Yomiuri Shimbun/Daily Yomiuri articles from June 2000

Yomiuri Shimbun/Daily Yomiuri archives from June 2000

Troussier unfazed by hassles.
June 30, 2000... THE HAGUE: National coach Philippe Troussier is due to meet Japanese soccer chief Shun-ichiro Okano in the Netherlands within the next couple of days to discuss the latest developments over his contract with the Japanese Football Association...

Report: Births down; suicide, divorce up.
June 30, 2000... The total fertility rate (TFR) and the number of actual births hit a record low in 1999, with only about 1,177,000 babies being born during the year, down about 25,000 from a year earlier, according to a report released Thursday by the Health...

Water leak found at nuclear plant.
June 30, 2000... NIIGATA: Water was found to have leaked onto the floor of the No. 2 reactor at a nuclear power plant located between Kashiwazaki and Kariwamura in Niigata Prefecture midmorning Thursday, plant officials said. About 100cc of water was...

Diplomatic Highlight Slovak envoy has long-standing ties.
June 30, 2000... Mikulas Sedlak, Slovak Republic ambassador to Japan, said he admires Japan's economic growth in the postwar era, but believes the nation needs to look to the future for new business inspiration. Sedlak, who became ambassador to Japan in...

9 airlines to launch online travel venture.
June 30, 2000... Nine leading airlines in the Asia-Pacific region on Thursday announced their plan to launch a new regional online travel exchange with both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) components, including a full spectrum of...

Medical expenses in FY'98 hit record high, report says.
June 30, 2000... Medical expenses in fiscal 1998 hit a record high 29.83 trillion yen, an increase of 2.6 percent from the previous year, according to a report on national medical fees released by the Health and Welfare Ministry on Thursday. However, the...

Tokyo conference to focus on alternative education.
June 30, 2000... The eighth International Democratic Education Conference of "free schools," in which students and teachers from around the world will meet to discuss nonconventional approaches to education, will be held in venues in and around Tokyo from...

Editorial: Changing attitudes to boost birthrate.
June 30, 2000... The Health and Welfare Ministry has released its annual Vital Statistics of Japan report for last year, which provides various statistics for 1999, including the approximate number of births, deaths, marriages and divorces during the year....

Marubeni, Tokyo Gas in fiber-optics tie-up.
June 30, 2000... Marubeni Corp. and Tokyo Gas Co. have agreed to enter the fiber-optic telecommunications business, the companies announced Thursday. Marubeni is the nation's only major trading house dealing with underwater cable businesses, while Tokyo...

Report: Births down; suicide, divorce up.
June 30, 2000... Report: Births down; suicide, divorce up Yomiuri The total fertility rate (TFR) and the number of actual births hit a record low in 1999, with only about 1,177,000 babies being born during the year, down about 25,000 from a year earlier,...

Editorial / Changing attitudes to boost birthrate.
June 30, 2000... Editorial / Changing attitudes to boost birthrate Yomiuri The Health and Welfare Ministry has released its annual Vital Statistics of Japan report for last year, which provides various statistics for 1999, including the approximate number of...

Matsushita sets up Internet division.
June 30, 2000... Matsushita sets up Internet division Yomiuri Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. on Thursday announced the establishment of a new Internet-related unit, the Corporate e-Net Business Division, to further strengthen its comprehensive digital...

Firms write off 6.4 bil. yen in bad loans to gang boss.
June 30, 2000... Companies affiliated with two major brokerage houses and a medium-sized general contractor have declared losses totaling 6.4 billion yen when they settled their accounts at the end of the 1999 business year to cover loans they extended 11...

Injured nursery children said suffering from trauma.
June 30, 2000... YOKOHAMA: Children injured at an unregistered nursery in Yamato, Kanagawa Prefecture, continue to show symptoms of psychological trauma such as crying uncontrollably at night and bursting into tears when near the facility, police said...

