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JAPAN
Jan 3, 1997

Nissan chief predicts autos will remain Japan's top industry

While some analysts say Japan's auto industry has matured and has little room for growth, the president of Nissan Motor Co. believes the industry will continue to be Japan's leading sector in the 21st century."There may be a new industry that will grow in the future, such as the information business,...
JAPAN
Jan 3, 1997

U-turn rush clogs nation's arteries

The annual rush of people returning home after spending the yearend and new year holidays in their hometowns or at resorts began Jan. 3, clogging highways, airports and Shinkansen trains.The peak of the congestion is expected to come Jan. 4 and Jan. 5. According to the Japan Road Traffic Information...
JAPAN
Jan 3, 1997

Nontraditional new year preferred by youngsters

A family gathering is one way to start off the year. But many people think it's not the only way, including some who relaxed with friends early Jan. 3 in Odaiba-kaihin Park in Tokyo.Tomomi Kakutani, 25, spent the first few hours of the new year by her coveted motorbike with 10 other touring buddies....
JAPAN
Jan 3, 1997

Workforce selection, utilization said key to modern industrial success

When Skymark Airlines was established last November by a group of venture companies, including discount air ticket seller H.I.S. Co., people accustomed to more traditional ways of doing business were shocked by the new style the carrier introduced.They were amazed because nobody has dared to challenge...
JAPAN
Jan 3, 1997

Special corporation reform proves elusive

In the nine-month period to January 1996, the government doled out investment funds of 27.59 trillion yen and state loans and subsidies totaling 37.62 trillion yen to 92 institutions and 528,500 workers nationwide.The size of the funds accumulated by these firms indicates the degree to which the government's...
JAPAN
Jan 3, 1997

Designer gives nursing homes new look

In the past three years, architect Sadakazu Furuya has drawn up 15 designs for small-scale nursing homes, although he has received orders for none of them.Undeterred, he has devoted all his spare time to coming up with designs for what he calls group homes for the elderly. "I believe group homes are...
JAPAN
Jan 3, 1997

Ex-defense chief attacked at Haneda

Former defense chief Keisuke Nakanishi suffered a slight leg injury after being assaulted by an unknown assailant at Tokyo's Haneda airport late Jan. 3, police said.Nakanishi, who served as director general of the Defense Agency in 1993, was slightly injured on the left leg after an unidentified man...
JAPAN
Jan 3, 1997

Tokyo blames discrimination for lack of plans to hire foreigners

Despite the recent reversal of the Home Affairs Ministry's policy, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government will not take immediate action to hire permanent foreign residents for general clerical positions, Gov. Yukio Aoshima has indicated.Aoshima said he has no plans to launch a study group to discuss the...
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1997

Virtual idol Kyoko Date breaks new ground in cyberspace project

She sings and dances, favoring the style of teenage pop diva Namie Amuro. She's got what it takes to make it as an idol of today -- boyishly cute looks and a wardrobe of tight, satiny shirts and shorts.
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1997

U.S. relations seem steady, but Japan will have to live up to commitments

Relations between Japan and the United States are likely to stay calm under their respective new administrations, but the future in both security and economic matters depends largely on whether Japan effectively fulfills its commitments, including those to deregulation and various agreements reached...
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1997

Will Japan be able to compete in the IR revolution?

In the past, a country's competitiveness was decided mostly by the productivity of its industries.
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1997

Thousands gamble on 'fukubukuro'

Thousands of customers, particularly young people, lined up Jan. 2 at a department store in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, for the chance to purchase "fukubukuro," good-luck bags, some of which contained the popular Nike Airmax sports shoe.About 15,000 people were positioned at the entrance of the Ikebukuro branch...
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1997

Rebels free seven, show no sign of ending standoff

LIMA -- Rebels of the tupac amaru revolutionary movement holed up inside the Japanese ambassador's home in Lima made a small gesture of conciliation by freeing seven hostages Jan. 1, but there is no sign they will give in to the government's demands to end the 15-day-old standoff.
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1997

Time deposits tied to politician's debts

A mutual aid cooperative run by a political organization of Tatsuo Tomobe, a member of the Upper House, marketed time deposits to pay off his debts, which totaled about 1 billion yen, co-op sources said Jan. 2.The Metropolitan Police Department considers this information key to backing up fraud allegations...
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1997

