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JAPAN
May 31, 2000

LDP peace declaration criticized as election ploy

The Lower House adopted a "farewell to war" declaration Tuesday supported by the three ruling coalition parties, but the move was labeled an election ploy by the opposition.
JAPAN
May 31, 2000

Globe's population set to gray in next 50 years

The percentage of the world's population aged 65 or older will soar to 16.4 percent in 2050 from 6.9 percent in 2000, according to a white paper submitted and approved at Tuesday's Cabinet meeting.
JAPAN
May 31, 2000

Report suggests environment tax to combat global warming

The 2000 white paper on the environment released Tuesday called for the introduction of an environment tax so Japan can more vigorously combat global warming and waste dumping, government officials said.
BUSINESS
May 31, 2000

FRC outlines new banks' rules

The Financial Reconstruction Commission on Tuesday released its preliminary guidelines for granting licenses to new banks, emphasizing the need to shield them from potential business risks of their parent companies.
EDITORIALS
May 30, 2000

Trouble in paradise

Fiji is tiny cluster of islands about 3,600 km east of Australia. With a population of fewer than a million people scattered across some 300 islands, it is sometimes considered the South Pacific ideal, offering secluded beaches, crystal-clear waters and a relaxed lifestyle that beckons to visitors from...
JAPAN
May 30, 2000

State denies Okinawa deals with U.S. ever took place

The government on Monday denied a report by a major Japanese daily that Japan paid about $200 million to the United States in clandestine deals over the May 1972 reversion of Okinawa to Japanese rule.
JAPAN
May 29, 2000

Japan supported two Chinas for U.N., documents show

Japan was inclined in the 1960s to support China's bid to join the United Nations if Taiwan could retain its membership, despite Japan's formal opposition to China becoming a member, according to Japanese diplomatic files declassified Sunday.
BUSINESS
May 28, 2000

Ruling bloc's destiny foretold by market

The Tokyo stock market bottomed out in October 1998 and has since come a long way, moving past one major threshold after another.
JAPAN
May 27, 2000

Fuji mayor urges ministries to dissolve Honohana cult

The mayor and assembly chairman of Fuji city, in Shizuoka Prefecture, on Friday asked the government to dissolve the Honohana Sanpogyo religious cult, which is headquartered in the city.
BUSINESS
May 27, 2000

Government says EPA not pressured

The Japanese government on Friday denied a foreign newspaper report that hinted the Economic Planning Agency manipulated gross domestic product data for the October-December quarter for political reasons.
JAPAN
May 26, 2000

Mori under attack for wedding speech

Yukio Hatoyama, leader of the Democratic Party of Japan, criticized Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori on Thursday for attending a wedding in 1995 at which a gang boss was present.
BUSINESS
May 25, 2000

Nikkei tests under 16,000 as techs slide

The Tokyo Stock Exchange's benchmark 225-issue Nikkei average briefly slipped below 16,000 for the first time in almost a year on Wednesday morning.
BUSINESS
May 25, 2000

Bank deposit, insurance policy safety nets enacted

The Diet passed a bill Wednesday to create a new mechanism to safeguard deposits in the event of bank failures after the current blanket deposit protection system is lifted in April 2002.
BUSINESS
May 23, 2000

Need for reform cited by business

Accelerating regulatory reforms and reducing telecommunications costs are necessary to better utilize information technology, a gathering of business leaders told the government Monday.
JAPAN
May 20, 2000

Coalition parties make joint campaign pledges

The three ruling parties agreed Friday on joint campaign pledges for the upcoming Lower House election that include bringing forward public works projects and the creation of 500,000 jobs through the promotion of information and technology industries.
JAPAN
May 20, 2000

Aoki misled to take over: DPJ

The Democratic Party of Japan filed a complaint with the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office on Friday against Chief Cabinet Secretary Mikio Aoki for allegedly forging public documents and illegally naming himself acting prime minister.
JAPAN
May 19, 2000

Panel wants public involved in court

A judicial reform panel of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party called Thursday for the introduction of "mixed courts," a system adopted in a number of European countries to promote public participation in legal proceedings.
JAPAN
May 18, 2000

Pyongyang postpones talks on normalizing Tokyo ties

Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori confirmed Wednesday that normalization talks between Japan and North Korea scheduled to start Tuesday in Tokyo have been postponed.
JAPAN
May 18, 2000

Mori apologizes for remark

Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori apologized before the Diet on Wednesday for having invited a barrage of criticism by saying earlier this week that Japan is a "divine nation centering on the Emperor," but he refused to retract the remark.
JAPAN
May 17, 2000

Miyazawa cannot recall 3 million yen Nakamura admits getting as payoff

Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa said Tuesday that he has no recollection of handing a paper bag containing 3 million yen to Kishiro Nakamura, a politician who was convicted of accepting bribes, in 1991 to buy his support to raise antitrust fines.
BUSINESS
May 17, 2000

Trade paper urges wider scope

Japan must adopt a multilayered approach to its trade policy to cope with the ever-accelerating globalization of world economies through greater regional integration, according to the 2000 White Paper on International Trade released Tuesday.
EDITORIALS
May 17, 2000

A stewardship cut short

Former Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi died on Sunday without having regained consciousness after he was seriously incapacitated by a stroke April 2. He was 62. Mr. Obuchi's death came before he could realize his cherished dream of hosting the annual G8 meeting in Okinawa and also before being able to confirm...
JAPAN
May 16, 2000

New ministry targets quality of life

The new ministry to be created in January by a merger of the Construction and Transport ministries and the National Land and Hokkaido Development agencies will strive for public safety, environmental preservation and economic health, according to a draft policy.
JAPAN
May 15, 2000

Obuchi conscious for Aoki visit on April 2

Former Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi was conscious during an April 2 visit by Chief Cabinet Secretary Mikio Aoki to Juntendo University Hospital, shortly after his collapse, hospital doctors confirmed Sunday.
COMMENTARY / World
May 15, 2000

Fix the mood, fix the economy

The United States has been urging Japan to expand domestic demand, as if that was the only policy Japan could implement to help promote recovery of the global economy. Washington repeated that demand at the recent Group of Seven meeting of finance ministers and cen- tral bankers.
JAPAN
May 15, 2000

A leader with an uncommon touch

Few leaders have made the prime minister as accessible as Keizo Obuchi did during his 20 months in office.

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.