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People | CLOSE-UP Apr 3, 2005

Ryu Murakami: Straight-talking wordsmith wields his pen like a sword

by Tomoko Otake

For nearly three decades since his seismic debut with "Almost Transparent Blue," which delved into the sex- and drug-fueled lives of Japanese youths in a town hosting a huge U.S. military base, author Ryu Murakami has often used his trademark explicit, offensive and guiltlessly ...

People | CLOSE-UP Jan 9, 2005

Keiko Sakai: Conundrum Iraq

by Eric Prideaux

One year ago this month, an advance team from Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) arrived in Iraq on a mission -- so the Japanese public was told -- to help rebuild the wartorn country. The rest of the main contingent of 600 troops soon ...