Activists of antiwhaling group Sea Shepherd Conservation Society on Sunday obstructed Japan's so-called research whaling in the Antarctic Ocean, hurling a rope at a whaling ship and twisting it around the ship's propeller, the Japanese Fisheries Agency said.
The activists also threw bottles containing butyric acid and hurled smoke candles at the Yushin Maru No. 2 during the incident which started at 7:20 a.m. and lasted for about two hours, the agency said.
The ship slowed down consequently, although none of its crew was injured, according to the agency.
(Japan Times)
Sea Shepherd stymies whaling trip by entangling rope in ship propeller
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Pachinko firms said to have failed to declare Y100 billion income
Tax authorities claim that about 40 corporate groups running pachinko parlors across Japan failed to declare over ¥100 billion in total taxable income with back taxes amounting to several billion yen, sources close to the matter said Sunday.
The authorities found out the income disparity at the groups, whose locations range from the Tohoku region in northeastern Japan to Kyushu in the southwest, in concerted nationwide raids on the industry, the sources said.
Among them, a group based in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward failed to declare about ¥15 billion, but declined to comment when contacted by Kyodo News, citing the absence of a person in charge. (Japan Times)
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Chinese patrol vessels spotted near Senkaku Islands
Two Chinese fisheries patrol vessels were spotted Sunday morning sailing in waters in the contiguous zone near the Japan-controlled Senkaku Islands, which China also claims, the Japan Coast Guard said.
The ships - the Yuzheng 202 and Yuzheng 35001 - entered the zone at around 9 a.m. and left it about 30 minutes later. It was the second time this year that Chinese fishery patrol ships have been spotted within the zone, following an incident on Jan. 14. (Japan Times)
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Mother arrested for death of infant son
A 39-year-old mother in Kobe was arrested Sunday for allegedly trying to strangle her 5-month-old son, who was confirmed dead after being taken to hospital, police said.
Yoriko Sugino, a flight attendant, was initially suspected of attempted murder but police changed the charge to murder due to the baby's death. Police said the woman told investigators that she had become fed up with child-rearing.
After telling her mother around 10 a.m. that she squeezed the baby's neck and he was not breathing, Sugino, encouraged by her mother, called an ambulance, police said. (Japan Times)
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Swimming: Tateishi tells Kitajima to bring it on for Olympic qualifying
Ryo Tateishi laid down the gauntlet to two-time double Olympic champion Kosuke Kitajima after obliterating the field in the men's 200-meter breaststroke at the national short-course championships on Sunday.
Tateishi, who broke Kitajima's record in the 100 breaststroke a day earlier, won in 2 minutes, 3.82 seconds, more than 2.5 seconds faster than runner-up Yukihiro Takahashi.
The 22-year-old Tateishi will face Kitajima, who did not compete in the two-day meet as he continues to train in Los Angeles, at the national championships from April 2-8, which serve as a qualifier for this summer's London Olympics. (Japan Times)
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Disruption of KDDI's mobile mail service affects 6.15 million users
KDDI Corp., the operator of au mobile phone services, said Sunday the data communication disruption the previous night has affected up to 6.15 million cellphones and smartphones.
The incident, in which the proprietary ezweb e-mail service was disrupted from around 8:35 p.m. Saturday until before midnight Sunday, was the largest disruption for KDDI since August 2003, when about 12.79 million of its cellphones were affected by a communications system trouble, it said.
The latest trouble was caused by a failed electric supply to its computer servers for e-mail services, but the incident had no impact on voice calls and Internet access, it said, adding that the failure may have resulted from an increase in data communication traffic for smartphones. (Japan Times)
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Skating: Asada edged out by Wagner at Four Continents
Japan's Mao Asada had to make do with a runner-up finish as newly crowned U.S. champion Ashley Wagner came from behind to win her first international title at the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships on Saturday.
Two-time former world champion Asada had established a slim lead over Wagner after Friday's short program but she under-rotated her opening triple axel and also put a hand on the ice trying to land a triple lutz, while Wagner enjoyed an elegant, error-free skate to win with a career-high total of 192.41 points.
