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CULTURE / Music
Mar 4, 2000

Synthesizing the old and the new

The individual genres of the traditional Japanese performing arts rarely stood alone. Each instrument or genre had a role to play, either religious, theatrical or social, and Japanese instrumental music, with a few exceptions, existed to provide accompaniment to song, dance or theater.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2000

Cultist designed bank program

An Aum Shinrikyo follower in her 30s was involved in the development of computer systems for Wakayama-based Kiyo Bank and several other financial institutions, it was learned Friday.
EDITORIALS
Mar 4, 2000

China menaced by corruption

In the runup to the National People's Congress that opens Sunday, Chinese authorities have intensified their crackdown on corruption and smuggling. Chinese leaders, who see 2000 as a milestone in their anticorruption drive, are gripped by a sense of crisis: They will lose the trust and support of the...
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2000

N. Korea diplomatic talks set for April

Japan and North Korea have agreed in principle to launch negotiations in early April on normalizing diplomatic relations, resuming talks that collapsed in 1992, Japanese government sources said Friday.
CULTURE / Art
Mar 4, 2000

Reaching for light beyond darkness

KYOTO -- Many foreigners new to Japan feel the pulls and strains of adapting to the feeling of demanding but hidden rules in this country, trying to understand things that seem generally accepted but never quite articulated.
BUSINESS
Mar 4, 2000

Updated PlayStation lands in stores

PlayStation2, the advanced version of the world's most popular video game console, goes on sale today amid growing expectations that the new machine will serve as a powerful tool connecting homes to cyberspace in the near future.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2000

U.K. activist seeks testimony in quest to ban nuclear arms

A British antinuclear activist acquitted by a Scottish court in October of criminal responsibility for damage she inflicted on a British nuclear submarine facility called for Japanese citizens to support her efforts to outlaw atomic weapons.
CULTURE / Art
Mar 4, 2000

Twisted tradition that's knotty but nice

A kimono is never complete without an obijime (narrow braided sash cord). Although the color and pattern of the kimono and obi (belt) are what catch the eye on first glance, an obijime is essential to pull the whole look together.
EDITORIALS
Mar 3, 2000

'But it couldn't happen here'

There is no refuge from the senseless gun violence that plagues the United States. Homes, offices, places of worship, city streets and even schools -- no place is safe. This week, there was an especially horrifying episode: the shooting of one first-grader by another. The details tell a tragic story,...
COMMENTARY
Mar 3, 2000

Tide turning against coalition

Only three weeks ago, Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi's tripartite coalition was in a celebratory mood after the opposition forces ended their boycott of the Diet and all proceedings returned to normal.
BUSINESS
Mar 3, 2000

DirecTV subscribers SKY-ward

DirecTV Japan Inc. has agreed to disband and hand over all its satellite television subscribers to the operator of rival SKYPerfecTV services.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 2000

Niigata cop scandal puts heat on NPA

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COMMUNITY
Mar 3, 2000

Heavy and light in minority fiction

The first Akutagawa Prizes of the year 2000 have been awarded to two works about minority life in Japan. "Kage no Sumika" by Gengetsu, a second-generation Korean-Japanese, deals with life in Osaka's Korean community, while "Natsu no Yakusoku" by Fujino Chiya sketches the daily life of a group of young...
BUSINESS
Mar 3, 2000

U.S., Japan to hold talks soon on next WTO trade round

Japan and the United States will begin high-level consultations as early as next week to iron out differences over issues that have prevented the World Trade Organization from launching a new round of global trade liberalization negotiations.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 2000

German ambassador focuses on promoting G8's success

Building seems to be very much on Uwe Kurt Kaestner's mind.
BUSINESS
Mar 3, 2000

Online exchange mulled for after-hours trading

Major trading house Mitsui & Co. announced Thursday that it will launch a joint venture with 11 brokerages to establish the nation's first after-hours online trading exchange for individual investors.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 3, 2000

Razaleigh floats trial balloon to see if he could be an heir to power

SINGAPORE -- A former archrival of Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad is testing the waters to gauge popular support for a possible bid for the presidency or deputy presidency of the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), the country's leading political party.
BUSINESS
Mar 3, 2000

IYG to invest $540 million in 7-Eleven

Compiled from Kyodo, Jiji Press NEW YORK -- 7-Eleven Inc. announced Wednesday that majority owner IYG Holding Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of Ito-Yokado Co., will invest $540 million in the U.S. convenience store giant in exchange for 113.7 million primary common stock shares.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 2000

'99 section chiefs' wage: 9 million yen

Section chiefs at major Japanese companies earned an average 9.15 million yen last year, a private think tank said.
BUSINESS
Mar 3, 2000

PlayStation2 order site has info security breach

Customer information was accidentally made accessible to anyone entering the Japanese Web site of a Sony group company handling sale reservations of PlayStation2 game consoles, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Mar 3, 2000

Complimentary consoles to link Dreamcast retailers

Major Japanese video-game maker Sega Enterprises Ltd. said Thursday it is planning to use the Dreamcast game console to link some 5,000 retailers online by this spring to provide marketing information quickly.
BUSINESS
Mar 3, 2000

Fundamentals to be key yen-dollar factor

The euro's tumble against the dollar has helped shore up the yen. After hitting a six-month high of 111.73 yen at one time Feb. 22 in Tokyo, the dollar has given up much of its recent gains.

Longform

Dul Saroth (left) and Soeum Samrach, deminers with the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority, practice using the Advanced Landmine Imaging System in Cambodia’s Siem Reap province in August.
The Japanese tech that could one day make Southeast Asia landmine-free