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JAPAN
Mar 29, 2006

What next in Asahara trial saga?

Aum Shinrikyo founder Shoko Asahara's lawyers continue to protest the Tokyo High Court's dismissal Monday of their appeal of the cult guru's death sentence.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 2006

Doctor who failed to try to save boy's life cleared

A doctor who failed to notice or remove part of a cotton candy stick that was lodged in the brain of a nursery school boy in July 1999, who did not bother to hospitalize the victim and who, the court acknowledged, tried to cover up his ineptitude, was cleared Tuesday of negligence resulting in death....
BUSINESS
Mar 29, 2006

Ministry to reject rice futures trading

Agriculture minister Shoichi Nakagawa said Tuesday he plans to turn down applications by two commodity exchanges in Japan that want to list rice futures contracts on an experimental basis.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 2006

Cash card data feared stolen overseas

Three major banks announced Tuesday that cash card data for hundreds of customers might have been stolen when the cards were used at automated teller machines in the United States and France.
BUSINESS
Mar 29, 2006

Japan, U.S. begin technical talks on beef

Japan and the United States began a two-day technical meeting Tuesday in Tokyo to discuss Washington's request that Japan lift its import ban on American beef.
MORE SPORTS
Mar 28, 2006

Shimizu not ready to call it quits

Two-time Olympic medalist Hiroyasu Shimizu, whose campaign at the Turin Games ended in disappointment, said Monday he will continue with his career as a competitive speedskater at least for another season.
SUMO
Mar 28, 2006

HARU HAPPENINGS -- Something for everyone

In perhaps the most entertaining sumo tournament in years, the recently completed Haru Basho essentially had it all.
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2006

Lawyer hopes 'go-between' can skip Diet

A lawyer representing the alleged go-between who gave an e-mail suggesting shady financial links between Livedoor Co. founder Takafumi Horie and a son of Liberal Democratic Party Secretary General Tsutomu Takebe to an opposition lawmaker called Monday on the House of Representatives Disciplinary Committee...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2006

79.69 trillion yen budget with budget cap passed

The Diet passed a 79.69 trillion yen budget for fiscal 2006 on Monday with the backing of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's ruling coalition.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2006

Besieged DPJ unable to rise to debate

With the Monday approval of the fiscal 2006 budget by the Diet, lawmakers have turned their focus to bills up for deliberation during the remainder of the session, but the opposition camp's state of disarray may prevent serious debate on the role of government in society, critics say.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2006

Papers suggest Konoe sought end to China war

Documents found at the house of one of the late Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe's relatives indicate he tried to end the war against Chinese forces led by Chiang Kai-shek in the closing days of the war, sources said Sunday.
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2006

Japan, ASEAN ink agreement on integration fund

Foreign Minister Taro Aso and Malaysian Ambassador to Japan Marzuki Mohammad Noor signed an agreement Monday for Japan to establish a fund to help promote the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' efforts toward integration.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2006

SDF establishes joint office for military operations

The Self-Defense Forces on Monday set up the Joint Staff Office to integrate the operations of the Air, Maritime and Ground branches, with GSDF Gen. Hajime Massaki assuming the post of Joint Staff chief in a ceremony held at the Defense Agency in Tokyo.
EDITORIALS
Mar 28, 2006

Skating on thin ice

Shizuka Arakawa's Olympic triumph and the media hype surrounding women's figure skating belies the grossly inadequate training environment that Japan's top skaters face and the escalating training costs they shoulder in the absence of meaningful support from the government or corporations.
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2006

Panel: If no spending cuts are taken, how about 22% sales tax by 2015?

The consumption tax will have to rise to 22 percent from the current 5 percent by fiscal 2015 if the government is to achieve a sound balance between tax revenues and outlays, unless major spending cuts are made, an advisory panel to the finance minister said Monday.
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2006

Elementary English to be mandatory

The education ministry plans to make English lessons obligatory at elementary schools in line with a recommendation issued by one of its panels Monday, ministry officials said.
BUSINESS
Mar 28, 2006

CCC, Aioi Insurance set to tie up

Aioi Insurance Co. and Culture Convenience Club Co., the operator of Japan's largest video rental chain, Tsutaya, said Monday they have agreed to begin preparations to set up a joint casualty insurance firm with an eye to cashing in on Tsutaya's large customer base.
BUSINESS
Mar 28, 2006

Big firms' confidence off

Major companies became less confident about business conditions in the January-March quarter as manufacturers were hit by high oil prices, pushing the key confidence index down for the first time in four quarters, a government survey showed Monday.
BUSINESS
Mar 28, 2006

Beef ban has Japan eating out of Australia's hands

Kenji Miyoda, savoring a bowl of rice topped with beef from Australia, raw egg and spicy sauce, believes Australian beef is far safer than American beef.
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2006

Asahara death sentence appeal foiled

The Tokyo High Court on Monday rejected an appeal from Aum Shinrikyo founder Shoko Asahara, increasing the likelihood the guru's death sentence for masterminding the deadly 1995 gassing of the Tokyo subway system and other murders will stand without further sessions.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes