Article on the NY Times website which points out Japan's strict building codes saved a large number of lives. Also mentions that if a EQ of this size had hit another country that was not as well prepared, the death toll and damage would of been much more severe.

From seawalls that line stretches of Japan’s coastline, to skyscrapers that sway to absorb earthquakes, to building codes that are among the world’s most rigorous, no country may be better prepared to withstand earthquakes than Japan.

Had any other populous country suffered the 8.9 magnitude earthquake that shook Japan on Friday, tens of thousands of people might already be counted among the dead. So far, Japan’s death toll is in the hundreds, although it is certain to rise.