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COMMENTARY
Dec 22, 1999

Popularity of cults reflects Japan's gaping spiritual void

Why are increasing numbers of Japanese now turning to new religions? Because Japanese today feel they have nothing to fall back on. Even those who do not embrace new religions feel this way. That is why new religions continue to spring forth like mushrooms.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Dec 22, 1999

The accidental ambassador

Stop me if you've heard this one: A mustachioed fun-loving Turkish guy throws up a personal Web page that, in simple, bad English, depicts him as a regular Renaissance stud muffin, who loves to travel, plays numerous instruments, is single, and -- the kicker -- he states, "I like sex." He offers a picture...
JAPAN
Dec 22, 1999

JCO worker succumbs after 83 days

One of three JCO Co. workers exposed to massive radiation in September in the nation's worst nuclear accident died of organ failure at a Tokyo hospital late Tuesday night, becoming the first fatality of his kind in Japan. Hisashi Ouchi, 35, was critically injured during an accident Sept. 30 at the JCO...
JAPAN
Dec 21, 1999

NTT, Korea Telecom form alliance to handle demand

NTT Communications Corp. and Korea Telecom have agreed on a comprehensive business alliance to jointly offer global services for multinational corporate users, the two firms announced Tuesday. Under the agreement, NTT Com and Korea Telecom, the largest telecom company in South Korea, will also cooperate...
JAPAN
Dec 21, 1999

Aum gives trustee funds for redress

Aum Shinrikyo has used some of the money it earned from the sale of a number of premises in the town of Kiso-Fukushima, Nagano Prefecture, to compensate victims of crimes the cult has been accused of, the cult's bankruptcy administrator said Tuesday. Administrator Saburo Abe told a news conference Tuesday...
JAPAN
Dec 20, 1999

Miyazawa unveils 85 trillion yen budget

Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa on Monday proposed a draft general-account budget for fiscal 2000 worth 84.99 trillion yen intended as the "final push" for economic recovery. The budget, featuring massive public works spending and expanded funds to handle bank failures, is the largest-ever and 3.8...
JAPAN
Dec 17, 1999

Saudi Arabia drilling talks draw nearer

Japan has received a letter from Saudi Arabia calling for accelerating negotiations on renewing Tokyo-based Arabian Oil Co.'s drilling rights in the Khafji oil field, International Trade and Industry Minister Takashi Fukaya said Friday. "I suppose the letter is meant to convey their readiness to meet...
JAPAN
Dec 17, 1999

Justice Ministry confirms two death-row executions

Two death-row inmates, including one who was seeking a retrial, were executed Friday morning, the Justice Ministry said The ministry, as usual in such cases, did not release the names in its brief press release, but judiciary sources identified the two as Teruo Ono, 62, and Kazuo Sagawa, 48. The two...
JAPAN
Dec 17, 1999

Donors pledge total of $522 million to East Timor

Aid donors for East Timor concluded a two-day fundraising gathering Friday in Tokyo, pledging a total of $522 million in a three-year package to help advance the territory's transition to independence. The meeting, the first of its kind since East Timor rejected Indonesian rule in a September referendum,...
JAPAN
Dec 17, 1999

100 billion yen base carrot waved at north Okinawa

Tokyo is ready to disburse 100 billion yen over the coming 10 years to boost the economy of northern Okinawa if the area accepts a new airport for the U.S. Marine Corps, the central government told Okinawa Gov. Keiichi Inamine on Friday. For a start, the central government would allocate 10 billion...
JAPAN
Dec 16, 1999

Tokyo, Seoul agree to improve mutual investment

In a further step toward the conclusion next year of a bilateral investment pact, Japan and South Korea agreed in Tokyo on Thursday to expedite joint efforts to improve investment between the two countries. The agreement was made at the second round of talks of the bilateral government and private-sector...
JAPAN
Dec 16, 1999

New subway line to be named Oedo

Tokyo's No. 12 subway line will be named the Oedo Line, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's Bureau of Transportation said, dumping a misnomer selected last month amid much fanfare. The previously selected name -- Tokyo Kanjo (Loop) Line -- doesn't make any sense, said Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara on...
JAPAN
Dec 16, 1999

Tokyo, Pyongyang to meet in China for normalization talks

Japan and North Korea will hold a series of meetings from Sunday to Tuesday in Beijing in an effort to resolve long-standing humanitarian concerns and resume talks for normalizing diplomatic relations, the government announced Thursday. A meeting between the two countries' Red Cross societies is scheduled...
JAPAN
Dec 16, 1999

Push vowed to pass seat-cut bill next session

The government will do its utmost to pass the controversial bill for reducing Lower House seats during the upcoming ordinary Diet session, Chief Cabinet Secretary Mikio Aoki said Thursday.Aoki's remarks followed the renewal of an agreement reached Wednesday night between the Liberal Democratic Party...
JAPAN
Dec 15, 1999

