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COMMENTARY / World
May 13, 2003

World must find peaceful solutions to WMD problem

BRUSSELS -- The international community was deeply divided on how to effectively deal with the potential threat of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Evidence that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein continued to maintain such an arsenal has yet to emerge from the rubble of the recent conflict.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2003

Financial panel agrees on need to help insurers

A government advisory panel on financial affairs agreed Monday on the need to aid troubled life insurers but was divided over a plan to allow them to cut yields guaranteed to policyholders.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2003

Olympus posts record earnings

Olympus Optical Co. reported Monday record-high sales and profits on a consolidated basis for fiscal 2002, driven by its popular digital cameras and steady growth in medical equipment sales.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2003

Sogo, Seibu to merge operations in June

Struggling department store operator Sogo Inc. announced Monday that it will integrate its operations with Seibu Department Stores Ltd. on June 1 under a new holding company, Millennium Retailing Inc.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2003

Nippon Keidanren to back political donations

The Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren) said Monday it will resume coordinating political donations from member companies and associations beginning next year.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2003

Mobile-phone output logs increase

Domestic shipments of mobile phones, including car phones, surged 58.4 percent in March from a year earlier to 4.96 million, logging their fifth straight monthly increase, an industry association said Monday.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 13, 2003

Dam Politics

Poverty haunts the people of Myanmar but those who live in remote, landlocked Karenni State are among the poorest of the poor. Karenni, Myanmar's smallest state, is also the least populated with less than 250,000 inhabitants, many of them landless. Communication is poor and there is little employment....
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 13, 2003

Fingerprint IDs touted as leading security option

Have you ever forgotten your PIN number when attempting to withdraw cash from a bank ATM? If so, you are a target user for fingerprint identification systems.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
May 13, 2003

Off-the-wall fiction feeds weird ideas about Japan

If you review novels set in Asia, as this writer does, it follows that you read a lot of books. To call some of them "terrible" may be putting it kindly.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2003

Coddling of Asian bond marts urged

Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa and Jamaludin Mohamed Jarjis, Malaysia's second finance minister, agreed Monday that Asia's bond markets should be nurtured to stabilize regional currency swings and bolster economic growth, according to a ministry official.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
May 13, 2003

Entering the Dragon Palace, English-language driving schools and craft experience

Dragon palace Following on from news of the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka, Tokyo, a reader asks why Meguro Gajoen's Dragon Palace is closed most of the year.
COMMUNITY
May 13, 2003

Write your own Japanese potboiler

1. Someone falls victim to a horrible murder in a U.S city. The solution lies in a cryptic message written on: a samurai sword; a Satsuma vase; a netsuke; an ancient scroll; a jade amulet; or an Astro-Boy comic book.
COMMENTARY
May 12, 2003

A rocky British partnership

LONDON -- Prime Minister Tony Blair has staked his reputation on achieving a significant improvement in British public services. Under previous Conservative Party administrations, public services were allowed to run down as public expenditures were reduced.
EDITORIALS
May 12, 2003

A great leap forward in China?

Back-to-back calamities are forcing China's leaders to adopt new approaches to governance. A government accustomed to ruling without challenge is now under pressure to restore public confidence in its leadership. Hopes that this might lead to more broad-based political reform are premature, however....
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
May 12, 2003

Jordan has nothing to complain about

LOS ANGELES -- This is all you need to know about Michael Jordan's latest career move: Nixon left Washington with more credibility.
MORE SPORTS
May 12, 2003

Sorenstam claims Nichirei Cup

Annika Sorenstam fired a 4-under-par 68 Sunday to win the Nichirei Cup, her last tournament before taking on the men in the PGA Tour's Colonial.
COMMENTARY / WASHINGTON UPDATE
May 12, 2003

Flush with victory in Iraq, Bush sets his sights on defending the White House in 2004

WASHINGTON -- President George W. Bush last week became the first American president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to declare victory in a foreign war. FDR named May 8, 1945, V-E Day for victory in Europe, and Aug. 14, 1945, V-J Day for victory over Japan. Bush proclaimed May 1, 2003, V-I Day, in grand...
COMMENTARY / World
May 12, 2003

Time to push bigger deal with Pyongyang

WASHINGTON -- When South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun visits Washington this week, what can he and President George W. Bush possibly talk about?
BASEBALL / MLB
May 12, 2003

Matsuzaka one-hits Marines, fans 11

Daisuke Matsuzaka pitched a one-hitter with 11 strikeouts, including three in the ninth inning, for his fourth straight complete game win and first shutout victory in two years as the Seibu Lions blanked the Chiba Lotte Marines 4-0 in the Pacific League on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS
May 12, 2003

Win Kluger smartest in NHK Mile Cup

The key to the smart money was in the name Sunday as ninth pick Win Kluger made winning look easy after leading the field from the 200-meter mark for a length-and-a-quarter win of the NHK Mile Cup (G1).
SUMO
May 12, 2003

Asashoryu cruises in opener

Yokozuna Asashoryu got down to business with a convincing win over komusubi Tosanoumi but ozeki Musoyama and Kaio fell victims to first-day losses at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament on Sunday.
BASEBALL / MLB
May 11, 2003

Iwakuma goes the distance as Buffs trample BlueWave

Hisashi Iwakuma (6-0) pitched a complete game, holding the BlueWave to one run on nine hits for the win, as the Kintetsu Buffaloes whipped Orix 9-1 at Osaka Dome for their third straight win.
SUMO
May 11, 2003

Asashoryu looks for revenge

Asashoryu had the chance to become the first yokozuna debutant ever to win the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in March. But the pressure proved too great and he blew it on the final day.
MORE SPORTS
May 11, 2003

Sorenstam extends lead despite windy conditions

Annika Sorenstam struggled with windy conditions Saturday but opened up a five-stroke lead at the $500,000 Nichirei Cup World Ladies tournament, her last event before playing in the PGA Tour's Colonial.
COMMENTARY / World
May 11, 2003

China's policy has backfired

What would China prefer to see -- a Japan armed with nuclear weapons, or Japan's alliance with the United States strengthened by its participation in missile defense? In Beijing, neither option has much appeal.
EDITORIALS
May 11, 2003

Myanmar's gestures are not enough

Once again, the military government in Myanmar has made a symbolic gesture to placate international critics. The release of political prisoners is always welcome, but the government in Yangon does not question its right to use the opposition as pawns. The game must stop; nothing less than systemic reform...

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