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COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
May 29, 2004

Miyajima to Oshima: sailing back in time

"The Inland Sea is a dangerous one unless the ship has a pilot of the greatest skill and one who thoroughly knows the channels," wrote my great-grandfather on his passage through the sea in 1900.
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Japan to cover cost of Soga's family reunion

The government will pay travel and other expenses for repatriated abductee Hitomi Soga to reunite in a third country with her American husband and their two daughters, who are now in North Korea, a top spokesman said Friday.
EDITORIALS
May 29, 2004

Reinstating a jury system

Japan is set to introduce a new criminal trial system by the end of this decade, in which professional and lay judges will deal with major cases on an equal footing. A judicial reform bill calling for the creation of the saiban-in (citizen judge) system passed the Upper House last week, making it certain...
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

LDP election pledges to criticize Koizumi

In a rare move, the Liberal Democratic Party's campaign pledges for the upcoming House of Councilors election will feature criticism of the decentralization efforts of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, according to party sources.
BUSINESS
May 29, 2004

Major life insurers show improvement

Japan's nine major life insurers are looking healthier thanks to stock-related gains made from the 47 percent jump in Tokyo stock prices during fiscal 2003, according to earnings reports released as of Friday.
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Execs get suspended term for bribing governor

The Tokyo District Court handed two former executives of Kajima Corp. suspended prison terms Friday for bribing former Ibaraki Gov. Fujio Takeuchi to the tune of 20 million yen in 1992.
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Court hands NCB execs suspended terms

The Tokyo District Court on Friday sentenced three former executives of the defunct Nippon Credit Bank to suspended prison terms for window dressing financial statements to conceal 160 billion yen in bad loans.
BUSINESS
May 29, 2004

Shinsei logs net profit rise of 25%

Shinsei Bank said Friday that its net profit rose 25 percent to 66.4 billion yen in fiscal 2003.
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Two Japanese reported killed south of Baghdad

Two Japanese freelance journalists died after their vehicle was attacked by unidentified assailants in the city of Mahmudiyah, about 30 km south of Baghdad, a Foreign Ministry official in Tokyo quoted Iraqi hospital officials as saying Friday.
BUSINESS
May 29, 2004

Phoenix considers plan to rescue scandal-tainted Mitsubishi Motors

Phoenix Capital Co. is considering devising a plan to turn around the fortunes of Mitsubishi Motors Corp., according to Phoenix Capital President Yasushi Ando.
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Locals take crime-prevention into their own hands

At the beginning of May, six security company workers started late-afternoon patrols of the Isezaki-cho district of Yokohama's Naka Ward.
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Public turns on families of missing abductees

The Associated Press
BUSINESS
May 29, 2004

Nippon Shinpan, UFJ Card to merge

Consumer credit firms Nippon Shinpan Co. and UFJ Card Co. said Friday they have signed an accord to merge in April 2005.
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Attack on journalists prompts chorus of 'responsibility' mantras

Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers again banged the drum of "self-responsibility" on Friday, following an overnight attack on a vehicle carrying two freelance Japanese journalists in Iraq.
BUSINESS
May 29, 2004

Jobless rate still at three-year low of 4.7%

Japan's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained unchanged at a three-year low of 4.7 percent in April, the government said Friday.
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Aum cultist to hang for role in sarin gas attack

The Tokyo High Court sentenced former senior Aum Shinrikyo member Yoshihiro Inoue to death on Friday, overturning a lower court ruling of life in prison.
BUSINESS
May 29, 2004

FTC warns Citibank, Shinsei over unclear ads

The Fair Trade Commission warned Citibank and Shinsei Bank on Friday over misleading newspaper advertisements for time deposits in Australian and New Zealand dollars, FTC officials said.
BUSINESS
May 29, 2004

UBS told to toughen data control

The Financial Services Agency on Friday ordered the Japanese unit of the Switzerland-based UBS financial group to strengthen its internal control of undisclosed corporate data following revelations that the branch provided information to investing clients.
BUSINESS
May 29, 2004

Kamei wary of beef-safety changes

Yoshiyuki Kamei, agriculture, forestry and fisheries minister, expressed reservations Friday about changing Japanese safety standards on beef and beef products in connection with mad cow disease.
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Execs get suspended term for bribing governor

The Tokyo District Court handed two former executives of Kajima Corp. suspended prison terms Friday for bribing former Ibaraki Gov. Fujio Takeuchi to the tune of 20 million yen in 1992.
BUSINESS
May 29, 2004

Industrial output up for second straight month

Industrial output up for second straight month
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

British ambassador looks to deepen global partnership

Japan and Britain should deepen their partnership on global matters, including dispute settlements, British Ambassador to Japan Stephen Gomersall said in a recent speech in Tokyo.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
May 29, 2004

Shu Hikosaka

Shu Hikosaka was born in Toyohashi in a Zen Buddhist temple where his father was the temple priest. Hikosaka's three brothers were also born in the temple. His eldest brother succeeded their father as priest. This strong background in religion naturally shaped Hikosaka's character and philosophy. He...
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Japan to cover cost of Soga's family reunion

The government will pay travel and other expenses for repatriated abductee Hitomi Soga to reunite in a third country with her American husband and their two daughters, who are now in North Korea, a top spokesman said Friday.
BUSINESS
May 29, 2004

Public works costs up to 1,000% above estimates

The costs of 167 public works projects completed between fiscal years 1993 and 2002 were between 50 percent and 1,000 percent more than the government had estimated, according to a report released Friday.
JAPAN
May 29, 2004

Locals take crime-prevention into their own hands

At the beginning of May, six security company workers started late-afternoon patrols of the Isezaki-cho district of Yokohama's Naka Ward.
COMMUNITY
May 29, 2004

Evolutionary astrologer charts your life and soul

Days that suggest difficulty can flow with ease, and those that appear simple and uncomplicated leave one spinning in puzzlement.

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