More failures to come as 'Jusen' iceberg emerges, many say

While public anger over the government's use of 685 billion yen in taxpayers' funds to liquidate seven "jusen" housing loan companies has subsided, this year may see the outbreak of yet another financial crisis that could eventually require the injection of public money.Analysts say the fuss over the...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 13, 1996

Hallo Spaceboy, welcome back to Earth

The man is back — back in Japan and back from the brink of mediocrity.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1996

Shinshinto to cooperate in police probe of Tomobe

Shinshinto said Feb. 4 that it will cooperate with police in their investigations concerning Upper House member Tatsuo Tomobe, a former Shinshinto member under arrest on suspicion of fraud.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1996

Potter turns Mihara's lava into isle's trademark pottery

OSHIMA ISLAND, Tokyo -- Jun Oba takes advantage of the volcano here, even though he is not a souvenir vender or a seismologist. A ceramic artist, he uses lava to make pottery.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1996

Students drum their way to cultural awareness

HACHIJO ISLAND, Tokyo -- Don, don, don! Sounds of drums echo along the hallways of Hachijo High School as eight girls and two boys practice "taiko" drumming in Folk Art A.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1996

Cabinet approves pluthermal policy to shed stocks

The Cabinet formally approved on Feb. 4 a government plan to promote the so-called pluthermal process, which is aimed at reducing Japan's excess stocks of plutonium.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1996

Domestic PC shipments climbed 33% in 1996

Domestic shipments of personal computers came to 6.809 million in 1996, up 33 percent from the previous year, the Japan Electronic Industry Development Association reported Feb. 4.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1996

Group wins access to Tokyo government info

The Tokyo District Court on Feb. 4 granted a citizens' group access to Tokyo Metropolitan Government records on overtime work by its employees.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1996

Satellite brings students closer to Tokyo

AOGASHIMA ISLAND, Tokyo -- A 7-year-old stands up in a classroom full of electronic media devices. She begins reading her short essay about her experience during winter break. Two microphones installed near the ceiling pick up her voice.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1996

Compensation from shipowner's insurance demanded

Compensation for damage caused by a massive oil spill from a wrecked Russian tanker should be paid out of the shipowner's insurance and not by the government, Home Affairs Minister Katsuhiko Shirakawa said Feb. 4.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1996

Ex-mayor's idea for bus divides residents, sinks re-election

HACHIJO ISLAND, Tokyo -- An unusual trailer bus put into service by the Hachijo town government in March seems to have produced at least two things: A mini tourism boom in another town nearly 300 km away, and, indirectly, the failed re-election bid of one of its own former mayors.
JAPAN
Feb 3, 1996

Domestic vehicle sales still on a roll

Domestic sales of cars, trucks and buses in January rose 14.9 percent from a year before to 336,642 units, maintaining double-digit year-on-year growth for the third month in a row, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association reported Feb. 3.
JAPAN
Feb 3, 1996

North Korean abduction alleged

Serious allegations were raised Feb. 3 that a 13-year-old Niigata Prefecture girl who disappeared near a local beach 20 years ago had been abducted by North Korean agents and is still being held in the Stalinist state against her will.
JAPAN
Feb 3, 1996

Japan wants support for currency stability

Japan will use the meeting Feb. 1 of Group of Seven finance ministers and central bankers to advocate that proper action be taken against excessive moves in the foreign exchange market.
JAPAN
Feb 3, 1996

Shiodome land nets JNR Settlement 372 billion yen

As real estate brokers and developers looked on Feb. 3, Japanese National Railways Settlement Corp. announced that its 5.3-hectare plot of land around the former Shiodome Cargo Terminal near JR Shimbashi Station in Tokyo's Minato Ward would be sold to three corporate groups for 372.3 billion yen.
JAPAN
Feb 3, 1996

Metro-backed foundations face curbs

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government said Feb. 3 it has hammered out stricter guidelines to monitor the management of 70 selected organizations that are affiliated with the government.

Longform

Wozme, founded by dancer and choreographer Wakaba Kohei, is composed of Kana Kitty, Ami Ishii, Akane Watanabe and Natsuki. Its aim is to inject elegance and beauty, traits traditionally associated with femininity, into the sometimes grotesque art form of butoh dance.
Wozme, an all-women dance troupe, wants to move the needle in butoh