Inaba slams dynastic trend in politics.
June 30, 2000... Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry head Kosaku Inaba on Wednesday criticized the dynastic trend in Japanese politics that was maintained in the recent House of Representatives election. "It is a strange phenomenon that someone with no...

VX gas death not work-related, court says.
June 30, 2000... OSAKA: The Osaka High Court has rejected an appeal for labor-related death insurance benefits filed by the parents of a man who was killed with lethal VX gas by Aum Supreme Truth cult members, it was learned Thursday. The parents had...

151 sickened after drinking milk.
June 30, 2000... OSAKA: A total of 151 people from Osaka, Kyoto, Hyogo, Wakayama and Nara prefectures in the Kansai region have complained of diarrhea and vomiting after drinking low-fat milk produced by Snow Brand Milk Products Co., health authorities said...

New environment plan must set concrete goals.
June 30, 2000... The government's first review of the Basic Environment Plan, the backbone of Japan's environmental policies, will begin in July. The basic plan puts forth principles for policies to promote environmental protection measures effectively...

New Komeito declines additional cabinet post.
June 30, 2000... Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori met New Komeito leader Takenori Kanzaki and Hoshuto (New Conservative Party) leader Chikage Ogi at a Tokyo restaurant Thursday night to discuss the allocation of posts to the Liberal Democratic Party's coalition...

151 sickened after drinking milk.
June 30, 2000... 151 sickened after drinking milk Yomiuri OSAKA A total of 151 people from Osaka, Kyoto, Hyogo, Wakayama and Nara prefectures in the Kansai region have complained of diarrhea and vomiting after drinking low-fat milk produced by Snow Brand Milk...

[0] Firms, shareholders winning war against sokaiya.
June 30, 2000... In a sign that companies and ordinary shareholders are winning the battle against sokaiya corporate racketeers, the number of firms holding their shareholders meeting on the same day in June has fallen for the third year in a row. The...

Matsushita sets up Internet division.
June 30, 2000... Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. on Thursday announced the establishment of a new Internet-related unit, the Corporate e-Net Business Division, to further strengthen its comprehensive digital network business strategy and create new...

[0] Injured nursery children said suffering from trauma.
June 30, 2000... Injured nursery children said suffering from trauma Yomiuri YOKOHAMA Children injured at an unregistered nursery in Yamato, Kanagawa Prefecture, continue to show symptoms of psychological trauma such as crying uncontrollably at night and...

[0] Firms write off 6.4 bil. yen in bad loans to gang boss.
June 30, 2000... Firms write off 6.4 bil. yen in bad loans to gang boss Yomiuri Companies affiliated with two major brokerage houses and a medium-sized general contractor have declared losses totaling 6.4 billion yen when they settled their accounts at the...

[0] New Komeito declines additional cabinet post.
June 30, 2000... New Komeito declines additional cabinet post Yomiuri Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori met New Komeito leader Takenori Kanzaki and Hoshuto (New Conservative Party) leader Chikage Ogi at a Tokyo restaurant Thursday night to discuss the allocation of...

Water leak found at nuclear plant.
June 30, 2000... Water leak found at nuclear plant Yomiuri NIIGATA Water was found to have leaked onto the floor of the No. 2 reactor at a nuclear power plant located between Kashiwazaki and Kariwamura in Niigata Prefecture midmorning Thursday, plant...

Medical expenses in FY'98 hit record high, report says.
June 30, 2000... Medical expenses in FY'98 hit record high, report says Yomiuri Medical expenses in fiscal 1998 hit a record high 29.83 trillion yen, an increase of 2.6 percent from the previous year, according to a report on national medical fees released by...

Diplomatic Highlight Slovak envoy has long-standing ties.
June 30, 2000... Diplomatic Highlight Slovak envoy has long-standing ties Rieko Mohara Daily Yomiuri Staff Writer Yomiuri Mikulas Sedlak, Slovak Republic ambassador to Japan, said he admires Japan's economic growth in the postwar era, but believes the nation...

