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EDITORIALS
Jan 22, 2005

A man before his time

Zhao Ziyang, former general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), died last weekend at the age of 85. Zhao headed the CCP in the spring of 1989, when demonstrators filled Tiananmen Square in Beijing. He was dismissed days before tanks rolled in to crush the protests, and spent the remaining...
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Missile shield commanders need say-so for launch

Self-Defense Forces commanders in the field must have the authority to launch interceptor missiles in the event of a ballistic missile attack because they would not have enough time to gain approval via the civilian channels now mandated by law, Defense Agency chief Yoshinori Ono said Friday.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Zhao mourners gather at embassy

About 20 Chinese nationals assembled Friday outside the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo to mourn the death of ousted Communist Party leader Zhao Ziyang.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Juvenile offenders under 14 may end up in reformatories

An advisory panel to the justice minister decided Friday to propose legal revisions that would allow juvenile offenders younger than 14 to be sent to reformatories.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Tsunami parley delegates seek specifics -- not vague pledges

KOBE -- As the United Nations World Conference on Disaster Reduction headed into its final two days Friday, NGOs and some member states warned that the five-day parley would be a failure unless it culminated in specific action on disaster reduction measures, especially in the Indian Ocean region.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Crown Princess may take in games

Crown Princess Masako may accompany Crown Prince Naruhito to attend the opening ceremony for the 2005 Special Olympics World Winter Games next month in Nagano Prefecture, Imperial Household Agency officials said Friday.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Woman needed interpreter: court

The Tokyo District Court ruled Friday in favor of a 24-year-old Thai woman who had been issued a deportation order by immigration authorities, saying she should have been provided with an interpreter.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Bangladeshi overstayers sent home

Eight Bangladeshi overstayers who turned themselves in last September to request special permission to remain in Japan were deported Friday, according to sources.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Coffee repels liver cancer: study

People who drink more than a cup of coffee a day are less likely to develop liver cancer than those who do not, according to a team of researchers at Tohoku University.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Machimura says China ties beset by 'various concerns'

research activities by Chinese ships," he said. Machimura stressed the importance of securing Japan's natural resources, vowing to maintain exploration of continental shelves and marine resources around Japan.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Sake breweries near Tokyo offer foreigners tastings, tours in English

Many of the well-known brands of sake are made in the rural, now snow-deep regions of Japan, including Niigata Prefecture, but what may not be widely known is that there are about a dozen breweries in Tokyo alone.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

American admits debt misdeeds

I thought it might be."
COMMENTARY
Jan 22, 2005

Too soon to end U.S. military's aid effort

LOS ANGELES -- What seems truly noteworthy about the U.S. response to the tsunami disaster (especially as viewed here from the West Coast) is the dramatic duration of the caring. Even as the TV media have begun to lose interest (predictably), the general interest here seems not to be waning at all.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jan 22, 2005

Cotton Club's pianist records album with friends

It takes awhile to link up with Noriko Kamo, who keeps going adrift in the snowfalls of Hokkaido's Hakodate. Since her mother is now living alone, Noriko tries to come back to Japan every year to keep her company through the hardest month of the year. It helps, she says, that "it's quiet in New York...
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Deportees' compatriot wins a month's reprieve

is greeted by his family Friday at the Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, after renewing his provisional release.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Koizumi repeats postal reform line

Postal privatization -- Page 3 REIJI YOSHIDA Staff writer Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi reiterated his resolve Friday to split the nation's state-run postal services into four privatized companies -- a plan destined to put the prime minister and his own party on a collision course.
BUSINESS
Jan 22, 2005

MMC, DaimlerChrysler eye coverup settlement

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said Friday it has been negotiating with DaimlerChrysler AG on a settlement in connection with the latter's equity stake in Mitsubishi Fuso Truck & Bus Corp., which was spun off from MMC in January 2003.
BUSINESS
Jan 22, 2005

Group to recapitalize credit co-ops

The federation of "shinkumi" credit cooperatives has developed a scheme to recapitalize co-ops whose capital to assets ratios fall below the "soundness threshold" of 4 percent, federation officials said Friday.
BUSINESS
Jan 22, 2005

Machine-tool orders hit 14-year high

Machine-tool orders placed with Japanese manufacturers in 2004 grew to a 14-year high, reflecting active capital spending by makers of automobiles, electrical and electronEic equipment, and precision instruments, an industry body said Friday.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Health panel backs use of thalidomide

A health ministry panel decided Friday to designate the sedative thalidomide as a priority research drug for bone marrow cancer treatment, more than 40 years after it was banned for causing severe birth defects.
BUSINESS
Jan 22, 2005

Suzuki's Chevy Optra hits market

Suzuki Motor Corp. began selling the 2-liter Chevrolet Optra sedan Friday as part of its strategic tieup with General Motors Corp, the automaker said.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2005

Koizumi set to resume battle for postal reform

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi will go all-out in the 150-day Diet session that convened Friday to push his long-cherished, but highly contentious, plan to privatize the nation's postal services.
BUSINESS
Jan 22, 2005

Kokudo repays Maeda 1 billion yen for Seibu stock

Kokudo Corp. has nullified Seibu Railway Co. stock transfer deals with Maeda Corp. and returned almost 1 billion yen to the construction company in light of the Seibu Railway false financial report scandal, Maeda said Friday.
BUSINESS
Jan 22, 2005

Foreigners fail to make cut in contest to be Daiei sponsor

The state-backed Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan has weeded out foreign-led consortiums from its list of candidates to sponsor struggling retailer Daiei Inc., according to sources.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Jan 22, 2005

Harry Sweeney

Dr. Harry Sweeney said: "Racing in Japan under the Japan Racing Association is the best in the world. There is no question about it." He speaks with the authority of someone "happy and proud to be involved with it." He thinks he, as a non-Japanese who is a member of the Breeders' Association of Japan...
BUSINESS
Jan 22, 2005

Tanigaki hints at impending tax hike

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