The battle to bring down LDP bigwig Suzuki Muneo continues to
dominate the political world, only temporarily distracted by the
visit by US President Bush. There's still nothing but bad news
about the economy.
This coming season, expectations are high for Japan's sports stars
in several fields - but then again, they were high for their Winter
Olympians, too. More entertainers are turning to drugs to escape
the pressure of fame. The issue of drugs is not one which is discussed
often in the media but is a growing problem.
Mark McBennett
Webmaster, Japan Zone
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Contents
1. Japan Zone Updates
2. What's going on in Japan
3. Sports news
4. Gei-noh news
5. Links we like
6. Unsubscribe
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1. Japan Zone Updates
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New profile: Hitomi is the sultry queen of Japanese pop music, whose not afraid
to show a bit of skin to sell CDs.
https://www.japan-zone.com/modern/hitomi.shtml
New profile: Hotei Tomoyasu was the guitarist of legendary rock band Boowy
and is a rarity - a Japanese musician respected and in demand
worldwide.
https://www.japan-zone.com/modern/hotei_tomoyasu.shtml
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2. What's going on in Japan
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General:
US President George W Bush came and went without major incident.
Like presidents Carter and Reagan before him, Bush and his wife
paid their respects at Meiji Jingu shrine, while PM Koizumi waited
in the car. This demonstration of the separation of religion and
state seems pretty pointless given Koizumi's visit to Yasukuni
Jinja last year. The leaders then watched a display of yabusame
(mounted archery). Later, while first lady Laura Bush was reading
from Curious George (!) to elementary school kids, they held a
joint press conference, where Bush gave his support for Koizumi's
reform efforts. They later dressed down to dine at a regular izakaya
in central Tokyo. Bush addressed the Diet the next day, againing
praising Koizumi's reforms, welcoming the increasingly deregulated
Japan to the world of free competition and calling for a "new
restoration". The Bushes later met the Emperor and Empress before
heading on to Korea.
The owner of a bag containing 43 million yen in cash has disppaeared
with his family. The man reportedly left the bag in a corridor
of his apartment building after returning home drunk in May of
last year. The next day, he went to the police and was confirmed
as the owner of the money, which had been handed in by a neighbor.
But as the police station's accounting officer had gone home,
the man was asked to return the next day. Though the rent on his
apartment has been paid by automatic bank transfer since, the
man and his family have not been seen. The neighbor is entitled
to the money but says he wants none of it as "there is something
suspicious about it". If it is returned, he is entitled to a reward
of 5 to 20%.
A collision with a wild boar caused a two-train pileup in Fukuoka
Prefecture, injuring 60 people.
Some 100 2-3 meter melon-headed whales were found beached in Ibaraki
Prefecture. About a third were safely returned to the sea while
many others probably found their way to local dinner tables. It
is legal to use the meat of such whales for personal consumption
but not to sell them.
27-year old Ishiyama Yuta has become the first foreigner to be
accepted by the Peking Opera. Ishiyama says he was inspired as
a child watching the TV drama Saiyuki (shown as "Monkey Magic"
in the west). His dream is to play the monkey god Songoku, played
by actor Sakai Masaaki in the TV show. He attended an opera school
in Beijing for four years from 1993 before entering the Academy
of Chinese Traditional Opera. The severe training include 40-minute
handstands and extreme gymnastics.
Spirited Away (Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi), the animated feature
by Miyazaki Hayao, was awarded the Golden Bear, the top prize
at the Berlin Film Festival. The award was shared with the Irish
docu-drama Bloody Sunday.
https://www.japan-zone.com/modern/miyazaki_hayao.shtml
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Honda's listing on the New
York Stock Exchange, the opening bell was rung by ASIMO, the company's
popular humanoid robot. The remarkably agile ASIMO has been a
big hit and featured in recent TV commercials.
Researchers at Kochi University and a private firm have developed
an effective and low-cost filter for diesel vehicles that uses
Japanese cypress tree oil. The filter reduces toxic emissions
by about 90% and costs only 10% of the 1-2 million yen price tag
of existing devices. The development is timely, as the government
has proposed strict new emission standards from 2005. The newspaper
article mentioning the new plans claimed that automakers would
have difficulty meeting the standards, seemingly forgetting the
story they had printed just days before.