Tokyo conference to focus on alternative education.
June 30, 2000... Tokyo conference to focus on alternative education Yomiuri The eighth International Democratic Education Conference of "free schools," in which students and teachers from around the world will meet to discuss nonconventional approaches to...

Troussier unfazed by hassles.
June 30, 2000... Troussier unfazed by hassles Jeremy Walker Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri THE HAGUE National coach Philippe Troussier is due to meet Japanese soccer chief Shun-ichiro Okano in the Netherlands within the next couple of days to discuss the...

9 airlines to launch online travel venture.
June 30, 2000... 9 airlines to launch online travel venture Yomiuri Nine leading airlines in the Asia-Pacific region on Thursday announced their plan to launch a new regional online travel exchange with both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business...

Marubeni, Tokyo Gas in fiber-optics tie-up.
June 30, 2000... Marubeni, Tokyo Gas in fiber-optics tie-up Yomiuri Marubeni Corp. and Tokyo Gas Co. have agreed to enter the fiber-optic telecommunications business, the companies announced Thursday. Marubeni is the nation's only major trading house dealing...

[0] Govt slams U.S. claims for WWII compensation.
June 29, 2000... Govt slams U.S. claims for WWII compensation Gaku Shibata/ Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent Yomiuri WASHINGTON Japanese Ambassador to the United States Shunji Yanai said Tuesday the Japanese government would support Japanese corporations that...

[0] New Komeito to get cabinet post.
June 29, 2000... Mori is likely to appoint New Komeito's chief policymaker Chikara Sakaguchi to his second cabinet, possibly as health and welfare minister, party sources said Wednesday. From the LDP, it is likely that Deputy Secretary General Kazuo...

[0] Ikeda to quit senior LDP post.
June 29, 2000... Yukihiko Ikeda has decided to step down as chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party's General Council, one of the largest party's key posts, even if Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori asks him to stay on when he forms a new cabinet next week, it was...

[0] Dioxin law forces 17% of incinerators to close.
June 29, 2000... About 4,600, or 17 percent, of the country's 27,000 garbage incinerators have permanently or temporarily suspended operations due to the tightening of controls on dioxin emissions in January 1999, according to the findings of an Environment...

[0] Murder suspect hangs self in detention cell.
June 29, 2000... NAGOYA: A 53-year-old company president arrested Monday on suspicion of murdering a man in a staged car crash earlier this month hanged himself Wednesday in a detention cell at Kanie Police Station in Kaniecho, Aichi Prefecture, police said....

[0] Police to question Tanaka on other hijackers.
June 29, 2000... Police hope to question Yoshimi Tanaka, the most mysterious former member of the defunct Red Army faction extradited to Japan from Thailand late Tuesday, to find out about the activities of the four other members of the guerrilla group still...

[0] LDP factions in dispute over party post.
June 29, 2000... Tension is building between factions of the Liberal Democratic Party over the possible reappointment of the chairman of the party's General Council. While a nonmainstream faction led by former Secretary General Koichi Kato has called for...

[0] Billy smashes up the Pumpkins...perhaps.
June 29, 2000... THE SMASHING PUMPKINS Yokohama Pacifico, June 20 Don't be going out of your gourd if you haven't yet caught the Smashing Pumpkins on their last tour of Japan. There are two more dates left to see the band before they split into separate...

[0] Innovative journey to the underworld.
June 29, 2000... ORFEO ED EURIDICE New National Theater Tokyo, June 25 There was an air of vigor at The Pit, the smallest of the three auditoriums at the New National Theater Tokyo, where the new production of Gluck's opera Orfeo ed Euridice had its...

[0] NTT Com to start intl Net fax service.
June 29, 2000... NTT Communications Corp. notified the Posts and Telecommunications Ministry on Wednesday of its intent to expand its domestic Internet fax service to the rest of the world, starting July 3. NTT Com's Internet fax service was originally...

