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BUSINESS
Apr 2, 2004

NHK, TV broadcasters to block digital copying

NHK and the National Association of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan will start Monday to block attempts by viewers to illicitly duplicate digital television programs for commercial purposes.
COMMENTARY
Apr 2, 2004

Bush bears burden of proof

WASHINGTON -- The ever nastier Washington fight between former counterterrorism chief Richard Clarke and manifold Bush officials has taken on a "he said/she said" quality. It's hard to know who to believe. But having routinely undercut his credibility elsewhere, President George W. Bush should bear the...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Apr 2, 2004

Higashi-yama: 'Designer washoku' for all seasons

Cometh the season, as the saying almost goes, cometh the man. And every year when the hanami season rolls around, you are likely to find us strolling down by the Meguro River in Naka-Meguro. It's a favorite spot for us, not just for the superb cherry blossom that lines both banks, but also because there...
BUSINESS
Apr 2, 2004

Mitsui Mutual becomes stock firm

Mitsui Mutual Life Insurance Co. converted itself into a stock company Thursday, with the aim of strengthening its management base and increasing its creditworthiness by boosting its fundraising capabilities.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 1, 2004

Death prompts revolving-door closures, safety inspections

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JAPAN
Apr 1, 2004

Government appeals ruling on slave-labor compensation

The government on Wednesday appealed a landmark ruling last week that ordered it and a harbor transport company to jointly pay 88 million yen in compensation to Chinese who served as slave-laborers in Japan during World War II.
JAPAN / SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT
Apr 1, 2004

Private universities feel heat from company-run upstarts

Already struggling to keep student numbers up amid an ever-shrinking pool of high school graduates, private universities now face a new threat -- stock exchange-listed companies entering the fray of running institutions of higher learning.
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 1, 2004

Agreement expected on World Cup tourney

Baseball's chief labor negotiator expects an agreement soon with the players' association on a World Cup tournament, putting aside for now the larger issue of drug tests during the regular season.
JAPAN
Apr 1, 2004

Parents angry at education board over anthem directive

Parents of children who attend public schools in Tokyo urged the Tokyo Metropolitan Board of Education on Wednesday to retract its punishment of teachers who refused to stand up and sing "Kimigayo" at graduation ceremonies.
JAPAN
Apr 1, 2004

Temporary magazine sales ban threatens freedom of expression

The Tokyo District Court's temporary injunction banning the sale of the weekly Shukan Bunshun over an article about the private life of a Diet lawmaker's daughter triggered debate over the issue of privacy vs. freedom of expression.
JAPAN
Apr 1, 2004

Senkaku spat scuppers sea-treaty talks

Japan and China have canceled bilateral talks on a U.N. maritime treaty after Beijing reacted angrily to Japan's arrest of seven Chinese on a disputed island in the East China Sea last week, Japanese government officials said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2004

Banks get backing on insurance product sales

The Financial Services Agency said Wednesday it will allow banks to sell all types of insurance products within three years.
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2004

Crude oil imports dwindle 7.7%

Crude oil imports fell 7.7 percent in February from a year earlier to 130.01 million barrels, marking a fifth straight monthly decline.
JAPAN
Apr 1, 2004

Pension reform debate could turn into a battle for the ages

Diet deliberations on government-sponsored pension reform bills appear headed for turbulence, with the ruling and opposition parties locking horns over remarks by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi just days ahead of the Thursday start of debate on the contentious legislation.
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2004

Ashikaga Financial rehab approved

Ashikaga Financial Group Inc. said Wednesday the Tokyo District Court has approved the start of reconstruction procedures for the financial holding company under the Corporate Rehabilitation Law.
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2004

Housing starts up 1.9% in February

Housing starts in Japan rose 1.9 percent in February from a year earlier to 84,950 units for the third consecutive monthly increase.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / ON THE BOOK TRAIL
Apr 1, 2004

"Sideways Stories from Wayside School," "Where Willy Went/ Cinderella's Bum and Other Bottoms"

"Sideways Stories from Wayside School," Louis Sachar, Bloomsbury; 2004; 139 pp.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Apr 1, 2004

Ways of weathering winter

I had to attend a college graduation ceremony and an Environment Ministry meeting in Tokyo; otherwise I could easily have made it in a day from Okinawa to northern Nagano Prefecture where I live. As it was, the trip from that balmy Pacific isle to my home amid the snows of Kurohime took me until nearly...
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 1, 2004

Matsui rips homer as Yanks win

Now that's more like it. A day after dropping the season opener to A.L. East doormat Tampa Bay, Hideki Matsui and the Bronx Bombers came out with all guns blazing, bashing out 11 hits and four homers as the New York Yankees demolished the Devil Rays 12-1 Wednesday night at Tokyo Dome.
EDITORIALS
Apr 1, 2004

Don't forget Afghanistan

Three years after the fall of the Taliban, Afghanistan is once again tottering on the brink of chaos. The facts will be in plain view in Berlin at a two-day conference from Wednesday, when 54 nations assess the problems and progress since the U.S-led invasion of Afghanistan. Progress has been remarkable,...
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2004

March yen-selling intervention hits 4.7 trillion yen

Japan's yen-selling intervention in the currency market rose to 4.7 trillion yen in March from the previous month amid speculation that the government has scaled back its aggressive intervention policy.
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2004

Dollar plunges to lowest level since April 2000

The dollar fell into the 103 yen range Wednesday in Tokyo for the first time in nearly four years amid lingering speculation that Japan has ended its campaign of heavy yen-selling intervention.

Longform

The volunteer lifesavers of Nishihama Surf Lifesaving Club never know what's in store at the start of their day.
It's no simple day at the beach for Japan's volunteer lifesavers