From the 20th of this month, Korean broadcasting is allowing the
airing of songs in Japanese for the first time since WWII. The
lifting of the ban applies only to material related to this year's
World Cup, which basically means the song "Let's Get Together"
by Voices of Korea/Japan, the official song for the event, which
is a musical collaboration between Japanese and Korean artists.
Government:
The opposition parties are out to get Suzuki Muneo (54), the LDP
politician who got too big for his boots. Revelations of Suzuki's
influence over Foreign Ministry bureaucrats, his wheeling and
dealing regarding a series of construction contracts and his run-ins
with popular former minister Tanaka Makiko have made him the man
most people want to see ousted from the Diet. In the past, Suzuki
expressed his desire to lead the country one day, but the man's
uncontrolled ambition and ego look to have put paid to those dreams.
In a recent Diet budget committee hearing, Suzuki and Tanaka appeared
as unsworn witnesses. Tanaka for the first time vented her spleen
on Koizumi who she said had made a mistake in firing her and was
surrounded by "bad" people. She described how Koizumi urged her
to act freely in her reform efforts only to find that he was the
one holding her back, "stepping on her skirt" as she put it. Next
up, Suzuki heatedly refuted allegations made against him but later
issued a statement admitting limited intervention in the bidding
for construction projects in the so-called "Northern Territories".
Suzuki is said to have ensured that the projects on the disputed
islands, seized by the Soviet Union after WWII, went to companies
in his constituency in Nemuro, Hokkaido.
Among the changes proposed to address these problems are preventing
contact between bureaucrats and lawmakers, as in the UK. Also
the body that oversees aid to the Northern Territories is to be
revamped to make it more accountable. These can be seen as positive
changes as well as attempts to curb Suzuki's power.
Several senior Foreign Ministry officials, whose humming and hawing
during Diet deliberations did nothing to improve the image of
bureaucrats, have been dismissed from their posts pending their
transfer. The officials included Sato Masaru, who was a de-facto
assistant to Suzuki Muneo. Suzuki, while loudly declaring he exerts
no influence over the ministry, was busy calling officials to
protest Sato's transfer.
The bid-rigging scandal that saw Diet member Kano Michihiko quit
the Minshuto party has spread to include the governor of Tokushima
Prefecture. Endo Toshio's aides are said to have received 3 million
yen from construction companies, via a Tokyo consultancy, to "help"
their bids for several public works projects. Endo has denied
receiving the funds.
The latest TV news survey shows support for the Koizumi cabinet
at a new low of 47% as opposed to a disapproval rating of 41%.
The number one reason given by those who no longer support Koizumi
was that he has turned out to be all talk and no action. His firing
of the popular Tanaka Makiko was also a big factor.
Amidst ongoing problems in the meat industry, it was reported
that a former Agriculture Ministry bureaucrat had decided not
to join three of his former co-workers as an executive at the
Japan Meat Conference. He is seen by some as at least partly responsible
for the recent mad cow disease outbreak. But last month he received
an 88 million yen retirement allowance and the job offer, typical
of the amakudari (descent from heaven) system of cushy jobs for
ex-bureaucrats. The JMC is a private organization that promotes
the consumption of beef and pork products.
Crime:
As if the Foreign Ministry didn't already have enough trouble,
a bureaucrat was arrested for having sex with a 15-year old girl.
The official, a graduate of the elite Tokyo University, picked
up the girl in his car in Atsugi, Kanagawa Prefecture last September
and paid her 10,000 yen.
Remember Hayashi Masumi, the woman on trial for poisoning curry
at a community event in Wakayama in 1998, killing four people
and sickening dozens more? Well, it seems she's been awarded 6.6
million yen in a lawsuit against the publisher of Focus magazine,
which printed a photo taken of Hayashi in court and an illustration
that showed her "in a bad light". The magazine was suspended last
autumn.
In a landmark ruling against corporate sexism, securities company
Nomura Holdings was ordered to compensate 12 women who were refused
the same promotion opportunities as their male colleagues despite
working for the company for up to 40 years. About 75% of the company's
employees are what are known as "sogoshoku" and are automatically
moved up the corporate ladder according to seniority, while the
rest are known as "ippanshoku", who do mostly clerical work and
are expected to get married and quit. All ippanshoku are women.
The economy:
The government has announced the first step in a two-year anti-deflation
plan. The plan pledges public funds to bail out banks in case
of a financial crisis and also calls for the Bank of Japan to
further ease credit.
