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ISSUE: October/November 2003 |
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Don't forget to check out the Gaijin's |
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This Month's Topics:
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Well here we go with the first 'Empty Seat' of the autumn, & with temperatures dropping to below 15c (59f) even in Tokyo, autumn is certainly not proving very kind. However, for those of us cultured enough to enjoy the noble sport of rugby, the ongoing Rugby World Cup is giving us some pleasure -- though no thanks to the Japanese media. Not only did no Japanese TV station show the opening ceremony of this, one of the world's most popular sporting events, but Japan's first game wasn't shown live anywhere except on the satellite station JSkyB -- which is partly foreign owned! It was shown later on commercial TV, suitably butchered to show repetitive adverts, but no local station, least of all the government's NHK, showed it live. Seems to me that we can hardly expect Japan's team to excel when it receives so little support. OK, the Scots beat them but even if they had upset the bookies by winning, few Japanese would have known. Japan has more rugby clubs than any other nation on earth but this shameful censorship of the media (which is heavily involved with both baseball & soccer, & doesn't like competition) means that almost every other country taking part is seeing more of this tournament than Japan. There is talk of holding the Rugby World Cup here in Japan but even if they do, maybe the newspapers wouldn't mention it!
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The main news story of the last few weeks, one that has truly shaken Japan's previously justified complacency, was the violent end to a hostage stand-off in the city of Nagoya. Now hostage situations are rare enough here but violent endings are almost unknown. In case you didn't get this story wherever you are, what happened was that a 52-year-old man, a disgruntled ex-employee, took 8 people hostage at his former employer's office & then, when police ignored his demands, he poured petrol all over the place & then ignited it, causing an explosion & fire that killed 3 people, including the hostage-taker & a police officer, & injured 41 others. Not exactly what one thinks of when one imagines Japan, right? The incident occurred in the 4th floor office of a courier company, Keikyubin, within the 8 story Dai-Ichi Seimei building in downtown Nagoya. The perpetrator was identified as one Noboru Beppu, a local subcontractor who had money trouble with Keikyubin. It seems he walked into the office shortly after 10 a.m., carrying a knife & 2 18-litre plastic containers on a cart, & then proceeded to spray petrol on the floor, much to the alarm of the 33 Keikyubin employees inside the office at the time. Two male employees fled & so, after releasing 23 female employees (who said chivalry was dead -- or did he think no one would give a damn about the females!), he took 8 male employees hostage . He then demanded that the company pay him wages he claimed had been owed to him for the months of July, August & September, warning that he would set the place on fire if he saw "even 1 policeman." After hours of negotiation, he released 7 of the 8 hostages, keeping the Nagoya branch manager. The police, who do not emerge from this exactly untainted, said they saw fire inside the barricaded room shortly after the 7 were released & the explosion occurred as police officers were preparing to break into the room. Not surprisingly, senior police officials claim they saw no problem in the way they handled the situation. However, speaking as a former cop, & based on the limited information available, it does seem the local constabulary was less than careful & so, in some way, they might have provoked the clearly unbalanced Beppu-san. Sadly for Japan, such incidents as this are becoming much less unusual, with the National Police Agency reporting that this was the fourth since 1975 involving a police fatality in a hostage-taking situation. It is to be hoped that hostage negotiation training will be reviewed throughout Japan, & that (perish the thought) foreign expertise might be utilised to help prepare for the next such incident -- & we all know there will be a next!
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One sector of the Japanese economy that is probably praying that the recession worsens is the one that I have so often condemned on this page before, the loan sharks. Just like the vultures with whom they are so often compared (grossly unfair for the vultures), these scum pick on the weak & helpless, & in present day Japan, this means the unemployed. Welfare being close to non-existent here, being jobless means no income & so rather than join the record number of bankruptcies (210,000 individuals last year compared with 9,910 in 1989), many people approach the supposedly 'respectable' consumer loan companies for help, usually in vain. These companies don't make a habit of lending money to the unemployed, & so the less wise of these unfortunates tend to try the black market. As was illustrated by a recent book ("Yami-kinyu-no-karakuri" (Loan shark tricks) by Yoshitaka Fujiwara), this is where they enter what he calls 'debtor's hell'. They are aided in their efforts by the fact that the content of direct mail advertisements is not restricted or strictly audited, unlike newspapers & magazines. What's more, although these vermin charge exorbitant interest & operate illegally, many of them actually have a license. As Fujiwara-san says, "To become a moneylender in Tokyo, all you need is a ¥43,000 registration fee. ID photos, proof of funds and bank accounts are not necessary. As a matter of fact, there is no inspection." Gives one great faith in the law, right? Nonetheless, whether they get the license or not, they can be arrested if one of their customers reports the excessive interest rate to the police. However, few do, as they are very shrewd about selecting their suckers, preferring folk who are shy, have no friends, & have a strong sense of responsibility (to repay debts. No one said these rats are dumb! However, the government is moving to deal with this far from new problem -- though with their usual less than lightening speed. However, increasingly common reports of loan sharks being arrested & new laws will not solve the problem. Like narcotics, the best way is to remove the market, namely by making it unnecessary for folk to borrow money in this way. Do the words 'economic recovery' mean anything to the government? Probably not.
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You might recall that in a previous issue of this wildly popular (?) page, I mentioned how some students at Waseda & other universities had treated gang rape as a prank, a rite of passage for members of a nasty club. Remember? Well, they may soon be experiencing a different kind of rape, for the law has finally caught up with them. Five former students at Waseda, Nihon & Gakushuin universities, plus a company executive, have all pleaded guilty to rape at the Tokyo District Court. The alleged ringleader of the 'Super Free social club', Shinichiro Wada, admitted 2 counts of gang rape, but denied any premeditation. As one might expect, Wada & his co-defendants initially denied the allegations, claiming it had been consensual sex. However, they later changed their minds, with one defendant reportedly saying that he wanted to kowtow before his alleged victims to beg for their forgiveness. To refresh your memory, the 'Super Free' was run like a company, organizing huge parties in famous Tokyo discos & clubs, attracting many women who wanted to meet men from famous universities. As if this were not a bad enough stain on the reputation of Japan's manhood, their arrest in June was followed by a series of amazingly idiotic remarks by Liberal Democratic Party politicians justifying gang rape. I wonder if those prehistoric old politicians would care to show their support for these cretins by serving their jail time for them? Attractive as such an idea might be, & beneficial for Japan's national interest, I somehow doubt it.
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Talking of youthful 'antics', don't get the idea that scum is limited to the male gender here in Japan. Oh no, some of the females can get really nasty as well. Take, for example, the case of the 17-year-old high school girl who was recently arrested for extortion. However, the term extortion doesn't really do justice to what this 'madam Butterfly' did. However, to start at the beginning, police claim that this 'girl' met 3 male students from a private university at a park near Tokyo's Ikebukuro railway station. After spending the night at the home of one of the students, this clearly virginal young lady contacted a member of the Sumiyoshi-kai crime group as part of her plan to extort money from the student trio. So it was that this gangster & his accomplices grabbed the student whose home the girl was using, shoved him into the boot of their car & then drove him to a secluded riverbank. It was then that these Yakuza used pliers to pull out his teeth, one by one, eventually ripping out 7 teeth. They then forced the bloody student to call his friends to his home, whereupon they confined all 3 of them. The gangsters released the students the next day, but only after they had signed a guarantee that they would pay ¥1.5 million (US$13,000) in 'damages' for flirting with the teenager. Now OK, maybe it was rather naughty for them to take a schoolgirl back to their flat, although she doubtless did not look like a schoolgirl. However, inviting a bunch of Yakuza over to practise dentistry just so she could buy some more designer gear isn't exactly soft & feminine. Now the word 'Yakuza' originally comes from a Japanese term meaning a good-for-nothing or a gambler'. It seems to me that it would be gross flattery to use that term for this little bitch!
