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JAPAN
Mar 24, 1999

Trade chiefs to hold WTO powwow in May

Trade ministers from four major world economies will gather in Tokyo in mid-May to hold annual trade talks aimed at kick-starting preparations for the millennium round of global free trade negotiations, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry said Wednesday.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 20, 1999

U.S. apologists for China disregard reality

"China apologists," mainly representing newspapers and academic haunts in Los Angeles, New York and Boston, claim that the rest of us are beating up on China merely because Beijing is into heavy-duty spying on the United States, stealing high-tech secrets and deploying enough missiles opposite Taiwan...
CULTURE / Music / PLAY BUTTON
Mar 19, 1999

Journey to the center of Cornelius

Some trips involve buses and airplanes, others need chemical assistance. Some trips, however, require only a stereo. Keigo Oyamada, a k a Cornelius, is an expert choreographer of the latter form of travel. His last record, "Fantasma," catapulted listeners through an orange-colored psychedelic wonderland...
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 23, 1999

A new bridge over the Pacific revealed

Is friendship between nations possible? Can Japan and the United States be friends as the U.S. is with Canada and Britain, or are they forever destined to have a relationship that turns on a calculation of mutual advantage?
EDITORIALS
Feb 16, 1999

Post-impeachment Clinton

Officially, the impeachment ordeal of U.S. President Bill Clinton is over. Last Friday, the Senate -- in two bipartisan votes -- rejected both charges against the president. By a vote of 55 to 45, they threw out the first article of impeachment that alleged Mr. Clinton committed perjury when testifying...
EDITORIALS
Feb 13, 1999

The victims have rights, too

With all the attention now being focused by the government, police and judicial authorities, educators and the media on Japan's rapidly increasing juvenile crime rate and the escalating level of violence frequently involved, the rights of the victims of crimes in this country have often seemed of secondary...
JAPAN
Feb 1, 1999

Tokyo race thrown open as Aoshima withdraws

In a surprising move, Tokyo Gov. Yukio Aoshima announced Monday that he will not seek a second four-year term in the April 11 gubernatorial election.
EDITORIALS
Jan 28, 1999

A new political map in the Middle East

Even by the standards of Middle Eastern politics, it has been a tumultuous week. Former Israeli Defense Minister Yitzhak Mordechai has been engaged in a ferocious war of words after being sacked by his boss, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. On the other side of the River Jordan, King Hussein announced...
EDITORIALS
Jan 23, 1999

The state of the union is good

U.S. President Bill Clinton has done it again. Last year, against the backdrop of revelations of his affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, Mr. Clinton presented a State of the Union message that managed to transcend the scandal already swirling around the presidency. This year, the president...
EDITORIALS
Jan 21, 1999

Another massacre in Kosovo

Yugoslavia's contempt for international opinion has been made perfectly clear over the last week. Last week, Serbian police, backed by the heavy weapons of the Yugoslav Army, allegedly massacred 45 civilians in the Kosovo village of Racak. When news of the attack leaked out, Yugoslav authorities were...
JAPAN
Jan 15, 1999

Town mergers, decentralization go together: Noda

Mergers of cities and towns should be promoted along with decentralization to reduce administrative costs, said Takeshi Noda, the new home affairs minister.
JAPAN
Dec 31, 1998

Century of Change: Plebiscites reshape political process

Staff writer
JAPAN
Dec 21, 1998

Obuchi planning to include Ozawa in next Cabinet

Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi said Monday he will ask Liberal Party leader Ichiro Ozawa to join his Cabinet when it is reshuffled in January.
JAPAN
Dec 18, 1998

EPA, MITI chiefs duel over growth prospects

With the government scheduled to finish economic projections for fiscal 1999 on Sunday, Economic Planning Agency chief Taichi Sakaiya and trade chief Kaoru Yosano had a rare last-minute meeting on Friday to narrow their perception gap on prospective growth rates.
JAPAN
Dec 7, 1998

Hiroshima mayor's refusal to run laid to economic woes

HIROSHIMA -- The announcement by Hiroshima Mayor Takashi Hiraoka that he will not seek a third term has thrown next year's election into uncertainty.
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1998

Seeking Refuge: Arbitary policy shutters window to asylum

Last of a three-part series on Japan's refugee policy
JAPAN
Nov 2, 1998

New minister pushes for future financial safety net

Staff writer
JAPAN
Nov 1, 1998

No change seen for Alien cards, death penalty

Justice Minister Shozaburo Nakamura said Tuesday he does not intend to abolish the death penalty or amend the Alien Registration Law to end a requirement that foreign permanent residents carry their alien registration card at all times, despite recommendations by a United Nations panel.
JAPAN
Oct 29, 1998

LDP tax panel prepares to dig up more tax cuts

A tax panel of the Liberal Democratic Party is set to begin work to overhaul the nation's tax system in an attempt to help generate lasting economic growth.Attention is focused on how much more the LDP's Tax System Research Commission, chaired by former Finance Minister Yoshiro Hayashi, can add to planned...
JAPAN
Oct 8, 1998

Manufacturers in losing battle with lifetime employment

Staff writerFinancial institutions are not the only Japanese companies suffering from the moribund economy.Major electronics firms and automakers, which once basked in the strong growth of the famed Japanese economic miracle, have revised their projected earnings downward for the first half of the current...
JAPAN
Sep 8, 1998

Nuclear activist urges Japan to take lead in disarmament

Staff writer
JAPAN
Aug 31, 1998

Calls rise for Kobe airport plebiscite

Staff writer
JAPAN
Aug 24, 1998

Views solicited on war memorial

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government will begin accepting public feedback in September about a controversial peace memorial hall to be dedicated to victims of massive U.S. air raids during World War II, officials said Monday.
JAPAN
Aug 18, 1998

Justice Ministry plans bill to lower criminal age

Justice Minister Shozaburo Nakamura said Tuesday that his ministry will submit a bill revising the Juvenile Law to lower the age at which criminal offenders can be punished, in response to a spate of serious youth crimes.
JAPAN
Aug 10, 1998

Obuchi rules out snap elections

Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi said Monday he has no intention of dissolving the House of Representatives for snap general elections at this moment.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 1998

Housing Loan chief tells Cabinet to show, not tell

The outspoken head of the Housing Loan Administration Corp. on Thursday called on the new Cabinet of Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi to use actions, not words, to tackle the problems plaguing the nation.
JAPAN
Jul 24, 1998

Analysis: Fate rides on quick, effective policies

and MITSUKO NASHIMAStaff writers
JAPAN
Jul 17, 1998

Business leaning toward Kajiyama

Staff writer
JAPAN
Jun 19, 1998

35th Japan-U.S. business conference set for July

About 90 business leaders will meet in Tokyo for the 35th Japan-U.S. Business Conference from July 12-14, the head of Japan-U.S. Business Council said Friday.
JAPAN
Jun 17, 1998

Business scholars foresee changes for Japan Inc.

Staff writer

Longform

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