Fields takes helm of Mazda

Mazda Motor Corp. announced Wednesday that President James E. Miller has been replaced by his 38-year-old deputy, Mark Fields. Fields, who became vice president only two weeks ago, has stepped up to the top post as the youngest to do so in the firm's history. Miller, 58, resigned from the presidency...
JAPAN
Dec 14, 1999

Singapore Airlines banks on new services, alliance

Staff writer Singapore Airlines hopes to increase its share of the passenger market for travel between Japan and Singapore by upgrading in-flight services and forming an alliance of multiple carriers, says T.K. Tan, general manager of the company's Japan office. "Our strategy is to emphasize our products...
JAPAN
Dec 14, 1999

Majority doesn't mean easy street for coalition

Staff writer The 48-day extraordinary Diet session, scheduled to end today, appears to have exposed the weaknesses rather than strengths of Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi's new tripartite coalition, which controls 70 percent of the seats in the Lower House. Obuchi had hoped the combined majority of 356...
JAPAN
Dec 13, 1999

Yasuda, Fukoku announce insurance alliance

Yasuda Mutual Life Insurance Co. and Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance Co. announced Monday that they will form a wide-ranging alliance to share costs for investment in computer systems and cooperate in other areas. The move by Yasuda, the sixth-largest life insurer in terms of assets, and Fukoku, which...
JAPAN
Dec 10, 1999

GM to acquire 20% stake in Fuji Heavy

In another move to enhance its Asian presence, General Motors Corp. of the United States will invest 140 billion yen to obtain a 20 percent stake in Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. as part of a strategic alliance, top officials of the two automakers announced Friday. Fuji Heavy will become the third Japanese...
JAPAN
Dec 9, 1999

Chinese sue over Unit 731 germ warfare

Chinese survivors of Japanese germ warfare filed a lawsuit Thursday with the Tokyo District Court, seeking an official apology from Tokyo and 720 million yen in compensation. The 72 plaintiffs claim they are survivors of Japanese biological attacks and the next of kin of those killed in Zhejiang and...
LIFE / Travel
Dec 9, 1999

Rise and fall of a Japanese matador

SEVILLE, Spain -- Atsuhiro Shimoyama never planned on becoming a bullfighter. Growing up in the greater Tokyo region in the late 1980s, he opted out of going to college, and instead bummed around searching for something meaningful to do during Japan's wildly inflating bubble years.
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Dec 9, 1999

Good-time dining for the new year

It's the time of year for that annual conundrum: Where to go for that end of year celebration. It really does have to be something European, with wine and a soft, jazzy backing track. You want something with style, but definitely not too formal; a place with a buzz, but not too well known; with good...
JAPAN
Dec 8, 1999

'Knock' to keep low profile during Y2K celebrations

OSAKA -- While celebrations to usher in the new millennium are being scheduled at a number of venues here, one of Osaka's most visible officials may not be among those taking part. It is speculated that Osaka Gov. "Knock" Yokoyama, who is currently embroiled in a sexual harassment scandal, will have...
JAPAN
Dec 7, 1999

Two anti-Aum laws promulgated

Two laws aimed at cracking down on the activities of Aum Shinrikyo were promulgated Tuesday by the Justice Ministry. The laws -- one to allow authorities to step up monitoring of the cult's activities and the other to facilitate disposal of Aum's assets -- were enacted by the Diet on Friday. The laws...
JAPAN
Dec 6, 1999

Kono claims deal close on ending Pyongyang sanctions

Foreign Minister Yohei Kono expressed his resolve Monday to quickly work to lift remaining sanctions against North Korea and resume bilateral talks on normalizing diplomatic relations. Kono's comments came one day after Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi instructed him to study lifting sanctions against the...
JAPAN
Dec 6, 1999

Nation's GDP slips 1% in July-September term

The economy shrank a real 1 percent during the July-September quarter compared with the previous term, according to gross domestic product figures released Monday by the Economic Planning Agency. The quarterly slide in GDP, the broadest gauge of economic activities, translates into an annualized shrinkage...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 5, 1999

Born to fail the Japanese proficiency test

Today at this very moment, while you are reading this newspaper, myself, as well as thousands of other foreigners in Japan, are failing the Japanese Proficiency Test.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1999

Delegation urges resumption of talks with Pyongyang

Representatives of a nonpartisan mission that returned from a trip to North Korea on Friday urged Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi to work toward a quick resumption of normalization talks with the Stalinist country. Former Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama, who headed the delegation, and two other representatives...
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1999

Hino, Isuzu to unite ailing bus operations

Hino Motors Ltd. and Isuzu Motors Ltd. said Friday they will integrate their unprofitable bus businesses into an equally owned joint venture to be established next year. Hino Motors President Hiroshi Yuasa and Isuzu President Takeshi Inoh told a news conference in Tokyo that joint production will begin...
EDITORIALS
Dec 2, 1999

Citizen 'subversives' in our midst?

One person's definition of public security will not be the same as another's. Concepts of what constitutes the peace, safety and order of society -- and perhaps more importantly, what endangers them -- also change at different periods of history. With the Cold War long over, however, most unbiased observers...

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?