Search - 2014

 
 
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
May 30, 2016

GPIF: an abode of demons

As was the case with its predecessor body, the Government Pension Investment Fund is linked closely to the interests of politicians and bureaucrats.
EDITORIALS
May 18, 2016

Economic growth remains fragile

The nation's economy has escaped a back-to-back quarterly decline, as shown by the preliminary data for the January-March period — which has been closely watched as a possible clue to whether Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will go ahead with the consumption tax hike in April 2017 as planned. Abe's assessment...
JAPAN / Politics
May 13, 2016

Tokyo governor Yoichi Masuzoe apologizes but remains defiant in face of funds scandal

Yoichi Masuzoe insists his use of political money was legal even as he admits feeling embarrassed and vows to do better for his city.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Apr 27, 2016

Agent Orange and Okinawa: the story so far

Five years after The Japan Times first revealed the U.S. military's use of toxic defoliants on the island, new evidence continues to come to light.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Apr 22, 2016

Japan's dementia time bomb

The number of people in Japan suffering from dementia will continue to grow, and the government must come up with a new system to cope with the coming crisis.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 16, 2016

Sanders' tax returns rank him high among Americans but far below Clinton

U.S. presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, who has made income inequality a top campaign theme, had taxable income of $205,271 in 2014, almost putting him in the top 5 percent of American earners, according to the release of his federal tax return on Friday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 9, 2016

Contamination: Kadena Air Base's dirty secret

For the first time, documents released under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act reveal extensive pollution on an active American base in Japan.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 8, 2016

How South Korea is failing half of its population

Park Geun-hye's failure to act on this $13 billion problem hurts growth in Asia's fourth biggest economy.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 7, 2016

U.S. must continue to promote democracy in Southeast Asia

Because of its focus on containing China, the U.S. appears reluctant about pressing the Thai military to step aside for the sake of democracy.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Feb 27, 2016

Learning to embrace the halal industry

With an increasing number of Muslims residing in and visiting Japan, local governments and businesses in the private sector are eyeing ways to target the potentially lucrative market
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Feb 23, 2016

Forced labor allegations and abuses continue to dog Japan's foreign trainee program

Tang Xili came to Japan in 2013, hoping to earn enough in three years to build a new home for her daughter. Instead, she ended up in a labor union shelter after leaving an employer she says owes her about ¥3.5 million in unpaid wages.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 20, 2016

China ousts securities regulator following renewed market turmoil

The head of China's securities regulator has been removed from his post, Xinhua reported, following last year's $5 trillion fall in the stock market, an unprecedented government rescue and a renewed crisis as plunging Chinese equities last month reverberated around the world.
EDITORIALS
Feb 16, 2016

Japan's fragile economy

The latest GDP data underlines the frail state of the economy.
JAPAN
Jan 27, 2016

Obokata breaks silence, suggests colleague bears blame for STAP debacle

A former star scientist with the Riken research institute who was accused of fraud in 2014 tells her side of the story.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 19, 2016

A wake-up call for Widodo

Indonesian President Joko Widodo must show the same leadership on the economy as he has in response to the Jakarta attacks.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 3, 2016

As water crisis deepens, India seeks mystical Saraswati river

Gagandeep Singh stands at the edge of a trench cutting through a sugarcane field in rural India. He looks down at a dozen or so men toiling in the mud in plastic flip-flops and bellows: "Dig!"
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 29, 2015

Army sensing victory, Iraq's leader vows to obliterate Islamic State in '16, retake Mosul

A triumphant Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared on Monday that the coming year would see his forces defeat Islamic State, after his military achieved its first major victory since collapsing in the face of the fighters 18 months ago.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 23, 2015

Tallying up Putin's 2015 foreign policy score card

His saber rattling and his willingness to talk and compromise have once again made Russian President Vladimir Putin a player to be reckoned with.
WORLD
Dec 9, 2015

Failure-prone mine-hunting drone seen jeopardizing U.S. Littoral Combat Ship program

The U.S. Navy's new Littoral Combat Ship would be ineffective at hunting for mines because an underwater drone made by Lockheed Martin Corp. that's supposed to find them often fails to work, the Pentagon's weapons-testing office found.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Dec 8, 2015

Chicago police use of force faces Justice Department scrutiny

The U.S. Justice Department said on Monday it will investigate Chicago's police department following protests over the 2014 police shooting death of a black teenager, on the same day local prosecutors said they would not seek charges in another police shooting case.
JAPAN / CHARITY DRIVE 2015
Dec 3, 2015

Group helps asylum applicants who lack access to Japan's social security

The image of a drowned boy washed up on a Turkish beach sparked a global outcry earlier this year amid the largest mass exodus of refugees in the modern era. It spawned a heated discussion in Japan on whether to make room for refugees.
EDITORIALS
Nov 27, 2015

Time to fix the vote-value disparity

Lawmakers have dallied long enough: Chastised again by the Supreme Court, it's time they got down to business and resolved the disparity in vote values between districts.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 13, 2015

Modi can turn Bihar setback into opportunity

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi should learn from his ill-considered foray into the state election in Bihar and refocus on the needs of the nation as a whole.
Japan Times
WORLD
Nov 12, 2015

Putin's daughter and Russia's second-generation elite

Since Vladimir Putin began cementing his grip on Russia in the 1990s, many of his friends have grown famously rich.
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 1, 2015

Despite agreements, risks linger of U.S.-China naval mishaps

In 2013, a U.S. guided-missile ship veered sharply to avoid a Chinese Navy vessel that tried to block its path in the disputed South China Sea, according to the U.S. account. The next year, the United States said a Chinese fighter jet buzzed within 9 meters (30 feet) of one of its Navy planes, in what...
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Oct 22, 2015

Vets help get Sendai off to quick start

The Sendai 89ers have relied on the stellar contributions of several players en route to six straight wins to open the new season.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.