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COMMENTARY
Dec 18, 2003

Conservatives smell an upset

LONDON -- A transformation has taken place on the British political scene, and it is one that could have profound effects on the wider European landscape as well as on trans-Atlantic relations. The nature of this change can be summed up in two words -- Michael Howard. This is the man who has now emerged...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2003

NPO opens craft shop to fund effort to eradicate land mines

A nonprofit organization engaged in the elimination of land mines has opened a shop in Tokyo that sells handbags, table cloths and other items from kimono material to help fund its activities.
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2003

Moves afoot to accelerate Narita arrivals processing

Foreigners arriving at Narita airport waited an average of 13 minutes and a maximum of 44 minutes to get through immigration on a busy weekend earlier this month, the government said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2003

Barriers stay down at rail crossings

As many as 500 railroad crossings in Japan are closed to road traffic for a total of 40 or more minutes an hour during peak train traffic, the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry said Tuesday.
MORE SPORTS
Dec 17, 2003

Skylarks capture Japan X Bowl

Running back Yasuhiro Kabata rushed for 126 yards in an X League championship record-setting 33 carries, leading the Onward Skylarks to a 13-10 victory over the Asahi Beer Silver Star on Tuesday at Tokyo Dome in the Japan X Bowl.
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2003

Koizumi in dark over Kanzaki Mideast trip

Takenori Kanzaki, leader of New Komeito and a key coalition ally of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, left for Kuwait on Tuesday and may visit southeastern Iraq if circumstances permit.
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2003

Kasyanov sees pipeline merits but remains noncommital

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov agreed Tuesday that a pipeline project linking East Siberia and Nakhodka, a port in Russia's Far East, would benefit both countries.
MORE SPORTS
Dec 17, 2003

Record season earns Fudo MVP

Four-time consecutive money leader Yuri Fudo was selected as this season's Most Valuable Player on the Japanese women's golf tour, the Japan LPGA said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2003

'Quality' of foreign students seen as key

An education ministry panel called Tuesday for changes to Japan's policy on foreign students, seeking a greater emphasis on quality rather than quantity.
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2003

Requests for SARS-related equipment ignored

The government is lagging far behind in providing hospitals with equipment to handle suspected SARS cases despite their requests for help and the fear that the deadly infectious disease may stage a comeback this winter, according to a Kyodo News survey released Tuesday.
SOCCER / J. League
Dec 17, 2003

Buchwald to Reds

The Urawa Reds said Tuesday they have reached a basic agreement with former German international defender Guido Buchwald to make him the new coach of the J. League first division side beginning Feb. 1, 2004.
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2003

LDP advocates more income tax powers for cities

In a major concession to local governments, the Liberal Democratic Party's tax panel said Tuesday it will call on the national government to allow localities to collect more local income tax in fiscal 2004, LDP officials said.
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2003

Next Supreme Court justice named

The government said Tuesday it will appoint lawyer Chiharu Saiguchi, a former vice chairman of the Tokyo Bar Association, to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Takehisa Fukazawa.
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2003

Ruling coalition agrees to hike pension premium to 18.35%

After a lengthy political tug of war, the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito agreed Tuesday night that public pension premiums paid by the average salaried worker should be raised to 18.35 percent of annual income from the current 13.58 percent.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2003

Samurai drama airs 1,000 times but plot thins

The popular samurai TV drama "Mito Komon," which debuted in 1969, has become the nation's first such program to air 1,000 episodes.
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2003

Economic outlook given an upgrade

The Bank of Japan on Tuesday upgraded its assessment of the economy in its monthly report for December for the fourth month in a row, citing improved corporate sentiment and more personal spending.
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2003

Honda successfully tests jet plane

Honda Motor Co. said Tuesday it successfully conducted test flights of its small business jet earlier this month in the United States.
EDITORIALS
Dec 17, 2003

Deepening ties with ASEAN

During two days of summit talks in Tokyo last week, leaders from Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, agreed to establish a broad-gauged relationship that includes not only trade and investment but also political and security cooperation. Described as the "Tokyo declaration,"...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2003

New Ashikaga Bank president named

Norito Ikeda, former chief personnel officer of the Bank of Yokohama, became on Tuesday the new president of the recently nationalized Ashikaga Bank.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Dec 17, 2003

'50s cannibal masterpiece offers plenty to chew on

Down by Tokyo Bay, most people think of the industrial wasteland of Hamamatsucho merely as a convenient stop on the Yamanote Line, a station for changing onto the Haneda-bound monorail en route to faraway places. Theatergoers, though, and especially lovers of big, slick, Western-style productions, know...
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2003

Saitama governments to pump Resona with taxpayer money

The prefectural and municipal governments of Saitama are willing to use roughly 1 billion yen in local taxpayer funds to claim a stake in Saitama Resona Bank, the local arm of Resona Holdings Inc., Saitama Gov. Kiyoshi Ueda said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2003

BOJ monetary policy intact; ABS program under review

The Bank of Japan Policy Board left its monetary policy intact Tuesday, though it moved to review a program to buy asset-backed securities from financial markets.
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2003

Ministry panel calls for only limited drug reform

A health ministry study panel called on the government Tuesday to give the green light to the sale of about 350 kinds of over-the-counter drugs at convenience stores and other retailers as part of deregulation efforts, but cold and pain medications will not be among them.
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2003

MMC, Chrysler to team up on pickup

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. announced Tuesday it will jointly develop and manufacture a midsize pickup truck for the North American market with the Chrysler Group of German-American automotive giant DaimlerChrysler AG.
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2003

Blood tainted by hepatitis C used in transfusion

The Japanese Red Cross Society has confirmed the first case in which donated blood containing the hepatitis C virus passed its screening tests and was used in a blood transfusion, according to officials of the organization.
CULTURE / Music
Dec 17, 2003

Sound tidings we bring

The gift of music never fails and you can fill plenty of stockings with these re-releases, compilations and holiday music, handpicked by the JT music elves Tom Bojko, Philip Brasor, Jeff Hammond, Jason Jenkins, Michael Pronko and Suzannah Tartan

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