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COMMENTARY
Jul 27, 2004

DPJ's fortunes are rising

In the July 11 Upper House election, the opposition Democratic Party of Japan made dramatic gains, winning more seats than the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (50-49). The DPJ also surpassed the LDP in the proportional representation bloc of November's general election. With the two parties dominating...
BUSINESS
Jul 27, 2004

Electrical appliance sales down 3%

Sales of household electrical appliances at major retailers fell 3.29 percent in June from a year earlier to 162.06 billion yen, the Nippon Electric Big-Store Association said Monday in a preliminary report.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 27, 2004

Iraqi judoka arrives for Olympic warmup

An Iraqi judoka who will represent his country in the Athens Olympics next month began two weeks of training in Tokyo on Monday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jul 27, 2004

Godzilla smashes grand slam but Yanks still lose to BoSox

BOSTON -- Hideki Matsui drove home five runs on a sacrifice fly and the fourth grand slam of his major league career, but the New York Yankees fell 9-6 to the Boston Red Sox in the rubber game of a three-game series.
BUSINESS
Jul 27, 2004

UFJ hands improvement plan to FSA

UFJ Holdings Inc. told the Financial Services Agency on Monday it will carry out organizational changes, including an increase in outside directors, in response to business improvement orders issued by the FSA.
BUSINESS
Jul 27, 2004

Like NTT phone fee, line brokers face extinction

Kanji in the window of a three-story building near JR Okachimachi Station in central Tokyo advertise "denwa tokubai" (discounted telephone lines).
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jul 27, 2004

Know the law

You might have noticed the dragnet in Japan these days.
COMMENTARY
Jul 27, 2004

Rumor, fear and innuendo fuel tensions

LOS ANGELES -- Anyone who knows anything about China knows that it's not just its current government but its people, too, who are ultraprotective and ultra-sensitive about the Taiwan issue.
EDITORIALS
Jul 27, 2004

Worrisome muscle flexing

Relations across the Taiwan Strait continue to deteriorate. The re-election of Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian has alarmed the mainland government, which is convinced Mr. Chen seeks Taiwan's independence. China has been sending signals that it is prepared to take military action if Taipei takes that...
CULTURE / Books / THE BOOK REPORT
Jul 27, 2004

Publishers bid to halt reading slump with flood of new youth-oriented titles

"Reading at Risk," a report published in the United States this month by the National Endowment for the Arts, deplores the decline of reading. Now, fewer than half of American adults read fiction, with the rate of decline especially sharp among those who are 18 to 24 years of age. Newsweek (7/19) notes...
EDITORIALS
Jul 26, 2004

Toward stronger Tokyo-Seoul ties

At the Japan-South Korea summit meeting last week, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun agreed that the two countries should work together more closely to resolve the North Korean nuclear crisis. The agreement will help provide an impetus to the coming six-nation talks...
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2004

Kawaguchi confident Jenkins case can be resolved

Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi expressed confidence Sunday that the case of Charles Jenkins will be resolved satisfactorily as Japan and the United States have a strong alliance.
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2004

Offspring of A-bomb victims seek more aid

A group of Japanese and Koreans born to victims of the 1945 U.S. atomic bombings agreed Sunday at a Tokyo symposium to step up cooperation in urging the Japanese government to improve their medical and welfare measures.
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2004

Patient privacy guidelines crafted

A federation of surgeons' associations has drawn up guidelines for protecting patient privacy in the face of criticism that doctors are revealing too much personal data in research journals and academic meetings, federation officials said Sunday.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 26, 2004

Providing the social tools to cut poverty

...
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2004

U.S. relatives claim officials blocked visit for fear of complicating case

Family members of accused U.S. Army deserter Charles Jenkins said they were barred from seeing him in a Tokyo hospital because U.S. and Japanese officials want to settle the matter of the former sergeant quickly, possibly through a plea bargain.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Jul 26, 2004

Separate but equal acts of reconciliation

NEW YORK -- In "My Life" (Knopf, 2004), former U.S. President Bill Clinton writes: "Elizabeth Eckford, who at 15 was deeply seared emotionally by vicious harassment as she walked alone through an angry mob, was reconciled with Hazel Massery, one of the girls who had taunted her 40 years earlier."
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 26, 2004

Flawed homeland security

LAS VEGAS -- The dispute between Washington and Tokyo over the fate of Army Sgt. Charles Jenkins, whom the United States accuses of defecting to North Korea some 40 years ago, is more than a case of American legalism vs. Japanese ad hoc policy and humanitarian instincts. The issue goes much deeper into...
COMMENTARY
Jul 26, 2004

Beijing entering Hong Kong cul-de-sac

HONG KONG -- On July 1, Hong Kong, figuratively speaking, stuck to its democratic guns. It was just as well since China, naturally, has stuck to its antidemocratic guns.
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2004

Aum suspects may evade charges in NPA shooting

Prosecutors may not indict four men linked to Aum Shinrikyo who have been arrested over the 1995 shooting of the National Police Agency chief, due to a lack of credible evidence, investigation sources said Sunday.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Jul 26, 2004

Despite its luck, Japan must not shirk reform

In the July 11 House of Councilors election, the main opposition force -- the Democratic Party of Japan -- made big gains while the leader of the ruling coalition -- the Liberal Democratic Party -- fell short of its modest target of a one-seat gain. Nevertheless, the LDP-led coalition government still...
COMMENTARY
Jul 26, 2004

Lifting women's job status

Women's status in male-dominated Japan remains alarmingly low, according to a recent international survey. A U.N. Development Program survey showed that Japan ranked 38th among countries of the world in the gender empowerment index, which measures women's participation in political and economic decision-making....
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2004

UFJ to enlist more outside directors

The UFJ financial group is considering increasing the number of outside directors, including those in charge of ensuring that the group's operations are in compliance with the law, according to group sources.

Longform

A store clerk tries to cool things down in front of their shop by spraying a hose.
Is extreme weather changing the way Japan shops?