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As many of you may have heard, our revered leader, Koizumi-san, was re-elected leader of the ruling LDP Saturday , which automatically renews his 'contract' as Prime Minister with a big majority, so maybe we can now see some of the much needed reforms he's been promising for so long. Then again, maybe pigs will get pilot licences. However, it didn't take him long to change his cabinet. One of his first appointments was the 49-year old Shinzo Abe, a relatively junior but very popular party member, as party secretary general. Now 49 is almost adolescent by Japanese political standards & for such a 'youth' to be given the party's No. 2 job. For example, whereas the previous 2 holders of that post had served 9 terms in parliament, Abe-san is currently serving his third term as a lawmaker in the House of Representatives after first being elected in 1993. But what kind of man is this new 'youth'? Well, according to a recent profile in one of Japan's weeklies, he is a remarkably ordinary chap. For example, both he & his wife Akemi love Gary Cooper movies, & even named their Siberian husky, "Cooper." He might have acquired this liking whilst he was studying at the University of Southern California, where he went after graduating from the Faculty of Law of Seikei University. Sadly, he entered politics in the traditional Japanese way, through family connections: his grandfather was Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi, he is related to 2 other former prime ministers, & his first political job was as a private secretary to his father, the then minister for foreign affairs. This doubtless helped him get elected to the House of Representatives on his first try, just after his father died. On the personal side. he does not drink (thereby losing my vote, if I had one), is an email freak, a very fast typist, & is a cell phone maniac, buying new models as soon as they go on sale. His wife, who is the oldest daughter of the former president of the confectionary giant Morinaga, once worked for Dentsu, Japan's leading advertising agency &, more surprisingly, used to be a radio DJ in Yamaguchi Prefecture. According to those who know him well, he stays fit by using one of those gadgets constantly advertised so often on TV here. However, in case you think youth is now flavour of the month in the party, think again. The PM reappointed 73-year-old Mitsuo Horiuchi as chairman of the party's decision-making General Council, so the old fogeys haven't yet lost all their power.
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According to the dictionary, a paediatrician is a 'specialist in the care of babies'. Well, it seems one Japanese paediatrician has taken that definition to a new low. I recently read that a 38-year-old paediatrician was arrested for posting an ad on an Internet dating site inviting junior high school girls to have sex with him. Care? This 'healer' was the second man to be arrested under a new Dating Site Control Law, which is supposed to crack down on those who post messages on Internet BBS seeking minors as sexual partners. This particular pervert was head of a major Fukuoka hospital's paediatric department & it seems he has admitted the charge. According to police, he posted a message on a dating site that read: "For junior high school girls in the Fukuoka area only. Let's decide on what we can do & for how much via email". Police then raided his home & his hospital office, seizing about 40 items, including CD-ROMs containing images of naked underage girls. Really gives one confidence in the medical profession, right? Now I have never shared the gold-like faith many folk have in doctors, especially since being told back in 1979 that I would be dead within 2 years. However, they do hold a position of trust & so I sincerely hope that this rogue gets especially severe treatment when he comes to court -- a wish many genuinely clean paediatricians share, I'm sure.
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Previously in this 'column', I have had occasion to mention Japan's stubborn unwillingness to come to terms with its imperialist past. Well, one place that knows more than most about Japan's unpleasant pre-war behaviour is Korea. Now, in the midst of a heated debate about how the name of the peninsula should be spelt, an incredibly petty piece of imperialistic editing has come to light. You see, the English spelling of Korea - or Corea - is currently being taken quite seriously. Scholars from both north & south of the 38th parallel are united, for once, in their fight to reject a spelling that they say was imposed by imperialist Japanese at the beginning of the 20th century. What's more, their contention seems to have rock solid backing -- namely, the cornerstone of the British embassy in Seoul, laid in 1890 with the name "Corea." No one has yet been able to find exactly when or how the spelling was changed but the strongest theory is that Japan, which controlled Korea for 4 years before officially colonizing it from 1910-45, changed the spelling for the 1908 London Olympics. Why? You won't believe this. They did it to ensure that "Korean" athletes would not appear before. Can you credit that? Changing the name of a nation just to put your team in first. However, this souvenir of unhappy days seems unlikely to be changed in the very near future, even though Pusan has now been rechristened 'Busan'. The practical implications of an official spelling change seem too daunting for the South Korean government to seriously consider correcting things quite yet.
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Say That Again . . .
Japan is not immune to the trend whereby more & more people live alone, not knowing or caring about their neighbours. This was highlighted by a Sugamo police station official who recently commented on the increasing number of unidentified bodies of young women, saying:
"In the past, when a young woman disappeared, her family and neighbours noticed it immediately. It shows how remote human relationships have become."
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There are many reasons for Japan's skyrocketing divorce rate. Some blame the fact that a couple don't know each other till they retire (due to long working hours) & then discover that they hate each other. However, another explanation was recently given by Yoriko Madoka, a national lawmaker who runs a divorce hotline, who said:
"Women in this country used to feel like they should put up with anything for the sake of their marriages. That kind of thinking has changed. "
Let's hope the husband's can adapt & change their way of thinking, too!
