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BUSINESS
Jul 16, 2002

Mitsubishi Pharma eyes retirement program

Mitsubishi Pharma Corp., the product of an Oct. 1, 2001 merger of two pharmaceutical companies, said Monday it will launch an early retirement program for employees 45 and older.
JAPAN
Jul 14, 2002

Panel suggests liaison office for refugees

A new liaison office should be established under the Cabinet Secretariat to better deal with refugee issues, a Liberal Democratic Party panel said in a report on Japan's refugee policy obtained Saturday.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jul 14, 2002

Medieval-age scholar cleaves reality from romantic illusion

As Mitsuo Kure points out at the beginning of this excellent account of the samurai, "a class of people who served the aristocracy with arms," there is still considerable scholarly dispute over when the class emerged and precisely what it consisted of. Though it "led" Japanese society for seven centuries,...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 13, 2002

Keynesian cheerleaders ignore failures

It is ironic that Joseph Stiglitz waited until he gained the credibility of sharing the Nobel Prize in Economics to become an unabashed cheerleader for Keynesian economics, especially when it comes to suggesting policies for Japan. Receiving the universally recognized accolade allowed him to come out...
JAPAN
Jul 13, 2002

Japan's Afghanistan support praised

An official from the UNICEF office in Afghanistan on Friday praised Japan's financial support for Afghan education projects as part of efforts to ensure peace in a society that has suffered decades of civil war and years of drought.
JAPAN
Jul 13, 2002

Hospital pays for transplant coverup

A health ministry panel decided Friday to strip the Tokyo Women's Medical University Hospital of its designation as an advanced treatment hospital following a coverup involving the death of a patient.
EDITORIALS
Jul 12, 2002

Narrow the wage gap

The important fact about Japanese wages today is that pay scales for regular workers have not fallen despite declining prices. This "downward rigidity" in seniority-based wages may be partly responsible for the growing presence of part-time workers and for the nation's persistently high level of unemployment....
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 12, 2002

By-elections give Abdullah chance to prove his mettle

SINGAPORE -- For Malaysia's deputy prime minister, Abdullah Badawi, the sequence of two fast-moving events late last month could not have been more timely -- and dramatic.
Japan Times
JAPAN / KANSAI BEAT
Jul 12, 2002

Traditional industries adapting to stay afloat

KYOTO -- Tango Orimono Kogyo Kumiai, an association encompassing the traditional textile industry in Kyoto's Tango district, has tasted success with its foray into the skin-care products sector.
BUSINESS
Jul 12, 2002

Ministry plans to slash unemployment benefits

The welfare ministry is poised to slash unemployment benefits for certain recipients because the prolonged high jobless rate is putting a severe strain on the employment insurance program, ministry sources said Thursday.
JAPAN
Jul 12, 2002

Kawaguchi defends Shenyang punishments

Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi on Thursday countered claims by lawmakers that punishments over the handling of an asylum seeking incident in May at a Japanese consulate in China were lenient.
JAPAN
Jul 12, 2002

Tax official caught evading taxes

A former head of the Sapporo Regional Taxation Bureau was sentenced Thursday to 14 months in prison for evading some 250 million yen in income tax.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CLOSE NEIGHBORS
Jul 11, 2002

Japan's carmakers tooling up for China

BEIJING -- Zhao Xue Bo, an international relations researcher at Beijing Broadcasting Institute, a national university, has been saving money for some time to buy a new car.
JAPAN
Jul 11, 2002

Ruptured sewage pipe floods USJ restaurant

OSAKA -- A sewage pipe ruptured in a restaurant in the Universal Studios Japan amusement park, prompting Osaka health officials to investigate, people familiar with the incident said Wednesday.
EDITORIALS
Jul 10, 2002

The ugly American again

There is always something disturbing about a leader that pronounces himself above the law. That only partially explains the unease surrounding the United States' decision to oppose creation of the International Criminal Court. Just as important have been the implications of that resistance -- which were...
JAPAN
Jul 10, 2002

Assemblies say no to 'Big Brother'

Written opinions calling for the government to postpone the Aug. 5 introduction of a nationwide resident registry network have been endorsed by 59 local assemblies nationwide, a group of lawmakers said Tuesday, quoting home affairs ministry officials.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Jul 10, 2002

Seigen Ono: 'So Peaceful, Simple and Strong'

Last month, when Marc Ribot was playing Aoyama Cay, one of Seigen Ono's people proffered an advance copy of "So Peaceful, Simple and Strong" to him backstage, saying, "It's good, Marc. It's really good." Ribot, heavy-lidded with jet lag and fatigue from touring Europe, grimaced and dropped the disc onto...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 10, 2002

Asian trainees keep Kawaguchi's furnaces blasting

After a hard day's work at a blast furnace in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture, Vietnamese trainees cheered as they watched a recent World Cup soccer match on TV.
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Jul 10, 2002

Azure Ray: 'Burn and Shiver'

Somewhere between heartbreak and happiness lies a mist-shrouded land of limbo, where it's always raining softly and people stare pensively out windows, contemplating love and life over steaming cups of Earl Grey. Wherever this place is, it seems Azure Ray are permanent residents. On their new CD, "Burn...
COMMENTARY
Jul 9, 2002

Turmoil after Diet adjourns

The regular Diet session, which was extended in late June for 42 days through the end of July, is entering a critical period. Since it opened in January, the Diet has performed poorly, with a number of key bills still awaiting action.
JAPAN
Jul 9, 2002

Japan, EU focus talks on North Korea

Japan and the European Union agreed Monday to step up their cooperation in dealing with North Korea, the Middle East peace process and other international issues at their annual summit in Tokyo.
EDITORIALS
Jul 9, 2002

A maverick among conservatives

In the hotly contested Nagano gubernatorial election held in October 2000, uncommitted voters gave a smashing victory to Mr. Yasuo Tanaka, a popular writer who is vehemently opposed to dam construction. On Friday, in a politically and emotionally charged climax to the running dispute between the governor...

Longform

Atsuyoshi Koike, the president and CEO of Rapidus, says there is a “sense of urgency” when it comes to Japan’s efforts in manufacturing semiconductors. “We have to make sure we are successful,” he says.
Atsuyoshi Koike’s big game: Fourth down and 2 nanometers to go