Asada, who posted a courageous victory at the national championships in December just weeks after the death of her mother, scored 188.62 while American Caroline Zhang was third with 176.18. (Japan Times)
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Tennis: Nishikori takes blame for not leading Japan to Davis Cup victory
Kei Nishikori blamed himself on Sunday for his failure to lead Japan to a first-round victory over Croatia in the Davis Cup World Group.
"I was the one who had to put up two wins for my country," Nishikori said in a courtside interview after his teammate Go Soeda lost in a decisive fifth match at Bourbon Beans Dome in Hyogo Prefecture.
Nishikori, the highest-ranked player in the Japan-Croatia series at No. 20 in the world, was completely outclassed by 43rd-ranked big server Ivo Karlovic.
(Japan Times)
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Children walk 30% less than 30 years ago
Primary school students in Tokyo walk an average of 11,382 steps a day, according to a recent survey conducted by the Tokyo metropolitan board of education.
The figure marked a more than 30 percent decline from the 17,120 steps found in a 1979 university survey.
The trend was even more evident among middle and high school students.
An expert attributed the decrease to children spending less time outside after school due to video games and other indoor activities. (Yomiuri)
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Unusual rise in piano sales linked to earthquake
The number of pianos, other than electronic pianos, sold in the country last year totaled 18,164, up 11 percent from the previous year, marking the first rise in 17 years, according to an instrument manufacturing association in Shizuoka Prefecture.
The Hamamatsu-based association, which takes statistics of domestic piano sales and production, said piano sales increased as a result of robust demand for replacements after many pianos were destroyed or damaged in the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Piano sales in 1992, when the association started taking such statistics, stood at 113,500. However, sales began to drop since 1995, with only 16,356 sold in 2010. The association said the slump was due to a low birthrate and an increase in the number of people buying low-priced and high-quality electronic pianos. (Yomiuri)
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The charm and razzle-dazzle of Tokyo
For a first time visitor, Japan can be an overwhelming experience on many counts. But what knocks you out totally is the kindness and courtesy bit. Of course one has read about the Japanese culture of politeness and punctuality. But in a world that is getting as impersonal as busy, to get so many bows and smiles right from arrival at Tokyo 's Narita International Airport to your hotel, indeed comes as a surprise. On our first evening we go to the happening Roppongi Hills and watch in absolute fascination the dazzling city of Tokyo from the 52nd Observation Floor of the Roppongi tower. It is an unusually clear day and we are able to get a good view of the snow covered Mount Fuji, about 120 km away from Tokyo.
As the sun sets, the magic of this awesome city unfolds as all the hi-rise buildings for which Tokyo is famous, glitter away, with Tokyo Tower occupying the pride of place. (thehindubusinessline.com)
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Japan's economy shrinks more than forecast
Japan's economy contracted more than economists forecast in the fourth quarter as exports slid on weakness in global demand and strength in the yen.
Gross domestic product shrank an annualized 2.3 percent in the three months ended Dec. 31, following a revised 7 percent expansion in the previous quarter, the Cabinet Office said today in Tokyo. The median forecast of 26 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for a 1.3 percent decline.
A pick-up in earthquake reconstruction work may aid a return to growth this quarter even as gains in the currency pare export earnings, worsening losses for companies such as Sony Corp. (6758) The Bank of Japan may refrain from additional easing tomorrow as officials assess a mixed global picture, from improved U.S. employment to weaker Chinese trade and Europe's progress in taming its debt crisis, according to a Bloomberg News survey of economists. (Bloomberg)
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'Super Ice Age' for Japanese graduates
College students in Japan can no longer expect a good, comfortable life. Many of them feel they are confronting multi-faceted challenges not known to previous generations.
"We are facing a really yabai (chancy) time," says one male junior student of a prestigious private university in Tokyo. He is one of the desperate third-year students already looking for jobs for his post-graduation life starting in April next year.
Such an early job hunt is a common practice in Japan. He reads and speaks English and Russian and has good grades. And yet, he says, it is very tough for him now and perhaps for many decades to come. Such gloomy prospects are shared by many of his peers.
About three out of every 10 university students graduating this March -- the end of Japan's academic year -- have not found regular jobs yet. In spring last year, 19.3 per cent of the total new graduates, or 107,000 graduates, left school with no full-time, regular job. (New Straits Times)
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Australian man dies at Japanese ski resort
An Australian man died in the Japanese ski resort town of Niseko yesterday.
