Search - cabinet

 
 
JAPAN
Feb 17, 2003

State shelves talks of secular war memorial

Objections from Japan's ruling political party have caused the government to put off any decision on whether to build a secular war memorial, sources said Sunday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Feb 16, 2003

When you need a hand ...

Married with two children, 46-year-old Kumiko Mashima thinks her life is just about perfect. She met her loving husband through an omiai -- a formal introduction arranged by a go-between with a view to marriage -- and they both adore their daughters. But before she found her way into her husband's arms,...
JAPAN
Feb 15, 2003

Wiretaps led to arrests in two drug deals in '02

Police intercepted communications between suspects in two illegal drug deals last year, arresting those involved under a wiretapping law enacted in August 2000, Justice Minister Mayumi Moriyama said Friday.
BUSINESS
Feb 15, 2003

No decision yet on insurer yield cuts

The government has made no final decision on whether to allow financially troubled life insurers to cut the yields they have guaranteed to policyholders, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda said Friday .
EDITORIALS
Feb 15, 2003

North Korea vs. the world

The International Atomic Energy Agency voted this week to bring North Korea's nuclear violations before the United Nations Security Council. The move increases the pressure on Pyongyang; for that reason, some governments are concerned that North Korea will only respond with more belligerent behavior....
JAPAN
Feb 15, 2003

Ministry to discount bridge tolls in bid to lure motorists

The Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry will further reduce tolls on three bridges linking Honshu and Shikoku in a bid to get people to use the heavily indebted expressways, transport minister Chikage Ogi said Friday.
JAPAN
Feb 14, 2003

Japan eyes role in UNSC dialogue on North Korea

Japan plans to consult with members of the United Nations Security Council over the North Korean nuclear weapons standoff following a nuclear watchdog's decision to refer the issue to the top U.N. panel, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda said Thursday.
JAPAN
Feb 13, 2003

New probe of abductee cases urged

The National Police Agency and the Justice Ministry's Public Security Investigation Agency were handed lists Wednesday of about 200 Japanese who vanished under mysterious circumstances and are suspected of having been abducted by North Korea.
JAPAN
Feb 13, 2003

Fukuda laments differences of opinion over Iraq

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda expressed concern Wednesday that the rift between the United States and European countries skeptical of Washington's case against Iraq is sending "the wrong message" to Baghdad.
COMMENTARY
Feb 11, 2003

Sacrifices for material gain

In the 1980s, Japanese economists used to boast of their country's economic prowess and deride U.S. economic decline. To be sure, the U.S. manufacturing industry in those years fell into a miserable condition, and the nation suffered from ever-expanding trade and budget deficits. Yet things began changing...
JAPAN
Feb 8, 2003

Justice minister comes out for casinos

Justice Minister Mayumi Moriyama proposed Friday the creation of a special law to legalize casinos.
JAPAN
Feb 8, 2003

Korean school in harassment plea

Parents and teachers from the Tokyo Korean Junior and Senior High School urged Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Friday to prevent harassment of students attending schools that support North Korea.
JAPAN
Feb 8, 2003

Food safety bills aimed at restoring public trust

The Cabinet endorsed a set of bills Friday that seek to bolster food safety and protect public health in the wake of numerous recent scares.
BUSINESS
Feb 7, 2003

Home loan body to resell mortgages under draft law

The Government Housing Loan Corp. will be allowed to securitize and sell mortgages after buying them from private financial institutions, according to a proposal presented Thursday to the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
JAPAN
Feb 7, 2003

Koizumi provides tacit support for U.S. attack

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi hinted Thursday that Japan would support a U.S.-led military offensive against Iraq "as an ally of the United States."
JAPAN
Feb 7, 2003

Farm chief sues publisher over allegation of corruption

Agriculture minister Tadamori Oshima filed a lawsuit Thursday against the publisher of a weekly magazine demanding 10 million yen in damages and a published apology over an article that alleged he worked inappropriately for the construction of a vocational school.
EDITORIALS
Feb 6, 2003

Diet debates remain superficial

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's economic policy is coming under increasing criticism from the opposition parties. They have mainly condemned him for failing to produce either reform or growth, and have pointed out that his battle against deflation is reaching deadlock. That criticism -- which is not...
JAPAN
Feb 6, 2003

Firm suspected of illegal sales to Iran also tied to Pyongyang

Reports surfaced Wednesday that a Tokyo engineering firm, already in hot water over suspicions it illegally shipped missile-related equipment to Iran, might have also exported to North Korea.
JAPAN
Feb 5, 2003

White paper highlights concern over slipping academic record

A considerable number of children do not understand their lessons, many have weak study habits and their attitude toward learning is not necessarily based on a desire for knowledge, according to an education ministry white paper submitted to the Cabinet on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Feb 5, 2003

Kawaguchi pitches SDF role in U.N. peace efforts

Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi has proposed allowing the Self-Defense Forces to join multinational forces when they are part of U.N.-sanctioned international activities working for peace.
JAPAN
Feb 5, 2003

Japan seeks international talks on management of KEDO

Japan wants international talks on an energy project for North Korea because the U.S. has set no money aside for it for fiscal 2004 due to the nuclear standoff with Pyongyang, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Tuesday.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 2, 2003

Koizumi's revenge has cost Japan dearl

Special to The Japan Times CAMBRIDGE, England -- A lot has been written about Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's third visit to Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. Much of it had a high emotional content. Now that the initial furor has died down we can step back and give it a bit more thought.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Feb 2, 2003

Can 007 fire up the Japanese on N. Korea?

As North Korea's threatening bluster continues to make international headlines, it seems almost bizarre that Japan, which would be in direct physical peril if a conflict erupted on the Korean Peninsula, has its mind on something else, namely Japanese citizens abducted by North Korean agents. Though important,...
JAPAN
Feb 2, 2003

No law to aid North Korea escapees: Abe

The government is not likely to enact a law to provide support for Japanese women who flee North Korea, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said Saturday.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2003

How long must the guilty wait to hang?

Sentenced to death for killing a farmer to claim an insurance payout in 1963, Tsuneki Tomiyama played his last card in early December when he and his support group filed a clemency plea.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2003

Bond buying spree expected to continue

The recent buying spree of Japanese government bonds that has pushed the key long-term interest rate to a record low will continue for at least several months, as an end to the deflationary trend is nowhere in sight, economists and analysts say.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2003

Jobless rate returns to 5.5%

A drain on retail and restaurant jobs that hit women particularly hard pushed the unemployment rate in December back up to a record 5.5 percent for the third time in a year.

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.