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COMMENTARY / World
Jun 16, 2006

Zarqawi myth proved useful

LONDON -- The convenient emergence and sudden disappearance of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi signals the end of an era. Although Washington and London insist on telling us that the "good news" of his death doesn't necessary mean an end to Iraq's bloodshed, the giddiness in British Prime Minister Tony Blair's...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 16, 2006

Consumers still cold to U.S. beef

Consumers are far from convinced that U.S. beef is safe, despite government efforts to ease public concerns through 10 nationwide public hearings on the issue.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 16, 2006

Regional WEF meeting opens

About 300 global leaders from business, government and academia gathered Thursday in Tokyo to kick off a two-day meeting of the World Economic Forum on East Asia to discuss development and the environment as well as regional economic integration.
EDITORIALS
Jun 15, 2006

One step forward in Iraq

Last week's killing in Iraq of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, an al-Qaida leader, must have come as good news for Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who had formed a "national unity" government a little more than two weeks earlier. The death of the Jordanian-born insurgency leader will aid the government's...
COMMENTARY
Jun 15, 2006

Soccer, flags and nationalism

LONDON -- All over England, on houses, cars and vans, you will see the cross of St. George waving in the wind. Prime Minister Tony Blair has been persuaded that the English flag should be flown at his residence on days when the English team are playing in the World Cup.
COMMENTARY
Jun 15, 2006

Reformers edge ahead in Chinese debate

HONG KONG -- Since Deng Xiaoping began the process of reform and opening up almost 28 years ago, China has repeatedly had internal debates, often heated, as to whether changes had gone too far.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 15, 2006

Fuji Rocking 10 years on

Fuji Rock Festival is the biggest event on the calendar for many Japanese and foreign residents alike. Sure, it costs a stack of cash to go, but the festival is not your typical commercial venture. Word on the street is that it has been anything but a money spinner for concert promoter Smash Japan. Instead,...
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2006

Tokyo court grants asylum to Afghan journalist

The Tokyo District Court granted refugee status Tuesday to an Afghan journalist, nullifying an earlier decision by the justice minister denying him asylum and ordering him deported.
BUSINESS
Jun 13, 2006

Official nixes latest WTO proposal on farm tariffs

Vice farm minister Mamoru Ishihara said Monday he is opposed to the latest WTO proposal calling for an average cut of 54 percent in tariffs on farm goods and based on ideas put forward by the Group of 20, a coalition of developing-country exporters.
EDITORIALS
Jun 12, 2006

If you can't trust the elevators

It is taken for granted by most people that an elevator moves only after its doors are securely closed and not while the doors are open. But events on the evening of June 3 at a 23-story condominium building in Tokyo's Minato Ward have betrayed this trust.
Japan Times
LIFE
Jun 11, 2006

Preparing for 'people's courts'

For more than 60 years since its last form of a jury system was suspended, Japan's courts have been the preserve of a largely unseen elite. Now, though, regular citizens are set to take part again too, and 'mock trials' like those popular in America may play a key role in preparing for this momentous...
COMMENTARY
Jun 10, 2006

China's buildup is no wonder

LOS ANGELES -- There has been an unsettling discordance about U.S. policy toward China that was brought home anew by Donald Rumsfeld, recently at the annual IISS Asia Security Summit in Singapore. Why this discredited man with his failed Iraqi policies remains U.S. secretary of defense is a profound...
BUSINESS
Jun 9, 2006

Skylark to carry out largest MBO in Japan history

Family-style restaurant chain Skylark Co. announced Thursday its management will buy all outstanding company shares to become private, making it the largest management buyout bid in Japanese history.
BUSINESS
Jun 9, 2006

New budget plan eyes surplus by 2011

The government has come up with a new budget reform proposal aimed at achieving a primary budget surplus by fiscal 2011 by cutting spending and raising taxes, government sources said Thursday.
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 8, 2006

Eyes on Germany as show time nears for soccer's greatest

BONN -- Finally, the finals.
EDITORIALS
Jun 8, 2006

The act of a professional?

Mr. Yoshiaki Murakami, who has drawn intense public attention as Japan's most controversial investment fund manager, was arrested Monday by the Tokyo Public Prosecutor's Office on suspicion of violating the Securities and Exchange Law. He is suspected of having engaged in insider stock trading when his...
JAPAN
Jun 8, 2006

Elevator firm raided over deadly lift malfunction

Police raided locations Wednesday linked to Tokyo-based elevator maker Schindler Elevator K.K. and a housing corporation, suspecting that professional negligence or poor maintenance caused the fatal crushing of a teenager on a lift last weekend.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 8, 2006

Planting seeds of hope in Japan's youth

The bright laughter of children is the true measure of a society's health. Ten years ago, I was in San Jose, Costa Rica, for the opening of an exhibition on the reality and threat of nuclear weapons. Even as participants began a dignified rendition of the national anthem, through the wall that separated...
BUSINESS
Jun 7, 2006

Sony has high hopes for its first digital SLR

Sony Corp. on Tuesday unveiled its first digital single lens reflex camera, the Alpha DSLR-A100, in its first product rollout since acquiring the Konica Minolta Group's digital SLR division earlier this year.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Jun 6, 2006

Design doyenne still sets aesthetic agenda

Standing well over 180 cm in her two-tone Chanel pumps, Andree Putman, the Grand Dame of modernist design, is at once icon, icon-maker and iconoclast. Born in Paris in 1925, her illustrious career traverses friendships and collaborations with many of the last century's revered avant-gardist creators,...
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Jun 5, 2006

A sleuth's Marple-lous take on takeover bids

In the novel "A Caribbean Mystery," Miss Marple asks Mr. Rafiel about takeover bids. She sounds like someone who is talking about a word in a foreign language.
BUSINESS
Jun 4, 2006

Murakami fund reportedly ready to sell Hanshin shares to Hankyu

Hankyu Holdings Inc.'s bid to acquire Hanshin Electric Railway Co. through a public tender offer is expected to be successfully concluded because the Murakami fund, Hanshin's biggest shareholder, now intends to sell its stake, Hankyu sources said Saturday.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jun 4, 2006

Will ghostwriters face 'treachery' from post-Koizumi Japan?

A recent news item in The Japan Times really shocked me. It concerned what a former political heavyweight once said in private.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 3, 2006

Nissan and Suzuki seal mutual car-supply deal

Nissan Motor Co. and Suzuki Motor Corp. announced Friday they will expand their existing partnership by supplying minicars, minivans and pickup trucks to each other both at home and abroad.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 3, 2006

Sompo Japan chief resigns; 6.5 million yen error revealed

The president of Sompo Japan Insurance Inc. resigned Friday to take responsibility for the firm's misconduct that resulted in a business suspension order, while the insurer announced it mistakenly collected 6.5 million yen in premiums due to a clerical error.

Longform

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