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JAPAN
Dec 4, 1997

Banks asked to hasten restructuring

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party said Thursday that the banking community, to regain public trust, must step up efforts to restructure and cut costs through such means as pay cuts.
JAPAN
Dec 4, 1997

JR again approached about JNR debt

Vice Transport Minister Masahiko Kurono on Thursday urged the JR group firms to reverse their stand and bear an additional burden in a scheme to repay 27.8 trillion yen in debt left by the former Japanese National Railways.
JAPAN
Dec 4, 1997

The Asahara Trial: Doctor testifies on gassing victim

A doctor who treated a woman seriously injured in the March 1995 nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway system testified in court Thursday that the patient still suffers a speaking disorder and cannot eat without help.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

Top banker praises public funds plan

The leader of the nation's top banking association welcomed on Tuesday the government's intention to use public funds for future financial crises, describing the plan as a "safety valve" for contingencies that fall beyond the capacity of the existing system tasked with dealing with such problems.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

Hashimoto to propose ASEAN round table

Staff writer
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

Upper House panel approves nursing-care insurance bill

The Upper House Committee on Health and Welfare on Tuesday approved a government-proposed bill to create a public nursing-care insurance system for Japan's ailing elderly population, after introducing a revision concerning care services.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

LDP fights proposal to keep Defense Agency as is

Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto on Tuesday failed to win the support of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party for his proposal to not upgrade the Defense Agency to a ministry, LDP officials said.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

Some hope dreamland will arise from returned base sites

GINOWAN, Okinawa Pref. -- On some 480 hectares of land in the heart of this subtropical island prefecture, a futuristic urban center, touted as an Asian hub for international exchanges, has been envisioned.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

JR firms refuse to shoulder larger part of debts

The presidents of seven Japan Railway group companies turned down a Transport Ministry request Tuesday to bear a larger share of the pension costs for former Japanese National Railways employees.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

Yamaichi collapse didn't faze 'sokaiya'

Ryuichi Koike, who on Tuesday went on trial for allegedly extorting huge sums from five of Japan's biggest financial institutions, showed no emotion when he heard about the recent collapse of Yamaichi Securities Co., according to sources.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

Nago battles over U.S. heliport plebiscite

NAGO, Okinawa Pref. -- This sleepy northern Okinawa city is gearing up to hold the first plebiscite in the nation on allowing the introduction of a U.S. military base, and the campaigns for and against the planned U.S. Marine Corps offshore heliport are getting heated.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

Koike pleads guilty to taking massive payoffs

Ryuichi Koike, the "sokaiya" corporate extortionist at the center of a huge financial scandal, pleaded guilty Tuesday to taking about 12.4 billion yen in illicit payoffs from the Big Four brokerages and Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

Obuchi will go to Canada to sign mine-ban pact

Foreign Minister Keizo Obuchi is to leave today for Ottawa to sign a global treaty banning antipersonnel land mines.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1997

Subway gassing victims pared from Aum charges list

The Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office announced Tuesday that it will scale down its indictments against Aum Shinrikyo members over their alleged involvement in two fatal poison gas attacks, one in Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture, in 1994, and the other the 1995 Tokyo subway attack.
JAPAN
Dec 1, 1997

Suntory, Hugo Boss settle trademark dispute

OSAKA -- Suntory Ltd. and the Japanese unit of major German men's apparel maker Hugo Boss AG have reached an out-of-court settlement over a trademark dispute, sources said Monday.
JAPAN
Dec 1, 1997

Hashimoto vows to use public funds to protect deposits

Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto officially expressed for the first time Monday his intention to use public money to stabilize the nation's financial system in the wake of a series of financial institution failures.
JAPAN
Dec 1, 1997

New bullet train lines dealt setback with budget cuts

A committee comprised of representatives from the government and the three ruling parties examining the construction of new bullet train networks decided Monday to pare the project's budget for three years beginning in fiscal 1998.
JAPAN
Dec 1, 1997

Seven suspected in land sales fraud

Police arrested six people and put another on a wanted list Monday on suspicion of swindling 10 million yen from elderly people who had earlier suffered losses from fraudulent sales of undeveloped rural property.
JAPAN
Dec 1, 1997

Prison sought for ex-minister's sister

Prosecutors demanded a three-year prison term Monday for Yoshie Yamaguchi for allegedly receiving two credit union loans totaling 2.7 billion yen without sufficient collateral.
JAPAN
Nov 28, 1997

Kansai business chiefs ask BOJ for stability

OSAKA -- Top business leaders from the Kansai region on Friday asked Toshihiko Fukui, vice governor of the Bank of Japan, to secure stability in the nation's financial system because prolonged uncertainties are beginning to adversely affect small and medium-size firms.
JAPAN
Nov 28, 1997

Japan travel industry does some soul-searching

The Japanese travel industry has yet to decide whether it will print information about the dangers of certain destinations on travel brochures, the chairman of the Japan Association of Travel Agents said Friday.
JAPAN
Nov 28, 1997

G-8, labor groups wrestle with global unemployment

Staff Writer
JAPAN
Nov 28, 1997

Clarity sought on role public funds would play

As debate heats up within the government over ways public funds can be used to restore Japan's financial stability, Finance Minister Hiroshi Mitsuzuka stressed Friday that what such an outlay would attempt to do must first be clarified.
JAPAN
Nov 28, 1997

Keidanren favors use of public money

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JAPAN
Nov 28, 1997

Hashimoto's fiscal reform legislation clears Diet

A government-proposed fiscal reform bill to designate specific reduction targets for key budget areas became law Friday when it was passed by the Upper House during a plenary session.
JAPAN
Nov 28, 1997

COP3: Agreement on emissions is relatively easy

First in a series
JAPAN
Nov 28, 1997

Izui tells Diet he gave 278 million yen to LDP lawmakers

Junichi Izui, an oil wholesaler now on trial for income tax evasion and fraud, said Friday in sworn testimony before the Lower House Budget Committee that he provided 278 million yen to lawmakers of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, including LDP policy chief Taku Yamasaki.
JAPAN
Nov 28, 1997

Tokyo taking foreign nurse's rights case to Supreme Court

Tokyo Gov. Yukio Aoshima said Friday that the Tokyo Metropolitan Government will appeal a high-court ruling that said the city violated the constitutional rights of a foreign public nurse by refusing to let her test for promotion.
JAPAN
Nov 26, 1997

Russia congratulated on APEC entry

Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto sent a congratulatory message Wednesday to Russian President Boris Yeltsin on the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum's decision to allow Russia to join the organization.
JAPAN
Nov 26, 1997

BOJ takes gloomy view of economic slowdown

The Bank of Japan painted a gloomier picture of the economy in a report released Wednesday, saying growth is slowing down even further.

Longform

Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals