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JAPAN
Mar 31, 1999

New labor law, tax cuts take effect today

New laws including one banning sex discrimination and another legalizing 4 trillion yen in income tax cuts will take effect today, the first day of fiscal 1999.
JAPAN
Mar 31, 1999

New equal opportunity law called a start

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 31, 1999

State trade panel protests U.S. protectionism

A government trade panel voiced doubts Wednesday about the fairness of U.S. antidumping and protectionist measures under the World Trade Organization's free trade rules.
JAPAN
Mar 31, 1999

Administration reluctant to alter SDF law

Senior government officials took pains Wednesday to keep the recent intrusion into Japanese territorial waters of suspected North Korean spy boats from becoming a catalyst for some legislators to galvanize the nation's legal defense frameworks.
EDITORIALS
Mar 30, 1999

Prodi steps into the breach

Wasting no time, the leaders of the 15 members of the European Union last week nominated former Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi to be the new president of the European Commission. Mr. Prodi replaces Mr. Jacques San ter, who resigned March 15 along with the 19 other commission ers after an independent...
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Patent Office opens doors to Internet

To encourage businesses to innovate technology, the Patent Office today will start providing comprehensive patent information via the Internet for free, officials said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Debt-equity swaps eyed to cut firms' excess capacity

The government will work out a "concrete scheme" to help debt-ridden firms obtain creditor bank cooperation to dispose of excess capacity accumulated during the bubble economy as part of efforts to regain Japan's industrial competitiveness, trade chief Kaoru Yosano said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Local Elections '99: Masuzoe on mission for elderly care

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Unemployment hits record high of 4.6%

The nation's unemployment rate hit a record high of 4.6 percent in February, rising 0.2 percentage point higher than the rate recorded the previous month, the Management and Coordination Agency said on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Hino Motors plans workforce cut

Hino Motors Co., a truck maker belonging to the Toyota group, said Tuesday it has lowered its earnings projections for fiscal 1998 and will cut about 10 percent of its 10,000-strong workforce during the next fiscal year.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Government approves 917-point deregulation plan

The government decided on Tuesday to adopt a three-year deregulation program that covers 917 points in 15 areas, including electrical appliances and vehicle inspections.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Child sex laws to be tightened

A group of lawmakers is stepping beyond party lines to submit a bill to the House of Councilors that will toughen laws against the sexual exploitation of minors at home and abroad.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Kizu exec gets prison over illicit loan

OSAKA -- The Osaka District Court sentenced the former managing director of the failed Kizu Credit Cooperative to a two-year prison term Tuesday for extending an illegal loan to a construction-related firm.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Japan poised to protest 'spy boats'

The government will soon lodge a formal protest with Pyongyang over the intrusion of what Tokyo has determined were "two North Korean spy boats" in Japanese waters, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiromu Nonaka said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Agency brainstorming rogue boat options

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Panel seeks dioxin cut of 90% over four years

A panel of ministers tasked with tackling dioxin pollution formally adopted basic guidelines Tuesday for measures aimed at cutting such emissions by 90 percent within the next four years.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Maritime cargo carriers sail abroad for more lucrative waters

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

Kakizawa's goals hinge on unaffiliated voters

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

Mitsubishi Motors mulls capital tieup proposals

OKAZAKI, Aichi Pref. -- Mitsubishi Motors Corp. President Katsuhiko Kawasoe said Monday the company has received "a variety of proposals" from many automakers to form an alliance centering on MMC's technologies and did not rule out the possibility of any of them developing into a capital tieup.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

Allure, image of governor posts growing on Diet

Staff writers
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

New OCCI head vows Osaka's revitalization

OSAKA -- The newly elected chairman of the Osaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry said Monday he will make efforts to support the environment, information, welfare and tourism as leading areas in the next century.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

Teacher faces charges of attempted murder

A 42-year-old Tokyo schoolteacher who allegedly planted a handmade bomb in a high school in Tokyo's Minato Ward earlier this month was served a fresh arrest warrant Monday on charges of attempted murder and violation of the explosives control law, police sources said.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

JR West, Shigaraki to pay 501 million yen over crash

OSAKA -- The Osaka District Court ordered West Japan Railway Co. and Shigaraki Kogen Railway Co. to pay 501 million yen in damages Monday to the next of kin of nine people killed in a 1991 Shigaraki head-on train collision that claimed 42 lives and left 614 people injured.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

High court clears mob boss of ordering Murai hit

Upholding a lower court ruling, the Tokyo High Court found a former gang member innocent Monday of ordering the 1995 murder of Hideo Murai, a key figure in Aum Shinrikyo.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

Miyazawa plan takes effect in Hanoi

The government on Monday formalized an Official Development Assistance package for Vietnam, including up to 88 billion yen in yen-denominated loans, to support Hanoi's market-oriented reforms under the "Doi Moi" (renovation) policy.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

Kamei backs Obuchi with new faction

Former Construction Minister Shizuka Kamei said Monday that he and his fledgling faction led by Masakuni Murakami will continue to support Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi as Liberal Democratic Party president.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

Tokyo seeks boat explanation from Pyongyang

Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiromu Nonaka said Monday that Pyongyang should give a sincere explanation about its ties to two unidentified vessels that intruded into Japanese waters last week before fleeing to North Korea.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

First Obuchi competition meeting yields promises

Government and industrial leaders agreed Monday to work together to restructure excess capacity, create new businesses and promote labor turnover to improve Japan's industrial competitiveness.
EDITORIALS
Mar 27, 1999

Vote local, think national

Campaigning has started for 12 gubernatorial elections, including the all-important race for Tokyo governor. These are part of a series of local elections to be held in April, the results of which will have a significant impact on national politics. As it enters the 21st century, Japan must implement...
EDITORIALS
Mar 26, 1999

High stakes in Kosovo

Wednesday evening, NATO attacked a sovereign nation for the first time in the alliance's 50-year history. The initial strikes against Yugoslavia, carried out by B-2 "stealth" bombers and cruise missiles, were designed to suppress air-defense systems and other military targets and are the first steps...

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