Snow Brand Foods, at the center of the meat-labelling scandal,
is set to wind up in April. Though the company is said to be seeking
buyers to take over its business and hire staff, it is likely
to go into liquidation. The 24-billion yen cost to the company
will be covered by its parent Snow Brand Milk Products.
Sakakibara Eisuke, the former financial diplomat known as "Mr
Yen", has attacked what he calls PM Koizumi's "chickening out"
on the issue of resolving bad loans held by the nation's banks.
He said Koizumi initially proposed a tough approach to the issue
but has backed down due to fears of a major financial crisis in
March or April. He cites the dual structure consisting of the
government and the various LDP "shadow" committees that have the
final say about big decisions as a problem Koizumi has not addressed.
Three years after joining forces, Nissan and Renault have released
their first jointly developed car. Expectations are high for the
March (Micra in Europe) and Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn, who has
succeeded in turning the company around in the last few years,
said "Today I can say that Nissan is ready for growth."
Hokkaido International Airlines, better known as Air Do, is struggling
and has started looking for an alliance partner. The company made
a big impact on the domestic airline business in 1998 when it
started cut-price runs between Tokyo and Sapporo.
Daikyo, the nation's largest condominium builder best known for
its Lions Mansion properties, is seeking a 500 billion yen aid
package from UFJ, Dai-Ichi Kangyo and Asahi banks.
Japan Metals, the country's top ferroalloy manufacturer, has gone
bankrupt with over 140 billion yen in debts. It is the first major
manufacturer to go under this year.
Only three Japanese companies have made Fortune magazine's latest
Global Top 50 rankings. Toyota was ranked 25th of the world's
most admired companies, with Honda 28th and Sony 41st.
Asahi has passed Kirin for the first time in 48 years to become
the nation's No.1 seller of beer and happoshu. Asahi's Super Dry
has long held the top spot among beer brands.
The foreign community:
An interesting aside in the Suzuki Muneo investigation is the
involvement of his private secretary. John Muwete Muluaka, who
is from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and is appropriately
known as Big John, is said to have used his position to interfere
with operations at his country's embassy. There are also questions
about whether he entered Japan as a diplomat, which would make
him ineligible to serve as a bureaucrat, for security reasons.
The Education Ministry is set to adopt guidelines for a Japanese
as a Second Language (JSL) curriculum for foreign elementary school
students from 2003. There are some 43,000 foreign children studying
at public primary schools, about a quarter of whom need help with
Japanese.
In an indication of the growing illegal immigrant problem, about
700 trainees working in the central Japan area around Nagoya were
found to have "gone missing" in the last couple of years. The
trainees were mostly from China and Vietnam.
Former Korean President Kim Young Sam is to join the faculty of
Tokyo's Waseda University from April. He is expected to lecture
on Asian political relations.
Well, they may not count as members of the community but large
numbers of soccer hooligans are expected to arrive in Japan for
the World Cup this summer. Police are taking measures to control
the situation but if arrests are as high as have been seen in
previous championships, detention centers just won't be able to
cope. Facilities in Shizuoka Prefecture, which will host games
featuring Germany and Belgium, are said to be already 97% full.
Other prefectures report similar statistics. In a possibly counterproductive
move, the Japanese and Korean organizing committees announced
that they would allow sales of beer at stadiums before and during
games. Measures such as selling people only one beer at a time
and refusing to sell to those already drunk seem unlikely to prevent
the inevitable.
In Hawaii and northern California, hundreds of tenants are being
evicted into an already tight market by a billionaire Japanese
property magnate. Kawamoto Genshiro, once the sixth-richest man
in Japan, has decided to sell up his US real estate, consiting
of some 800 homes, and invest the money in a new venture.
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3. Sports news
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There were a couple of close calls and the Japanese got involved
in the judging scandals that plagued the Winter Olympics but they
couldn't better their previous medal total. Aiming to equal the
tally of ten medals at Nagano in 1998, Japan could only muster
two this time, a silver and a bronze. Meanwhile, a coach with
the cross-country skiing team was arrested for pointing a rifle
at a police officer, albeit in jest, in a Utah hotel.
The opening ceremony of this summer's World Cup, to be held in
Seoul, will be attended by Prince Takamado, honorary president
of the JFA, and PM Koizumi. The prince is a cousin of the Emperor
and 7th in line to the throne. Seoul had requested that the Emperor
or Crown Prince Naruhito attend the ceremony but it was decided
that "conditions" for such a visit were not in place. Meanwhile,
Japan's World Cup buildup was dealt another blow when Jubilo Iwata
midfielder Hattori Toshihiro was sidelined for 6-8 weeks after
treatment for peritonitis.