New Komeito to get cabinet post.
June 29, 2000... New Komeito to get cabinet post Yomiuri Mori is likely to appoint New Komeito's chief policymaker Chikara Sakaguchi to his second cabinet, possibly as health and welfare minister, party sources said Wednesday. From the LDP, it is likely that...

Ikeda to quit senior LDP post.
June 29, 2000... Ikeda to quit senior LDP post Yomiuri Yukihiko Ikeda has decided to step down as chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party's General Council, one of the largest party's key posts, even if Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori asks him to stay on when he...

Murder suspect hangs self in detention cell.
June 29, 2000... Murder suspect hangs self in detention cell Yomiuri NAGOYA A 53-year-old company president arrested Monday on suspicion of murdering a man in a staged car crash earlier this month hanged himself Wednesday in a detention cell at Kanie Police...

LDP factions in dispute over party post.
June 29, 2000... LDP factions in dispute over party post Yomiuri Tension is building between factions of the Liberal Democratic Party over the possible reappointment of the chairman of the party's General Council. While a nonmainstream faction led by former...

Billy smashes up the Pumpkins...perhaps.
June 29, 2000... Billy smashes up the Pumpkins...perhaps Darron Hargreaves Daily Yomiuri Staff Writer Yomiuri THE SMASHING PUMPKINS Yokohama Pacifico, June 20 Don't be going out of your gourd if you haven't yet caught the Smashing Pumpkins on their last tour...

Art Beat: 2 composers of their time.
June 29, 2000... Art Beat: 2 composers of their time Shinichiro Ikebe Special to The Yomiuri Shimbun Yomiuri Was I in middle school when I was so moved by the German film Die Trapp Familie? The movie was later adapted into the musical The Sound of Music,...

Poll: 70% pessimistic about new Mori govt.
June 29, 2000... More than 70 percent of respondents said they had few or no expectations of Yoshiro Mori as prime minister, according to a telephone poll conducted by The Yomiuri Shimbun on Tuesday and Wednesday. In Sunday's general election, the ruling...

Health ministry to issue guideline on disclosure.
June 29, 2000... The Health and Welfare Ministry said Tuesday it would instruct the 218 state-run hospitals and sanatoriums around the country to disclose medical information to patients' families upon their request, provided that permission is given by an...

Art Beat: 2 composers of their time.
June 29, 2000... Was I in middle school when I was so moved by the German film Die Trapp Familie? The movie was later adapted into the musical The Sound of Music, which became a huge hit, along with a film version of its own. Now, as I ponder two...

Book ahead to hear Berlin Philharmonic.
June 29, 2000... Classical music devotees have been saving up for the late autumn tour by the Berlin Philharmonic, and for good reason. The orchestra will be under the batons of Claudio Abbado and Mariss Jansons, two of the greatest conductors of their...

Breaking sound barriers.
June 29, 2000... Think which of the following clicks for you: impressionist orchestral work by Claude Debussy; ambient techno from Aphex Twin; the dub sound of King Tubby; loud rock 'n' roll by The Velvet Underground; the electric jazz of Miles Davis. None of...

Zhang Yimou with English subtitles.
June 29, 2000... People who do not read Japanese have a hard time keeping up with the latest non-English language film releases in Japan. That's why Bunkamura's decision to show Zhang Yimou's Not One Less with both English and Japanese subtitles is a welcome...

Eyecame, eyesaw, eyeconquered: Since forming 1 year ago, eyesaw artistic collective has been a winner.
June 29, 2000... Keep July 8 in mind. That's when 1,200 yen will gain you entry to four floors of perhaps the most progressive visual art installations currently on offer in Tokyo. The eyesaw art event is the creation of an artist collective under the...

Hong Kong still going strong; 'future even better'.
June 29, 2000... Cheung Man-yee, principal representative of the Tokyo-based Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, said Tuesday that Hong Kong was and would remain the economic center of Asia. She also said the economy, which recovered faster than any...