On what might be termed a related subject, we have a local Porn star, Taka Kato by name, who dislikes the recent trend here for cafes known as "manga kissa" that set up private rooms for amorous couples, saying:
"Sex should be relaxing & done in a spacious place where your hearts & bodies can let themselves go. When you always have easy & instant sex, your body will never know what real pleasure is."
I won't even try to comment on that!
Another thing I should maybe avoid commenting on is the comment of Mr. Yuki Ishimatsu, 33, who told Police:
'I like high school girls & like to be dressed like them.'
He was arrested for groping a 16-year-old girl while he himself was dressed like a schoolgirl. Police found 420 items of female underwear & clothing at his house. I suppose a man needs a hobby but . . .
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A lot of the comments this month concern crime in Japan. Well, a disquieting new crime trend has come to light here recently. Police affairs journalist Akio Kuroki described it thus:
"Growing numbers of women are seducing men & stealing their wallets just as they have lured them into a relaxed mode."
Now any 'femme fatale' who tries that on me is going to get a big disappointment when she examines my wallet. However, it might be fun letting her try!
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On a lighter note, you might find this hard (or interesting) to believe, but Tokyo recently hosted an all-girl symposium on breasts. Yes, that's right. What great philosophical points were debated I cannot say but Yuka Igarashi, an exceedingly well qualified attendee (an 86-cm D-cup) was quoted as explaining:
"Some girls have complexes about their large breasts. Others use them as weapons. Men are so simpleminded. It's so easy to get a rise out of them."
I wouldn't like to support or deny such a notion, but I suppose she should know, after all!
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Lastly, a sobering thought, especially for those folk who criticise nations like Japan that keep & use the death penalty. This quotation comes from Mamoru Takuma who was sentenced to death for stabbing 8 schoolchildren to death during a rampage at an elementary school in Osaka Prefecture back in June 2001. He said:
"I should have used gasoline, so I could have killed more than I did."
If he doesn't deserve to experience death for himself, who does!
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Now as the proud & loving owner of typically loyal & loving dog, I couldn't agree more that they are man's best friend. However, in this land of almost daily earthquakes, there is now seeming proof of just how true that saying is.
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This being one of the few countries that releases crime statistics in 2 sets, one for Japanese & one for we evil foreigners, there should be little the police can do that would surprise a seasoned observer such as I. However, that doesn't mean their undisguised xenophobia is pleasing for me. So when I saw a recent headline that announced "Police say organized crime by foreigners worsens public security", I guessed it was business as usual. Yes indeed, Japan (like every country) has foreign gangsters, notably Russians, Nigerians & Koreans, whose efforts haven't yet reached anything like the level achieved by Japan's own Yakuza. Nonetheless, conveniently overlooking the home-grown gangsters, the National Police Agency (NPA) says the number of cases last year in which foreigners were arrested or on whom papers were sent to prosecutors rose 25.2% year on year to 34,746. Luckily, when one examines the overall picture, one sees that even though the NPA report typically highlights crimes by foreigners, alleged Penal Code violations by foreigners comprised only 4% of all alleged crimes in Japan last year. What's more, some of these few foreign crimes were really 'joint ventures' between international crime groups & Japanese crime syndicates. So why, you might ask, do foreign criminals come here to carry out their dastardly deeds? Well, police asked one Chinese suspect (Chinese nationals accounted for 20% of foreigners arrested, it seems) & he replied "Penalties in Japan are light. Even for theft it is only a few years & it is bearable." Apart from saying a lot about how bad Chinese jails must be, that also reveals that maybe the local constabulary should concentrate more on catching these crooks & less on segregating statistics!
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What's good for the goose is good for the gander is not a philosophy that has really caught on here. Take, for example, the reaction of some Japanese to a programme on Hungarian TV. The programme, "Micuko — the world in slanted eyes," featured a Hungarian TV reporter wearing a black hairpiece & fake teeth, passing herself off as a Japanese woman, using the stunt to ambush & interview Hungarian celebrities. Now maybe I'm wrong but that doesn't sound too different to some of the shows on Japanese TV that featured foreign caricatures in suitably embarrassing situations. However, whereas shows like that do well on TV here, the Japanese community in Hungary was furious & the Japanese Embassy in Budapest filed a protest with the station & the Hungarian Foreign Ministry back in April. As a result, the show, which was only launched in March, was suspended in May & has been removed from the autumn schedule. Originally, the show had merely been suspended for 3 months but it seems that this wasn't enough for the suddenly & uncharacteristically PC Japanese. Of course, complaints from Africans & African embassies about the Japanese programmes ridiculing black people would have the same result here -- & Elvis is alive & well, & living with Lord Lucan!
