welcome to nhk world "newsline." north korea launched on december 12th what it describe as a satellite carrying rocket. more than a week later, the international community seems unable to agree on how to respond. the united nations initially condemned the launch as a clear violation of security council resolutions because it involved ballistic missile technology. china opposes a legally binding resolution. the permanent member of the security council argues such a move could prompt north korea to carry out another nuclear test. japan is working with the united states and south korea to impose additional sanctions, but tokyo's ambassador says the three countries are too distant from china's position to permit dialog. the u.n. general assembly

has adopted a resolution about north korea's human rights violations. the document expresses serious concern about what it describes as systemic and or systematic and widespread human rights violations. they include torture and public executions. the text also urges the north korean government to resolve the abduction of japanese citizens and other foreign nationals. a north korean diplomat has dismissed the document as political fabrication. it's certainly not up to the minute, but state-run media has been much faster in reporting the results of south korea's presidential election than they've been in the past. the brief reports thursday, the day after the election, and friday. they say park of the conservative ruling party had won a tight race by a small margin. compare that with what happened five years ago.

north korea waited to report the results 2 1/2 months after election day. analysts say north korea is maintaining a caution attitude over the election of another conservative leader in the south. they say quicker reporting this time shows that they are responding more calmly than five years ago and are looking for the right time to try to resume dialogue with counterparts in seoul, aimed at obtaining food aid and economic cooperation. japan's incoming prime minister shinzo abe will send a special envoy to meet with south korea's new leader. >> translator: i'm sending former finance minister to south korea to improve relations between our countries. >> abe says he will visit south korea and deliver a personal letter from abe to park.

he'll deliver a personal letter from abe to park. park said she regards japan as a friendly nation but bilateral relations cooled due to issues including a territorial dispute over the islands in the sea of japan. south korea controls the islands and japan has claimed them for years. now a south korean government report has said for the first time that the military is ready and willing to defend the territory. the defense white paper notes the islands are an inherent part of south korea. geographically, historically and under international law. it features three photos of the islands. one shows the navy staging a drill in nearby waters. the report says the military has a strong willingness to defend the islands and has prepared a deterrent strategy. as in past reports, this latest white paper also uses the phrase enemy to define north korea. it notes the reclusive nation

has honed missile technology through several tests and cites analysis of satellite images and concludes that scientists are enriching uranium at a new facility. the defense and foreign policy files are just two in a stack that will be on park's desk when she takes over as president. many south koreans want her to rein in the country's conglomerates. these big business blocks have helped fuel the economy but they've also been suffocating small and medium sized companies. our reporter has the story. >> reporter: this man loves serving up bread and other goods to customers who visit his small bakery. he says his products are tasty and affordable. but the business he bought a year ago is facing an uncertain future.

>> translator: we are all in a life or death situation. >> reporter: south korea used to have 18,000 small independent bakeries. but by the beginning of this year, only about 4,000 were still open. the pressure has come from big business, conglomerates have opened their own bakeries. you can see behind me a trendy european-style bakery. it's tasty bread and pastries are popular. the bakery and its affiliates have more than 100 locations around the country. now other giant corporations have gotten in the game. putting an even greater squeeze on independent bakeries. this struggle has been playing out across the country and it's prompted protests.

big firms that have come to symbolize south korea make the most powerful conglomerates. sales volume for the top teneme amounted to more than $1 billion last year, more than 70% of gdp. outgoing president lee myung-bak helped find more sources of income by deregulating markets and allowing them to invest in industries traditionally dominated by small and middle-sized companies. they have been gobbling market share for everything from material to final products. take samsung, for example. five years ago there were 59 companies under its umbrella. now there are 81. opposition to the competition pushed the administration to take action. it launched a new organization to mediate complaints and it asked big firms to think about their impact.

>> translator: small companies are pushed to the edge by the expansion of business by big companies. we are trying to find an agreement on what sort of business should be taken care of by big companies and by small companies. >> reporter: some sort of change can't come soon enough. a bakery chain with ties to a conglomerate is planning to open a new location just 600 meters away from his shop. >> translator: we all take turns and sit in this tent for two hours each to protest. >> reporter: he fears he could lose one-third of his sales so he has joined protests. >> translator: there's no way for us to survive when rich people open stores every where without considering poor people

like us. >> reporter: that's what he and others in south korea want from their next president. a little consideration. they recognize the conglomerates have helped the country's economy grow but growth shouldn't threaten shops, livelihoods and traditions. nhk, seoul. the new head of tokyo has been chosen to head the olympic committee. he was elected governor last sunday. >> translator: i believe hosting the 2020 summer olympics will be a significant goal for people in tokyo and in areas affected by last year's earthquake and tsunami.