NRI, Exodus offer Net support service.
June 29, 2000... Nomura Research Institute Ltd. (NRI) and Exodus Communications K.K. said Wednesday they have developed a new service that offers customers a combination of the existing services of NRI's Yokohama data center and the Web hosting services at...

Ogi-Wan Kenobi: Master of the force.
June 29, 2000... Quiz time: What manager has appeared out of nowhere to combat the forces of evil and boredom like an avenging jedi knight? Who has a knack for turning boring, mediocre teams into pennant winners while developing charismatic superstars out of...

[0] Toray to enter U.S. water mart.
June 28, 2000... Toray to enter U.S. water mart Yomiuri Toray Industries Inc. will establish a joint venture with Massachusetts-based Ionics, Inc., one of the world's biggest water treatment plant makers, and Mitsui & Co. (U.S.A.) Inc., Toray said Tuesday....

1.5 mil. young people prefer part-time jobs.
June 28, 2000... The number of young people who choose to work part-time instead of full-time is estimated at 1.51 million, according to a brief from a white paper on labor discussed at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday. Many young people quit their jobs...

Eruption suspected off Miyakejima.
June 28, 2000... Changes in the color of seawater near Miyakejima island in the Izu Islands chain indicate that a volcanic eruption may have taken place underwater, a panel of volcanologists said Tuesday. The center of magmatic activity has moved to...

3 top LDP executives likely to remain in current posts.
June 28, 2000... In what is seen as a step toward forming the second Mori cabinet, factions within the Liberal Democratic Party on Tuesday came close to agreeing to keep three of the party's top executives, including secretary general, in the posts they held...

90 mil. yen malpractice suit filed after suicide.
June 28, 2000... TAKAMATSU: A 52-year-old man and his family have filed a lawsuit with the Takamatsu District Court for about 90 million yen in damages from a doctor at a medical clinic, claiming that the man's wife committed suicide because her right leg had...

Head of rehabilitation center arrested over vote tampering.
June 28, 2000... TOKUSHIMA: Police on Monday arrested Yoshitaka Nishiuchi, 55, head of Kashigaoka Ikuseien, a rehabilitation center for mentally handicapped people in Wakimachi, Tokushima Prefecture, and two other staff members of the center for allegedly...

Constitutionality of voting law upheld.
June 28, 2000... The Supreme Court on Tuesday morning rejected the final appeal of 31 North and South Korean residents in Japan seeking to have electoral laws forbidding foreign residents in Japan from voting in local elections declared unconstitutional. ...

Overseas students of Japanese increase 30%.
June 28, 2000... More than 2.1 million people were studying Japanese at educational institutions in 115 countries and territories outside Japan as of 1998, marking a 30 percent increase from 1993, according to an international exchange organization. The...

Govt plan aims to prevent further medical accidents.
June 28, 2000... In an effort to prevent the reoccurence of a spate of medical accidents that have happened recently, a Health and Welfare Ministry council submitted a draft plan Tuesday to standardize the size of some medical equipment and to revise the...

U.S., Russia finding it hard to shake Cold War mentality.
June 28, 2000... The United States and Russia, the two nuclear superpowers, remain under the spell of the security strategies employed during the Cold War. The United States is currently estimated to deploy about 7,200 nuclear warheads, while the number...

Shinsei asks DIC to buy Sogo loans.
June 28, 2000... Shinsei Bank, formerly the Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan, on Tuesday officially applied to the Deposit Insurance Corporation to purchase its claims on loans owed by the Sogo group of department stores. According to an agreement between...

NTT DoCoMo opens Beijing office.
June 28, 2000... NTT DoCoMo Inc. opened a representative office in Beijing on Tuesday with a view to strengthening relationships with wireless telecommunications operators and other telecommunications-related organizations in China, the Japanese mobile...

1.5 mil. young people prefer part-time jobs.
June 28, 2000... 1.5 mil. young people prefer part-time jobs Yomiuri The number of young people who choose to work part-time instead of full-time is estimated at 1.51 million, according to a brief from a white paper on labor discussed at a Cabinet meeting on...

