JAPAN: Children Born through Artificial Insemination Speak up

When Haru, a 22-year-old graduate student, was told by her mother that she was the product of artificial insemination, her world fell apart.

RIGHTS-JAPAN: Justice System Harsh on Foreigners – Activists

Reports about rising statistics of crimes committed by foreigners in Japan have put the spotlight on the vulnerability of non-Japanese in their host country's justice and criminal procedures, say human rights activists here.

/INT’L MIGRANTS DAY/JAPAN: Men’s Attitude Key to Curbing Trafficking – Activists

Hiroshi Goto, a 40-year-old secretary to a politician, says he stays single because he is too busy to be married or have a steady relationship.

JAPAN: Sending Troops to Iraq a Blow to Pacifism – Critics

The Japanese government's decision this week to send a military mission to Iraq, despite overwhelming public opposition, has dealt a blow to pacifism that has taken deep root since the country's defeat in World War II, critics say.

JAPAN: Laws Needed to Curb Abuse of Bears in Captivity

An old Asiatic black bear walks slowly in its narrow concrete pit, pausing unsteadily just about every second to get its balance. Its enclosure is bone bare, without even a water hole to drink from. In the far corner, its mate sits with its eyes closed, its large paws covering its nose.

TRADE: Japan Gets Closer to South-east Asia, But Hurdles Remain

A historic agreement that Japan will sign with South-east Asian countries next week paves the way for wider free trade and cooperation, marking what analysts here say is a significant step toward East Asian unity.

JAPAN: Reports of Crime Fuel More Wariness of Foreigners

The Japanese government's wariness of foreigners in the wake of crime incidents has been rising, undercutting calls by activists for greater integration of immigrants and local businesses' demand for foreign migrant labour.

SOCIETY-JAPAN: Wanted – Parents for 35,000 Children

The Sakamotos take care of ten, which leaves thousands of children in Japan still looking for a foster home. Their chances of finding one range from indifferent to possible, but not if this couple can help it.

SOCIETY-JAPAN: Wanted – Parents For 35,000 Children

The Sakamotos take care of ten, which leaves thousands of children in Japan still looking for a foster home. Their chances of finding one range from indifferent to possible, but not if this couple can help it.

JAPAN: Security Priorities Get Chunk of Shrinking Aid Pie

Cuts and a heavy focus on Iraq's reconstruction in Japan's aid budget - the country's most important diplomatic tool - is a clear signal of a strategy that puts national interests over poverty eradication, say analysts here.

AGRICULTURE-JAPAN: Families Sow Seeds of Reform in Farms

When the Saito family, farmers for generations, signed up two years ago to be part of the family management agreement - and receive a salary for farm work - its members never thought it could work this well.

POLITICS-JAPAN: Looming Elections Leave Young Voters Cold

Come Nov. 9, the Sunday that Japan goes to the polls, Seiko Tayama won't be casting her vote. Instead, she's going to spend her time choosing a study programme to pursue in the United States.

CULTURE-JAPAN: Savvy Businesswomen Storm Services Sector

At 55, Noriko Suda is the proud owner of a chic clothes boutique that enjoys a downtown Tokyo address, and she loves every minute of her work.

ENVIRONMENT-JAPAN: ‘Sick House Syndrome’ Leads to Safer Buildings

Hiroyuki Uehara remembers well the day his children complained of smarting eyes, headaches, and tiredness. It was 1993, and the dentist and his family had just moved into a brand new house that symbolised well their brand new future.
     Or so they thought. For a year later, Uehara had reason enough to coin a phrase in Japanese for the strange condition afflicting his children. He called it 'sick house syndrome'.

ENVIRONMENT-JAPAN: ‘Sick House Syndrome’ Leads to Safer Buildings

Hiroyuki Uehara remembers well the day his children complained of smarting eyes, headaches, and tiredness. It was 1993, and the dentist and his family had just moved into a brand new house that symbolised well their brand new future.
     Or so they thought. For a year later, Uehara had reason enough to coin a phrase in Japanese for the strange condition afflicting his children. He called it 'sick house syndrome'.

ENVIRONMENT-JAPAN: ‘Sick House Syndrome’ Leads to Safer Buildings

Hiroyuki Uehara remembers well the day his children complained of smarting eyes, headaches, and tiredness. It was 1993, and the dentist and his family had just moved into a brand new house that symbolised well their brand new future.

JAPAN: A Year Later, Ethnic Koreans Bear Brunt of Suspicion

While Tokyo marks the first anniversary this month of the return of five kidnapped Japanese nationals from Pyongyang, Chong Hyon Suk, an ethnic Korean in Japan, says she is still trying to come to terms with those horrifying revelations.

RIGHTS-JAPAN: War Orphans Feel Unwanted in Their Own Homeland

Separated from her parents who were fleeing the Russian invasion in northern Manchuria at the end of World War II, Hideko Murata, now 69, grew up in a foster home dreaming of the day when she could return home to Japan.

POLITICS: Bush Gets Reassurances, Troops – and More – from Tokyo

In sharp contrast to the cautious stance he displayed in Europe, U.S. President George W Bush, hoping to attract cash and troops in Asia for Iraq's reconstruction, got much-needed reassurance from Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Friday.

DEVELOPMENT-JAPAN: Slowly, Space for Activism Grows

Disillusioned with his job in the sales department of a construction company, 29-year-old Taro Nishimura quit to travel to India for a year, and is now a volunteer for a non-profit organisation working with the visually disabled here in the Japanese capital.

SOCIETY-JAPAN: ‘Too Many’ Part-time Workers Worry Officials

After years of ignoring the issue, Japan is finally seeking a solution to its growing population of 'freeters', or youth who prefer job-hopping instead of working hard to clinch regular jobs.