i'll make every effort to succeed in bringing the olympic games to japan. >> he was chosen at the committee's board meeting. he'll be joined by a wrestler who won her third consecutive gold medal at the london olympics and four other people who have been appointed as ambassadors to support japan's bid to host the games. he said he will outline to plan the games next month. tokyo is competing against the turkish city of istanbul and madrid. the international olympic committee will pick the host city in september next year. japanese automakers say tension with china caused production there to drop by almost half compared to last year. directors of major car companies released their november production volumes on friday. honda factory workers put out 27,000 units, 59% fewer than the same month last year. nissan produced 68,000 units,

down 43%. and toyota made 51,000 units, down 38%. directors at other firms also had reason to be unhappy. mitsubishi was 86% down, mazda dropped by 49% and suzuki's production in china decreased by 5%. but the automakers could at least note a slowing rate of decline. they showed an average drop of 43% on last year compared with 48% in october. traders were alert friday when this year's largest reit was listed on the tokyo stock exchange. reits are groups that collect money from investors to purchase real estate. tsc traders enjoyed a ceremony to celebrate the listing of the reit. which is a government affiliated investment corporation from singapore. the reit's managers plan to raise more than $1.3 billion on

the tokyo market to fund purchases of distribution facilities. company bosses are in search of properties like this because of an explosion in internet sales. >> we are very, very positive on the logistics real estate market. there's a massive shortage of modern, high-quality logistics facilities in japan. >> market players have been buoyed by signs of recovery in the urban real estate market this year. bank of japan has obtained reits as part the monetary easing policy. analysts have seen the reit value index go up by 32%, giving fresh hope to the tokyo market. japan is strengthening relationships with nations who have a population of 580 million. our reporter at our bureau in bangkok has details.

on friday, japan laid out strategies to make further end roads into two further countries. the first is myanmar who is continuing efforts towards democratic reforms and opening its economy. officials from the governments myanmar and japan signed an agreement. the park is 20 mill r kilom kil the largest city. >> i possibly hope and i'm very confident that this creation and the friendship between the two countries will be even deeper and stronger. ever after and the years after. >> translator: myanmar has officially confirmed that we will take a leading role in the development. it is a huge step for japan. >> combining the strengths of its public and private sectors, the japanese government is

trumpeting the industrial park as a flagship project. japan won the deal after facing competition from rivals, including china and south korea. a group of firms is currently conducting preconstruction surveys. the site will cover 2,400 hectares, making it one of the biggest industrial parks in the world. there will be challenges in attracting more companies to the industrial zone as vast areas are lacking basic infrastructure including power and water supply systems. vietnam, another key partner for japan. in hanoi, general director level talks held between industrial ministries of the two countries. the meeting focused on how japanese companies could work in the distribution and logistical fields. the vietnamese government regulates activities of foreign companies in order to protect small domestic businesses, however, japanese businesses

including convenience stores and distribution companies are lining up to enter the vietnamese market. the country is home to 90 million consumers and the vietnamese government says they cannot lift regulations as japan wants, but it will cooperate to make related procedures simpler and continue discussions on the matter. wrestling fans turned out for events in pakistan earlier this month that pitted some of japan's strongest men against each other. professional wrestling used to be popular in pakistan and thousands showed up for the exhibition matches. behind the scenes is a long history between a japanese wrestling giant and a legendary local family. our reporter has the story. >> reporter: more than 20,000 people showed turned up to see this pro wrestling event.

several japanese wrestlers took to the ring but the real star of the show was none other than retired strong man inoki. he may be 69 years old now but he remains popular around the world and his enormous popularity in pakistan hasn't wayned. >> translator: i saw his match in pakistan in 1976. we respect him because he's a great wrestler. >> reporter: inoki visited pakistan twice in the 1970s to take on local wrestlers. the first bout in 1976 pitted him against juan, a national hero who has been known as the world's strongest man.

he came from a family of wrestlers who were widely popular among pakistanis. the family was given the title which means wrestler as a sign of respect. but in the 1976 match against inoki, his shoulder was dislocated and he lost the match. the whole country was stunned by the unexpected defeat. he was against a previously unbeaten family. his nephew was just 10 years old at the time but he still remembers the match vividly. >> translator: i was a child but i cried a lot. the whole family was upset. everybody was crying. >> reporter: the next member of the family to accept the challenge of taking on inoki is

one of the up and coming stars, chara, who was 16 years old at the time. >> translator: my brother jada said his focus on defeating inoki and trained day in and day out. his boyhood was devoted to revenge. >> reporter: he was invited to pakistan for an event match in 1979. the family's honorable estate, chara's appearance changed greatly after three years of intensive training. >> translator: he must have been obsessed because his physique had completely changed in three years. i remember him flexing his shoulders. >> reporter: it was a close bout which ended in a draw but after the final round, inoki walked up to chara and lifted his arm

conceding defeat. >> translator: we were exalted. inoki admitted defeat and we got our revenge. we also witnessed inoki's spirit and sportsmanship. >> reporter: they have died since the memorable bout and wrestling is no longer so popular in pakistan. during this visit, inoki visited the graves of his former rife als to offer a prayer. he also made abe who told him that he would like his son to be an apprentice to inoki and learn wrestling in japan. the pakistani and japanese wrestlers are legendary bouts that solidified friendships between families and between countries.

