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 Ayako Mie

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Ayako Mie
Ayako Mie covers Japanese politics and policies for the Japan Times. She started her career as a reporter at Tokyo Broadcasting System in 2001. In 2008, she went to journalism school at University of California, Berkeley as a Fulbright scholar. On returning to Japan in December 2010, she worked for the Washington Post as a special correspondent.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jun 25, 2013
Unpaid overtime excesses hit young
Some companies are compelling their younger employees to work more than 100 hours of uncompensated overtime a month to maximize their profits.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 24, 2013
LDP win mimics December election
The Tokyo assembly election resembled the decisive contest that returned the Liberal Democratic Party to power in December and raised its chances of taking over the Diet in July.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 21, 2013
Councilors snub bill on vote gap fix
In an act of protest, the opposition-controlled House of Councilors refuses to vote on a bill to rectify the unconstitutional vote-value disparity in the House of Representatives and sends it back to the lower chamber.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 20, 2013
LDP July poll platform a rehash, stays vague on Constitution
The Liberal Democratic Party unveils an Upper House poll campaign platform that regurgitates previous economic plans and omits its agenda for constitutional revision.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 20, 2013
Online drugstore chief cheers Abe on in deregulation fight
Genri Goto, CEO and founder of online drugstore Kenko.com, senses victory after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced in his growth strategy earlier this month that the government would relax rules for online sales of nonprescription drugs.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society / ABE'S PROMISES
Jun 18, 2013
Maternity leave, day care still elude many working mothers
Like many full-time working mothers in Japan, Eriko Soyama, 36, had a tough time getting her children into day care to continue her career.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 2, 2013
'Ethical fashion' concept employed to empower Africa's female artisans
Fashion can help empower women in Africa and lift them out of poverty, says the chief technical adviser of the International Trade Center, which promotes 'ethical fashion.'
Japan Times
JAPAN / NURTURING PARTNERSHIPS
May 29, 2013
Envoy to investors: Look outside conflict box, think fast
The government should encourage Japan's private sector to invest more money and at a faster pace in Africa despite the security concerns that have plagued the continent, Ethiopian Ambassador Markos Tekle Rike said ahead of the fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, which kicks off...
JAPAN / Politics
May 21, 2013
1948 law on entertainment biz too strict on dance clubs, lawmakers say
Lawmakers across party lines pledged Monday to revise a law they consider obsolete that imposes strict operational and licensing rules on dance clubs.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
May 18, 2013
As LDP rides high, are factions biding time?
In late April at an upscale hotel in Tokyo, more than 100 people thronged to have their photo taken with Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
May 18, 2013
LDP wants more might for SDF, and Ospreys
The Liberal Democratic Party called Friday for a more muscular role for the Self-Defense Forces in defending Japan and fulfilling the nation's responsibility as a U.S. ally.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 17, 2013
11 women in Diet decry Hashimoto
A bipartisan group of female lawmakers Thursday called for Osaka Mayor and Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) coleader Toru Hashimoto to retract and apologize for his abrasive comments justifying the sexual enslavement of females during the war and suggesting that U.S. servicemen in Okinawa...
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 16, 2013
TPP-fearing farmers get lip service?
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sees participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership as a way to bolster Japan-U.S. relations but the requirement to scrap tariffs across the board alarms farmers, who want assurances of a safety net to make up for, according to the latest government estimates, a loss in production...
BUSINESS / Economy
May 16, 2013
Passage of 2013 budget to pave way for bonds
The Diet on Wednesday approved the ¥92 trillion budget for fiscal 2013 to support the immediate issuance of debt-covering government bonds.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
May 12, 2013
To woo young voters, DPJ tries self-reflection
The opposition Democratic Party of Japan held a self-deprecating convention Saturday, inviting more than 500 people aged under 30 to criticize their three-year rule in an effort to garner more support from young voters ahead of the Upper House election.
JAPAN / Politics
May 10, 2013
Politicians open debate on Article 96
The ruling and opposition camps open their first talks on revising Article 96 of the Constitution amid opposing views on whether amending the supreme code should be easier.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
May 9, 2013
Opposition guns for LDP committee chair
Opposition parties prepared Wednesday to pass a resolution ousting a senior Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker as head of an Upper House committee, setting the stage for a showdown with the ruling bloc before the Upper House election in July.
JAPAN / Politics
May 3, 2013
Political parties gear up for constitutional showdown
The opposition parties capitalized on Constitution Day Friday to express skepticism about the wisdom of revising the pacifist charter, while the ruling Liberal Democratic Party tried to build momentum to significantly rewrite it.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 2, 2013
Huffington Post looks to weave new Web in Japan
The Japanese version of the Huffington Post will offer a website that spurs more interaction between the media and the public and empower Generation Y, the children of the baby boomers, said Shigeki Matsuura, editor-in-chief of Huffington Post Japan, which is scheduled to launch next Tuesday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
May 1, 2013
Female-friendly shared workspace a boon for moms
Yushi Katayama began to think seriously about leaving Japan after the birth of his son, Shota, in 2012.

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Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?