In a related story, Mitsubishi Motors has announced that it has withdrawn its sponsorship of one of New Zealand's top 10 television shows, with 6 months of a 2-year sponsorship deal remaining, after its host described UN Secretary General Kofi Annan as a "cheeky darkie." Now this comment has drawn justified criticism from a lot of NZ people as well, but I can't help thinking that his comment might have been considered pretty funny here in Japan. The aforementioned shows that ridicule black people have no shortage of sponsors, after all. Another comment by the same talk show host criticised the number of women journalists working in the media industry, something I am sure many Japanese 'TV talento' would agree with. (As a footnote, it is interesting to see that despite New Zealand's image as a bastion of liberalism & anti-racism (during the apartheid years), a TV company executive revealed that "We haven't seen any significant changes in ratings since all this has happened." Seems his comments didn't upset that many folk locally.)
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Just when you think the Japanese can't upset China any more, they go ahead & do so. If it's not leftover war munitions killing farmers, it's a tour group arranging a sex orgy. You think I'm kidding? Not at all. According to Chinese reports, 288 people from an Osaka construction company invited about 500 hostesses to their hotel & went "prostitute shopping" in Zhuhai back in mid-September. I've heard of 'social intercourse' with the locals but isn't that taking it a little too far? One version of the story, carried in the Beijing Youth Daily, they arranged to meet the prostitutes through a staff member in the International Conference Centre Hotel's Japanese marketing department, paying 1,200 yuan (about $145) to each woman. This led to some 500 prostitutes crowding into the public areas of the hotel in full view of other guests, & an orgy-style party ensued that continued past midnight. One Chinese guest overheard the Japanese tourists talking about unusual sex acts, the report said. As if this were not bad enough, the event took place on the eve of the 72nd anniversary of the Manchurian incident marking the start of Japan's invasion of northeastern China! Needless to say, the company is trying to deny involvement. "Perhaps some of the employees may have done something like that in their free time. That may have led to a misunderstanding," a company official said. Similarly, the Japanese Embassy claimed it had not heard of the incident, adding that as so many Japanese groups visit China, it would be hard for the embassy to keep track of
the activities of each one. Yeah, right!
Footnote: It didn't take long for the Chinese to show how they felt about this incident. Very shortly after this 'orgy', a Japanese band was heckled & bombarded with a barrage of beer bottles during a free outdoor concert in Beijing. It seems about 20 people attending a concert by the Japanese punk band Brahman (the 1st Japanese band to take part in this annual event) at the Beijing MiDi School of Music hurled bottles at the band, with one hitting the lead singer in the head but apparently not injuring him, witnesses said. However, to their credit, the band were undeterred by the onslaught, which lasted through their first 4 songs, & played through their full set as planned. One Chinese member of the audience summarised the attack by saying "It was just because they're Japanese. It's about history." Unfortunately for those creeps who strive to hide the past from Japanese schoolchildren, they can't rewrite history books overseas!
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Japan's best known college, Tokyo University, was founded as a kind of civil service training institute back in the Meiji period, & seeing how many government folk are ex-'Todai' graduates, things haven't changed much. However, Todai graduates have changed, especially in the popularity stakes. Tokyo University graduates have recently been exploring the delights of the private sector but finding that they are rather unpopular with private companies. Among other things, companies complain that they live in their own little world, can't stand being reprimanded, are overly self-confident and tend to lack a critical viewpoint. One reason for these failings might be the college's civil service origins. A Japanese economic analyst (who is also a Todai graduate) pointed out that although Todai graduates have strong basic learning capabilities, they have little or no creativity. One bank executive added that "They think just because everything is decided by giving the correct answer in a written test, like their entrance examination, they know it all." What's more, these guys are not even popular with the 'Office Ladies', the female assistants often hired to provide husbands to male executives. One 'OL' complained "If theyｹre not boasting about their university, they're talking about their high school — boring," How are the mighty fallen! On the other hand, those Todai folk who are brave enough to try & enter the private sector can, if they're adaptable enough, develop more rounded personalities. The same cannot be said for those who follow the traditional course & enter the civil service. These 'drones' spend their entire careers surrounded by the same type of people, which means little or no possibility they will ever break out of the mould. In that mysterious little secret world, they strut & prance self confidently with their infamous who-gives-a-damn attitude... with an effect on the nation that is sadly all too obvious!