J-League champions Kashima Antlers were knocked out at the quarter-final
stage of the Asian Club Championship. Kashima were seconds away
from qualifying before allowing an injury time equalizer that
left them third in their group. The semis will be contested by
two teams from South Korea and one each from Iran and Uzbekistan.
Kashima came close again in the Xerox Super Cup but lost the 2002
J-League season opener to Shimizu S-Pulse 5-4 in a penalty shootout.
The cup is contested by the league champion and winner of the
Emperor's Cup.
Japan is set to have its first professional soccer referees for
the start of the J-League season next week. The two "special referees"
will receive a salary of up to 400,000 yen a month as well as
200,000 a game. Regular J-1 refs will get 120,000 per game (up
from 50,000 last season), linesmen half that and fourth officials
20,000. The amounts for J-2 officials are half those for J-1.
The Toyota team is ready to make its Formula One debut in the
Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne this weekend. The team will
be represented by two cars, driven by a Finn and a Scot. Meanwhile
rookie Sato Takuma (25) has been touted as a potential future
world champion by his Jordan Honda team. But knowing their tendency
to build up huge expectations for sporting heroes, team boss Eddie
Jordan asked the Japanese media to give Sato room to mature slowly,
saying "If he has a good race, please don't blow up his head because
we still need him to be able to sit in the car."
Expectations are high for "rookie" Japanese pitchers in the major
leagues. Ishii Kazuhisa (28) of the LA Dodgers and seven-time
All Star Komiyama Satoru (36) of the NY Mets have both impressed
in spring training under the glare of mostly Japanese media.
Golfer Taniguchi Toru (32), known as the "Japanese Tiger" ended
up fifth in the Los Angeles Nissan Open, after having earlier
led the field.
Yamaguchi Shingo lost his bid to take the WBC light-flyweight
title from South Korean Choi Yo Sam. Yamaguchi was stopped in
the 10th round.
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4. Gei-noh news
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"Kekkon no Jouken", the drama starring SMAP member Inagaki Goro
(28) is set to start March 3rd. Scheduled to air in September
last year, the show was postponed due to Inagaki's run in with
the law. He plays a Japanese who gets romanticaly involved with
a Korean girl.
https://www.japan-zone.com/modern/smap.shtml
Matsumoto Jun, of the pop group Arashi, Nakamura Shinsuke, son
of kabuki star Nakamura Kankuro, and actress Hirayama Aya were
among this year's batch of 18-year old graduates from Horikoshi
High School. The Tokyo school, where I taught for a short time
many years ago, is attended by many aspiring stars.
A limited edition 10-CD album of the best of legendary rock band
Boowy will go on sale next month. The band has been back in vogue
recently, with its respected guitarist Hotei Tomoyasu in particular
enjoying a new lease on life, appearing in a series of popular
TV commercials.
https://www.japan-zone.com/modern/hotei_tomoyasu.shtml
Popular actress Mizuno Miki (27) and Koizumi Kotaro (23), son
of the PM, are to star together again in the TBS drama "Shiawase
no Shippo". The show will air in the prime time Thursday 10pm
slot. The pair are currently appearing together in a drama on
TBS rival Fuji TV.
Among the stars who met US president Bush at an official function
were singer Utada Hikaru (19), ex X-Japan musician Yoshiki (35)
and Olympic mogul bronze medallist Satoya Tae (25). Among those
peeved at not being invited was former foreign minister Tanaka
Makiko. Utada is set to make her English-language US debut with
Island Def Jam records in a deal worth 500 million yen (she released
an album several years ago in the US under the name Cubic U).
Yoshiki also made an appearance, alongside Bill Gates, at the
launch of Microsoft's new X Box game console. Nice linkup.
https://www.japan-zone.com/modern/utada_hikaru.shtml
In a historic first, a Bunka Hoso radio broadcast featuring actress
Fujiwara Norika (30) was aired live by Korean radio station MBC
on February 20th, 100 days before the World Cup kicks off. Fujiwara
is the official "friendship ambassador" this year.
https://www.japan-zone.com/modern/fujiwara_norika.shtml
A long-lost episode of the late animation giant Tezuka Osamu's
Tetsuwan Atomu (Astro Boy) will be broadcast by NHK in April.