3 top LDP executives likely to remain in current posts.
June 28, 2000... 3 top LDP executives likely to remain in current posts Yomiuri In what is seen as a step toward forming the second Mori cabinet, factions within the Liberal Democratic Party on Tuesday came close to agreeing to keep three of the party's top...

Red Army member to return to Japan today MPD arrests Tanak.
June 28, 2000... Red Army member to return to Japan today MPD arrests Tanaka aboard JAL airplane at Bangkok airport By Gaku Takikita Yomiuri BANGKOK Yoshimi Tanaka, a former member of the defunct Red Army faction, was to be extradited to Japan Tuesday for his...

Fears of Miyakejima residents increase.
June 28, 2000... Fears of Miyakejima residents increase Yomiuri Fears of a full-scale eruption increased Tuesday among residents on Miyakejima island, where volcanic activity has forced more than 2,600 people to evacuate their homes, after news reports that...

90 mil. yen malpractice suit filed after suicide.
June 28, 2000... 90 mil. yen malpractice suit filed after suicide Yomiuri TAKAMATSU A 52-year-old man and his family have filed a lawsuit with the Takamatsu District Court for about 90 million yen in damages from a doctor at a medical clinic, claiming that...

Head of rehabilitation center arrested over vote tampering.
June 28, 2000... Head of rehabilitation center arrested over vote tampering Yomiuri TOKUSHIMA Police on Monday arrested Yoshitaka Nishiuchi, 55, head of Kashigaoka Ikuseien, a rehabilitation center for mentally handicapped people in Wakimachi, Tokushima...

Constitutionality of voting law upheld.
June 28, 2000... Constitutionality of voting law upheld Yomiuri The Supreme Court on Tuesday morning rejected the final appeal of 31 North and South Korean residents in Japan seeking to have electoral laws forbidding foreign residents in Japan from voting in...

Radioactive material found in Tokyo.
June 28, 2000... Radioactive material found in Tokyo Yomiuri The Science and Technology Agency said Tuesday that two plastic buckets, filled with concrete containing radioactive material, were found on a site in Fuchu, Tokyo, previously used by Keio...

Overseas students of Japanese increase 30%.
June 28, 2000... Overseas students of Japanese increase 30% Yomiuri More than 2.1 million people were studying Japanese at educational institutions in 115 countries and territories outside Japan as of 1998, marking a 30 percent increase from 1993, according...

Obuchi faction comes out top among LDP groups in election/.
June 28, 2000... Obuchi faction comes out top among LDP groups in election Yomiuri The faction previously led by the late former Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi was the only group in the Liberal Democratic Party to increase its representation in the Diet after...

Govt plan aims to prevent further medical accidents.
June 28, 2000... Govt plan aims to prevent further medical accidents Yomiuri In an effort to prevent the reoccurence of a spate of medical accidents that have happened recently, a Health and Welfare Ministry council submitted a draft plan Tuesday to...

Minshuto analyzing 'cross-voting' problem.
June 28, 2000... Minshuto analyzing 'cross-voting' problem Yomiuri Minshuto (Democratic Party of Japan) started assessing its mixed results in Sunday's House of Representatives election at a meeting of executive members at the party headquarters Monday. At...

Political PULSE / LDP braces for fireworks as Nonaka, Kato.
June 28, 2000... Political PULSE / LDP braces for fireworks as Nonaka, Kato lock horns Yoshimichi Hironaka Yomiuri Shimbun Political News Editor Yomiuri During campaigning for the House of Representatives election, sharp words were openly exchanged between...

Relegating beef from head of table.
June 28, 2000... Relegating beef from head of table Masaharu Asaba Yomiuri Beef, the queen of all meat, the indispensible ingredient of succulent gourmet steaks and mouthwatering stews. What, indeed, would the world of cuisine do without this savory delight?...