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I have often referred to Japan's small but growing crime rate, but I was recently sent details of a crime that is truly shocking & doubtless stumped the local police. I refer to the case of the stolen newspapers. However, we Tokyo residents can sleep easy in our beds (or futons) knowing that the boys in blue are on the job. Tokyo Police have already submitted papers to the prosecutors office on a man who they claim stole ¥100 (that's right, a hundred) worth of old newspapers from a garbage collection site in Tokyo's Suginami Ward. A real master criminal, obviously. The 46-year-old man was unlucky enough to be caught after the ever vigilant lawmakers of Suginami Ward introduced an ordinance last March that bans people from taking away recyclable garbage, as they rely on proceeds from the sale of recyclable garbage as part of their revenues. Obviously, the loss of a hundred yen is going to cripple the ward's economy! This story worries me in two ways. Firstly, don't the taxpayers of Suginami feel that maybe their administrators are underemployed, if this is how they spend their time & resources? Secondly, why the **** didn't someone in the police tell the burgers of Suginami to stop wasting their time? Or maybe (even more worrying) they didn't think it was a waste. However, I am sure the Yakuza & other criminal gangs here are shaking in their boots as they see the forces of law & order toiling so manfully to deny them their waste paper business.
BTW: As if to illustrate what this site has long been hinting at, i.e., police efficiency, who should know better than a criminal? I refer to the recently released convict who confessed to a 1980 murder, knowing he was safe due to Japan's ridiculous statute of limitations, which means that murder is no longer a crime. However, there is another complication in this bizarre case. You see, the murder he confessed to was, at the time, determined to be a case of suicide. This put a frown on the brow of the confessor, because, as he said: "I thought it strange when I read in newspapers that the police determined it was suicide. He couldn't have tied the rope around his arms & legs by himself." Good point, don't you think? However, the Nagano prefectural police chief apologized for any mistakes made in that investigation, so everything's OK after all.
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Talking of the crime rate, & escaping from the ugly world of stolen newspaper dealers, a very worrying insight into the Japanese underworld reached the press recently. This dealt with the discovery of a man's body on September 12th in Tokyo Bay, the body being later identified as a freelance journalist, Satoru Someya. This unfortunate photojournalist was found with a chain wrapped around his body, with his hands bound with a rope. He had clearly been beaten by a blunt weapon, & also had 8 stab wounds in his back. According to the police, "The body was hard to identify because it was badly damaged. Definitely, it was a professional hit." In 'crime free' Japan, no less! Those responsible for this evil crime clearly succeeded in getting their message across, for it was reported that after the funeral, his family quickly returned home, avoiding the media. Those of us who live in countries where organised crime is acknowledged more than here know that the family had good reason to be scared. The dead man worked for various magazines & was especially skilled at reporting underworld activities such as illegal guns, prostitution, drugs, loansharking, fraud & money laundering. This led to his becoming both interested in & very familiar with Japan's infamous 'sin centre' (not officially, of course) of Kabukicho. Not surprisingly, the distasteful denizens of Kabukicho didn't enjoy his attention. According to those who knew him, Someya-san spoke English fluently as well as basic French & Chinese. He
used to be in a motorbike gang & had built up strong contacts with prosecutors, police & mafia. However, his dedication to seeking out the true story had got him into trouble before; he was once beaten up in a nightclub toilet & lost 4 teeth." What's more, he was forced to leave his condominium by neighbours due to constant harassment. It seems he told the police of his situation but, unsurprisingly, they didn't treat the threat seriously. 'To protect & to serve', ah? Some apologists claim that there was a different motive for his murder -- he had debts of nearly ¥10 million. However, a fellow journalist pooh-poohed this claim, adding with a great deal of logic that he wouldn't have been murdered in such a brutal way if it was just about money. A more believable motive might be the fact that he had recently started to gather information about Chinese mafia groups believed to be behind the influx of drugs in the Kanto area. An elderly member of Tokyo's Chinese community was quoted as saying "The hit might very well have been carried out by the Chinese mafia ... They only wrapped his body with a chain because they assumed that his body would rise to the surface soon. They intended to warn other journalists & media." Sounds feasible, don't you think? However, another possible killer might be from a more sinister country. You see, the majority of drugs sold in Kabukicho come from North Korea, smuggled here by a Shanghai mafia group, who operate out of an office in Kabukicho. (Yes, that's right -- a mafia office, but seemingly unknown to the authorities!) One police source reported that Someya-san had helped them many times by providing information on the North Korean drug route, adding "His information was detailed." Bearing in mind the murder of a Fukuoka family in June, for which 2 natives of northeast
China have confessed, this seems more than likely. Now if all this talk of bodies dumped in the sea & violent crime groups doesn't sound like Japan, that's because too many powerful people here want to maintain the myth of a crime-free Japan, a land of harmony & peace. Whether they preserve this falsehood because of nationalism or a more sinister, mercenary motive is debatable -- & rather worrying.