The program is one of six from a series of 193 broadcast in the
mid-1960s believed to have been lost. It was found in the US,
with an English soundtrack, and will be shown with Japanese subtitles.
Another animation classic, Matsumoto Reiji's Uchu Senkan Yamato,
is to have its first update in 20 years. The new animation will
be shown on TV from October. You can see some of the manga at
this URL:
http://ginga999.shogakukan.co.jp/yamato/
Wedding Bells
Retired sumo star Konishiki (38) is set to marry again this spring.
The former Ozeki (champion) will marry Iijima Chie, a 26-year
old medical clinic employee; Tachikawa Noriko (32) who retired
from show business last year, has married a 31-year old doctor.
The couple had already registered their marriage (nyuseki) but
held a wedding ceremony last week; singer Mike Maki (57) has married
for the third time, to a woman 17 years younger. His wife is said
to be expecting their first child in March; Fujioka Hiroshi (56)
best known for his role as the TV hero Gamen Rider, has remarried,
this time to a woman 26 years younger; enka singer Hattori Hiroko
(30) is to marry her hair makeup artist on his 30th birthday in
April.
More bits and bobs
Enka star Itsuki Hiroshi (53) is to leave his agency of 31 years,
Tokuma Japan, and set up a new record company.
Actor Kaga Takefumi (51), presenter of the Ryori no Tetsujin (Iron
Chef) TV show was admitted to hospital with acute appendicitis.
Hajime Chitose (23), who only released her debut single this month,
is to sing on the new album by "healing music" group Deep Forest.
Hajime sings in the "shima-uta" style of Okinawan music.
Singer/songwriter Ozawa Kenji (33) has released Eclectic, his
first album in almost five and a half years, which has seen healthy
sales.
Actor Takahashi Katsunori (37, star of Salaryman Kintaro) is said
to have lost 10 kilos for his latest film "Forever". He lost the
weight by sticking to a diet of kimchi and tofu.
Popular Fuji TV announcer Kojima Natsuko (33) is to quit the company
next month to pursue her career elsewhere. She married a Fuji
producer in November last year.
Ichikawa Shinsuke (24), the so-called Prince of Kabuki, is set
to play the lead in an NHK "Taiga" period drama about legendary
samurai Miyamoto Musashi next year.
Any doubt about the continuing popularity of musician Yamashita
Tatsuro (49) was dispelled when all seven of his recently released
remastered albums made the top 30.
Actress Kikuchi Momoko (33) has made her TV comeback after having
her first child in October last year.
Takumi Hibiki has retired as leader of the Flower Troupe of the
Takarazuka revue company.
https://www.japan-zone.com/modern/takarazuka.shtml
Popular airhead Anzai Hiroko (22) has owned up to her ongoing
relationship with Kawabata Kaname (23) of the pop duo Chemistry.
The once popular Asayan audition TV show that brought us Morning
Musume and Chemistry but is due to end in March will be replaced
by...another audition show. The new show will be hosted by Hamada
Masatoshi (38) of comedy duo Downtown.
https://www.japan-zone.com/modern/downtown.shtml
24-year old secretary Chiba Mina was chosen as the 51st Miss Universe
Japan.
More than 200,000 people applied for the 400 free tickets for
a "secret live" by popular guitar duo Yuzu next month. Big secret.
Entertainers Behaving Badly
Comedian Tashiro Masashi (45) was given a two-year prison sentence,
suspended for three years on charges of using amphetamines.
Terauchi Taku (38), son of guitarist Terauchi Takeshi (63) has
been arrested on charges of amphetamine and marijuana possession.
The son siad he turned to drugs because of the pressure of dealing
with his father's fame.
Up and coming actress Hayakawa Saki (24) was arrested on similar
drug charges.
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5. Links We Like
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Absolute Japan
A guy called Frantisek Staud has a site to show off the photos
he's taken on his travels. This section has tons of wonderful
photos of Japan.
http://phototravels.net/japan/photo-gallery/
Understanding Japan
Tom Coyner's site has hundreds of articles from newspapers and
magazines, mostly from the last couple of years, on all aspects
of Japan.
http://www2.gol.com/users/coynerhm/understanding_japan.htm
Japan Lite - Japan's Best Humor
Amy Chavez writes a humor column for the Japan Times. While the
Best Humor claim might be reaching a little bit, she has some
funny insights into the peculiarities of Japan.
http://www.amychavez.addr.com
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