creative impulses, stifled by the summer's oppressive humidity, break forth in an array of interesting concerts, recitals and...
JAPAN
Sep 15, 2000

Koreans welcome 'cultural invasion'

SEOUL -- The Japanese are coming -- but this time they're being welcomed with open arms.
CULTURE / Books
Sep 15, 2000

An activist Emperor, pulling the strings

HIROHITO AND THE MAKING OF MODERN JAPAN, by Herbert P. Bix. New York: HarperCollins, 2000, 800 pp, $28 (cloth). This is a blistering and persuasive reassessment of Emperor Showa's reign, debunking the various myths that have accumulated about his allegedly powerless role in Japan's prolonged period...
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 14, 2000

World Cup 2002 tickets to sell Oct. 2

Tickets reserved for residents of Japan for the 2002 World Cup will start selling Oct. 2 after a computer draw selects who can buy them, the Japanese World Cup Organizing Committee (JAWOC) announced Wednesday.
JAPAN
Sep 12, 2000

U.S. bases to preserve environment

The United States and Japan have reached an agreement obligating U.S. military bases in Japan to preserve the environment, government sources said.

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