The body of 45-year-old NSW man David Fitzpatrick is believed to have been found in a river near Lawson convenience store around 2pm.
He was on a holiday with a group of ten friends and was last seen at Splash bar in Hirafu village around 1am Sunday morning, but did not turn up for his flight home the next morning.
It is believed he may have become disorientated when walking home.
The group had been staying at a backpackers lodge in Izumikyo, about 10 minutes walk from the bar, for the past week. An Australian living in Niseko who took part in the search said it was 'icy cold' on the weekend. (Herald Sun)
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In Japan, screaming 'I love you' for Valentine's
In Japan, it's women who usually give presents to men on Valentine's Day, typically chocolates.
However, CBS News correspondent Lucy Craft reports that some husbands in this traditionally reserved society are learning to express their love with their lungs.
Dozens of men climbed the stage at this "shout your love" event in a downtown Tokyo park, yelling in public what they can't seem to say, in private.
One man stepped up to the microphone in front of the crowd and screamed: "I skipped work to come here, honey! You don't know how much I care!"
For shy men who are clueless about how to express affection, instruction was even provided on how to hug their mates. (cbsnews.com)
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New Fukushima scare blamed on faulty thermometer
A scare over temperatures rising near danger level in a reactor at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, where workers are battling to prevent a resurgence of the radiation crisis, could be a false alarm, the plant operator said on Monday.
Instruments showed the temperature inside the plant's No.2 reactor topped 90 Celsius on Monday, double what it was a month ago and close to boiling point, in which water cooling nuclear fuel in the reactor could evaporate and start a new meltdown.
But a faulty thermometer was likely giving false readings, said Tokyo Electric Power Co, operator of the plant 240 km (150 miles) northeast of Tokyo.
The Fukushima plant's cooling system was wrecked by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, triggering reactor meltdowns and a radiation crisis that has caused widespread contamination and mass evacuations. (Reuters)
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A year on, only brief home visits for Japan nuclear evacuees
Back home for just three hours, a tearful Miyoko Takeda sorted through her belongings. She left behind the kimonos she once wore as a traditional dancer, fearful they might be contaminated by radiation.
Nearly a year has passed since a massive 9.0 magnitude earthquake hit Japan, Okuma town, but the site of the reactors at the centre of the Fukushima nuclear crisis remains off limits for residents, save for short trips to hastily abandoned homes.
The Fukushima Daiichi plant, on the coast 240 km (150 miles) northeast of Tokyo, was wrecked by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, triggering reactor meltdowns and radiation leaks that caused mass evacuations and widespread contamination.
For the about 11,000 residents of Okuma, and the nearly 80,000 people across the prefecture who have been unable to return to their homes due to high radiation, the mental scars run deep even though many of their homes are physically intact. (Reuters)
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Olympus expects net loss, but core business seen unscathed
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Tokyo shares close up
Tokyo shares closed up 0.58 percent Monday as traders digested the Greek parliament's approval of fresh austerity measures needed in order for it to receive a crucial bailout.
The Nikkei index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange added 52.01 points to close at 8,999.18. The Topix index of all first-section shares rose 0.34 percent, or 2.61 points, to 781.68.
The Greek move, announced shortly before the Tokyo bourse opened, helped lift the euro against major currencies in Asian trade.
The euro stood at $1.3254 and 102.82 yen, from $1.3181 and 102.47 yen. The dollar was flat at 77.59 yen. (pretorianews)
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Tepco to get additional Y689.4 billion: Edano
The government will provide an additional ¥689.4 billion to Tokyo Electric Power Co. over massive compensation payments related to the Fukushima No. 1 plant triple-meltdown crisis, a move that will lower the risk of the cash-strapped utility failing.
Trade and industry minister Yukio Edano agreed to Tepco's cash request at a meeting Monday with Tepco President Toshio Nishizawa.
The utility announced its earnings projections for the year to March 31 later in the day, widening the loss estimate to ¥695 billion from the ¥600 billion it announced in November. With the announcement of the financial statement, the company met the deadline of Tuesday before its shares can be struck from the Tokyo Stock Exchange a month after being placed under supervision if no quarterly report is filed, according to bourse rules. (Japan Times)
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