Obituaries

Former South Korean president Chun Doo-hwan in 1997.
Obituaries

Former South Korea President Chun Doo-hwan dies at 90

One-time military dictator presided over 1980 Gwangju army massacre

23 November 2021
Wada Emi during the 15th Pusan International Film Festival in 2010
21 November 2021
Former South Korean president Roh Tae-woo in 1997. 
Obituaries

South Korea's former president Roh Tae-woo dies at 88

Decorated war veteran played a pivotal role in the transition to democratic elections

26 October 2021
Former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell shares a joke with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi at Koizumi's official residence in Tokyo, on July 19, 2005. 
Obituaries

Colin Powell, last of the battle-hardened diplomats

Washington mourns the passing of warrior and statesman

20 October 2021
Jean-Paul Belmondo, left, shot to international fame with the film Breathless.
Obituaries

Jean-Paul Belmondo, a national treasure of French cinema

Talented actor charmed movigoers around the world

13 September 2021
Robert "Skipp" Orr, who has died at age 68, enjoyed deep, long-lasting relationships in business, government and academia in both the U.S. and Japan.
Obituaries

Robert 'Skipp' Orr, an American patriot who loved Japan

Former US ambassador to ADB and president of Boeing Japan dies at 68

7 September 2021
Japanese physicist Toshihide Maskawa in 2008. 
Obituaries

Japanese Nobel laureate Toshihide Masukawa dies at 81

Predicted the existence of new quarks to explain the concept of broken symmetry

30 July 2021
Outgoing President Benigno 'Noynoy' Aquino III (right) meets with his successor President Rodrigo Duterte at the Malacanang Palace on Jun. 30, 2016. (File photo by Getty Images)
Obituaries

Benigno 'Noynoy' Aquino was the transitional leader Filipinos needed

Former president left the country more stable, prosperous and democratic

28 June 2021
Former Philippine President Benigno Aquino speaks at the close of the APEC summit in Metro Manila, on Nov. 2015. (Photo by Keiichiro Asahara)
Obituaries

Former Philippine President 'Noynoy' Aquino dies at 61

Loved by investors and loathed by China, he presided over an economic boom

24 June 2021
Yuan Longping, China's father of hybrid rice, has died at age 90. In 1996 he received the Nikkei Asia Prize, which honored those who have contributed to the development and prosperity of Asia. (Photo by Daisuke Harashima)
Obituaries

Yuan Longping, rice researcher who helped feed China, dies at 90

Father of hybrid strains spent half a century fending off hunger

22 May 2021
David Swensen, Yale University's chief investment officer for over 30 years, speaks during an asset management forum in Seoul.
7 May 2021
U.S. Ambassador Walter Mondale at a 1996 news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto. 
Obituaries

Walter Mondale was the epitome of the heavyweight ambassador

Former vice president played a historic role in the return of Futenma base

23 April 2021
Former Vice President Walter Mondale, left, speaks beside former President Jimmy Carter at a 2009 ceremony in Atlanta.
Obituaries

Mondale remembered as a statesman who listened to Okinawa

Vice president-turned-diplomat pushed for return of Futenma base

21 April 2021
Members of the Hong Kong film industry participate in a TVB program mourning actor Ng Man-tat, seen in the large image at the rear, on Feb. 28 in Hong Kong. Ng, a beloved television and movie presence in the city, died of liver cancer the day before.
Obituaries

Ng Man-tat, a master of Hong Kong TV and film comedy, dies at 70

Known as 'Uncle Ng,' actor drew raves for playing straight man to Stephen Chow

6 March 2021
Hall of Fame baseball star Hank Aaron, among the greatest players in history, died at the age of 86 on Jan. 22. Here he is shown in a portrait at the Polo Grounds in Brooklyn before the start of the 1954 season.
Obituaries

Hank Aaron, US baseball legend, and great friend of Japanese rival Sadaharu Oh

Former slugger will be remembered for beating racism on his race to stardom

25 January 2021
Ezra Vogel autographs his book on Deng Xiaoping at the Chinese University of Hong Kong in May 2012. (Photo by Kenji Kawase)
Comment

Ezra Vogel: Great scholar's important lessons to a journalist

How the educator's pragmatic views about the real world resonated with me

26 December 2020
Ezra Vogel's latest work, “China and Japan: Facing History,” attempted to tackle the roots of the complicated bilateral relationship through revisiting over 1,000 years of history. (Photo by Maho Obata)
Obituaries

Ezra Vogel, top American scholar on Asia, dies at 90

Harvard professor authored 'Japan as Number One' and 'Deng Xiaoping'

21 December 2020
Minoru Makihara, who joined Mitsubishi Corp. in 1956, was appointed president in 1992.
Obituaries

Minoru Makihara, former Mitsubishi chief, dies at 90

UK-born, Harvard-educated leader bridged group's alliance with DaimlerChrysler

21 December 2020
Founder and first CEO of Tata Consultancy Services, Faqir Chand Kohli died on November 26, 2020. (Source photos by AP and courtesy of TCS)
Obituaries

FC Kohli, father of Indian IT and founder of TCS, dies at 96

Modi praises contributions to tech sector as tributes pour in from all quarters

27 November 2020
An image of Diego Maradona is displayed on a screen during a minute of silence in his memory before a match between Bayern Munich and FC Salzburg at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany.
Obituaries

Diego Maradona, one of soccer's greatest, dies at 60

Argentine legend had huge following in Asia

26 November 2020
Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Kun-hee at the groundbreaking ceremony of a new semiconductor plant in Hwaseong, South Korea, in 2010. Lee said, "Existing businesses will disappear within 10 years" as he warned against in-house conceit.
Electronics

Samsung's Lee Kun-hee: 'One genius can feed 100,000 people'

Late chairman warned of lax quality and in-house conceit in creating global giant

27 October 2020
Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee in Frankfurt, Germany, in 1993. Lee told executives to change everything but their wives and children in order to take the group to the next level.
Obituaries

Lee Kun-hee: 'Hermit philosopher' took Samsung to the global stage

Late chairman engineered rise of South Korea's top conglomerate

26 October 2020
Samsung chief Lee Kun-hee, seen here in 2010, has died at the age of 78.
Obituaries

Samsung group Chairman Lee Kun-hee dies at 78

Second-generation leader transformed South Korean company into tech titan

25 October 2020
Eddie Van Halen in 1984, at the height of his popularity.
Obituaries

Eddie Van Halen, guitar legend with Indonesian roots, dies at 65

American rocker was known for hits including 'Jump' and 'Panama'

7 October 2020
Japanese robot maker Fanuc's founder and honorary chairman Seiuemon Inaba died on Oct. 2.
Obituaries

Fanuc founder Inaba, king of industrial robots, dead at 95

His charismatic management propelled the robot maker to the global stage

7 October 2020