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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
May 22, 2016

America: the top tax haven

Operating largely under the radar, the United States has become the world's biggest tax haven.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
May 21, 2016

Japan's cybersecurity upgrade — too little, too late?

The Internet facilitates rapid data-sharing and increased communication between individuals, firms and government entities. This generates significant risks but, for most of the 2000s, Japan did not take commensurate countermeasures. The complacent attitude toward information technology security has...
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
May 21, 2016

Cold comfort: South Korean convenience store launches ice cream bar that eases hangovers

South Koreans, Asia's biggest consumers of alcohol per capita, can now soothe themselves after a big night out with hangover-fighting ice cream.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 11, 2016

Tokyo's governor becomes embroiled in fresh public funding scandal

Yoichi Masuzoe once again finds himself mired in ignominy, this time over a possible violation of political funding laws.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
May 11, 2016

Australia holds five suspected of plotting sailing trip to join Islamic State

Australian police have detained five men suspected of planning to sail a small boat from the far north to Indonesia and the Philippines en route to joining Islamic State in Syria, officials said on Wednesday.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
May 11, 2016

Obama weighs historic decision on whether to lift Vietnam arms ban

U.S. President Barack Obama is considering whether to lift a three-decade-old arms embargo on Vietnam, U.S. officials say, as he weighs calls to forge closer military ties with Hanoi against concerns over its poor human rights record.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 9, 2016

'Vagina artist' Igarashi loses obscenity case over 3-D data but is acquitted over pop art replicas

So-called vagina artist Megumi Igarashi loses an obscenity case for distributing 3-D data of her genitals but is acquitted for displaying pop art replicas and plans to appeal.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
May 7, 2016

The vagina, in all its 'obscene' glory

You've probably heard of Japanese artist known as Rokudenashiko ("good for nothing girl"), who was arrested in 2014 for sending the 3-D data of her genitals to patrons of her successful crowdfunding campaign to create a vagina-shaped kayak.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Apr 30, 2016

Japan's meek media kowtows to the government

Last week I compared the Catholic Church in Boston and Japan's "nuclear village" of atomic-power advocates — two powerful institutions that stifled embarrassing revelations for some time. The Oscar-winning film "Spotlight" depicts the comeuppance of the church hierarchy after investigative reporters...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 28, 2016

Japan's offshore investors on edge as Panama Papers revelations spark Hong Kong clampdown

Earlier this month, major banks in the territory suddenly stopped accepting applications to open accounts, says one financial consultant.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Apr 26, 2016

Hidden poverty growing under Abe, particularly among young and single mothers

As the government tells it, Japanese have it pretty good.
EDITORIALS
Apr 24, 2016

Insufficient electoral reform

The ruling coalition needs to explain why the nation is still being kept waiting for the fundamental reform needed to correct the gross disparity in vote values.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 21, 2016

Afghan drone war: data show unmanned flights dominate air campaign

Drones fired more weapons than conventional warplanes for the first time in Afghanistan last year and the ratio is rising, previously unreported U.S. Air Force data show, underlining how reliant the military has become on unmanned aircraft.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LAW OF THE LAND
Apr 17, 2016

Two years after Japan signed Hague, children have been returned but old issues remain

A couple of years have passed since Japan signed the international convention on child abduction, and there is cause for celebration — and concern.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 15, 2016

Kishida, Lavrov lay groundwork for Abe's Russia visit

Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov discuss signing a peace treaty to end the war and having Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visit Russia.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 13, 2016

No end in sight to once-booming Brazil's crises

No one knows where the Latin American nation's mix of economic disappointment and political disillusion is leading.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 4, 2016

Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi eyes U.S. regional banks, new CEO says

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.'s main lending unit is eyeing further acquisitions in the U.S. and Asia as part of its long-standing aspirations to become one of the world's leading commercial banks, the unit's new president said.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 4, 2016

Honda Fit fires, collisions prompt at least sixth major recall

Honda Motor Co. will conduct at least the sixth round of major recalls involving its top-selling Fit compact in less than three years, as the automaker struggles to move past the quality woes that contributed to a change in chief executive officers.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN
Apr 2, 2016

The drug problem that keeps getting older

Former pro baseball player Kazuhiro Kiyohara was released from police custody on ¥5 million bail last month following his arrest and subsequent indictment for alleged possession and use of stimulant drugs.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Mar 31, 2016

U.N. widens sex abuse allegation probe against peacekeepers in Central Africa

The United Nations on Wednesday said it has widened an investigation of allegations sexual exploitation and abuse by foreign peacekeepers in Central African Republic and notified authorities in France, Gabon and Burundi about the charges.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Mar 30, 2016

Narcotics flooding into Japan

Japan is becoming a paradise for drug dealers.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 29, 2016

Budget clears Upper House as focus shifts to possible tax hike delay, double election

The Upper House easily passes the hefty fiscal 2016 budget as the opposition focuses on whether Prime Minister Abe will again delay the consumption tax hike.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Mar 26, 2016

In Japan, all other fruits bow to the top banana

Everything you wanted to know about Japan's lingering love affair with bananas but were afraid to ask.
Japan Times
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Mar 25, 2016

Friendly with Germany provides first test for England

Having had what amounted to a bye into the Euro 2016 finals — Switzerland, Slovenia, Estonia, Lithuania and San Marino barely made England break sweat — Roy Hodgson will have a better idea of how far his team has come since the 2014 World Cup when it takes on Germany in Berlin on Saturday night....
EDITORIALS
Mar 25, 2016

Keep politics out of tax hike decision

The decision on whether to raise the consumption tax next year should not be driven by partisan political interests.

Longform

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