they are now handing down their roles to the next generation. nhk world. and that wraps up our bulletin for today. we're reporting from bangkok. with christmas just around the corner, illuminations are brightening streets around japan. tonight, we have a reporter in central tokyo checking out some of the displays. >> reporter: i'm at tokyo midtown and shops across japan have unique illuminations every year and midtown no different in this respect. the displays here have been going five years and they have been popular ever since they started. i must admit i'm a fan myself and come here pretty much every year. you can see that the lights here, there are actually 280,000 leds, if you include the

decorations surrounding them as well. the last friday before christmas, so the turnout here is huge. you can see many, many people have braved the cold to come and see the show. now, last year, 5 million people came here in a month and a half, and the organizers expect more this year due to increasing numbers of elderly visitors and tourists from across japan. now paths leading to the plaza are also illuminated and you can see the beautiful reflections in the water of some of them. the champagne glass inspired design helps boost the holiday spirit. what looks like shooting stars among the trees creates a fantastic atmosphere. if you follow the shooting stars, you come to the main attraction. a big space here. 60 meters long, 35 meters wide, called motion illumination. now, its theme is always the universe. but the design changes every

year. this year, it's the birth of the universe and formation of galaxies. thousands of leds are lit in coordination with music. visitors can walk around the display, and since the whole area is on a gentle slope, the view keeps changing dramatically. now, this year, the organizers have added a new feature. i don't know if you can see that stage behind me there. that's called motion illumination. and cables with leds swing 25 degrees in either direction, the base of the lights move up and down and tilt and producers got the idea from a scenery changing device used in theaters. joining me is the public relations officer for midtown. she's here to tell us about the message. [ speaking foreign language ]

>> reporter: she said that usually illuminations tend to look rather flat and she wanted to use moving l.e.d. to show the energetic and dynamic aspects of the universe. and she said that she hopes to use the cutting edge technology in the future years as it really does seem to be popular with the visitors here. thank you very much. now, these lights are on from mid november and will continue to be shown here until the 25th of december. i really do recommend you come down and see the gorgeous display for yourself. kanako sachno, tokyo midtown. it is snowing in eastern

parts of the u.s., robert speta has the latest on the large storm there and the rest of the weather. robert? >> let's first take a look here in the northeast. see the comma cloud here, across the eastern u.s. to canada. that is this very potent winter storm that's already bringing heavy snowfall here. it looks like even more snowfall is on tap. the lines coming in the north to the south, running over the great lakes, ontario, erie, huron. that's where you're going to be seeing some very significant lake-effect snow along the southern periphery of these lakes as that snow picks up. going into your saturday and then sunday, xpekd cold aexpect spill in behind this. conditions will rapidly clear up. temperatures will drop right off. this jet stream continues to linger on toward the south. currently into portions of northern florida and southern georgia, you are under freeze watches. you need to watch out for this because this orange crop could

be suffering. to the west, sunny skies across the western great plains and the next storm system pushes onshore to oregon. actually in, oregon, you saw 159 kilometer mile per hour winds today. looks like 50 sustained winds. and we could still see strong sustained winds. 150 centimeters of snow into the higher elevations. definitely a very potent winter storm. we'll be watching that one in the northwest. let's take a look across the ocean into eastern asia. this system pushing through western japan now and this will start to bring heavy rainshowers already to western japan and work its way to the east. saturday, expect widespread rain that will shift over to snow. especially over to hokkaido. and tokyo area. and outside of the city, could be seeing some accumulations of

snow to the downtown area, and looks like flurries will be falling here. doesn't look like it will be accumulating up and more snowfall. sea-affect snow machine begins to turn back on. and on your monday meeting going into christmas day. meanwhile, high pressure dominating in the northeast. keeping things chilly. beijing minus three for your high. and in mongolia, only minus 27 on saturday. and tropics, expect afternoon rainshowers and thunderstorms to continue to pop up as well. europe, specifically here into the balkans and turkey. been watching a very strong storm system. i want to show you some video out of instanbul. snowfall coming down here, causing headaches for traffic locally in the area. also seeing people really just attempt to clean up the mess from the road crews and this looks like the snow has been falling for the last several days. now starting to clear up and

then unfortunately monday to tuesday, the next weather system is going to develop out italy. push off toward the east there. and there you see more rough weather. let's take a look farther toward the west toward the british isles, a storm system throughout the weekend. widespread rain, about 60 millimeters of rain in a few areas, not to mention gale force winds. that continues to push through. temperatures remaining to the low teens in london and paris, not the case off toward the east, take a look at moscow and kiev, minus 13 and minus 10 on saturday. here is a look at the extended forecast.

we'll be back in 30 minutes with more news. i'm gene otani in tokyo. have a great day, whatever you are. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com