(By the way, if you would like a souvenir of Japan's underworld, it seems you can buy badges & mobile-phone straps engraved with the crests of local crime syndicates from an Internet auction site run by Yahoo Japan. This comes after the company banned sales of attorneys' badges in June after the Japan Federation of Bar Associations asked the company to stop the sales.)
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Staying with the subject of crime (sorry this month is so dominated by crime but that's the news), a recent 'crime wave' might have been caused, indirectly, by the government. I refer to the recent spate of rice robberies. You heard me, rice robberies. Back in early October, I read that thieves stole 1,930 kgs of rice in 3 separate incidents in Niigata, Ibaraki & Chiba prefectures on the same Sunday morning. Now this is officially being blamed on this autumn's poor harvest, the worst since 1993 due to the cool summer & relatively few sunny days. However, as some of you may know, the residents of rice- growing Japan pay more for their rice than anyone else on the planet, due to the government keeping prices artificially high in order to win the farmers' votes. So why do people steal things? To sell them & thereby make money, right? So maybe if rice was more realistically priced, it wouldn't be so attractive to thieves. However, remembering the normally high price of rice here, & bearing in mind that the bad harvest has caused this price to rise by about 20% to 30%, it certainly isn't difficult to see why enterprising villains should decide to get some rice 'after hours', so to speak. (The sad thing is that back in 1993, when the dire harvest forced the government to allow rice imports, most Japanese agreed to pay ridiculous amounts for Japanese rice rather than try the tasty & much cheaper Thai equivalent. Some folk seem to ask to be abused, they really do.)
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Now if you think your company is too conservative, think yourself lucky you don't work for a Japanese bank! Whilst it is true that the Aozora Bank recently advised its employees that, with the exception of sales staff, casual wear could be worn by females on a daily basis, this is an exception, not the norm. To prove my point, consider the case of UFJ Bank. A week before Aozora Bank's casual regulations went into effect, UFJ issued an 18-article code of dress & grooming to its female employees. This ruled that hair colour must be no lighter than a 7 on the Japan Hair Colour Association's 20-scale colour chart (I kid you not); earrings or any forms of piercing are forbidden, as are neck scarves; lipstick must be in "natural" shades; only one ring may be worn; fingernail polish can be transparent, beige or light pink; fishnet stockings & other 'garish forms of hosiery' are outlawed. Oh, & sandals, boots & spike heels are totally unthinkable. One financial writer reported that the personnel director "seems to be getting perverse enjoyment from all this. The girls at the bank are all squealing that now it's like the dress regulations enforced back in their junior high schools." Believe it or not, the bank claims that the new regulations were issued following complaints from female employees that the previous regulations were "difficult to understand." So the ladies prefer to be treated like residents of a juvenile jail. Yeah, right! The bank added that "the employees are not complaining". I'm sure that UFJ actively encourages staff feedback, don't you?
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Having praised Japanese judges, I must sadly turn a critical eye at the educational establishment here. As someone who's done some teaching (like most foreigners in Japan), I appreciate the power teachers have to mould people's minds. Sadly, some Japanese teachers think it better to destroy! If you think I am being too harsh, consider the case of the 46-year-old Fukuoka municipal primary school teacher who allegedly told a boy he should kill himself because his ancestor was American. I wish I was joking. Now obviously, scum like this are a minority here & so a group of 503 lawyers from across Japan has been formed to help the boy & his parents in their damages suit against the teacher. The suit claims that when the teacher discovered this boy's great-grandfather was from the United States, he told him, "You have filthy blood. Go jump off from your condo building & die." He later said to the obviously distressed lad "You haven't died yet. Do it today, OK?" The teacher, who has been suspended, also repeatedly beat and injured the 9-year-old fourth-year pupil, obviously feeling that repeatedly telling him to kill himself wasn't enough. Now if someone did that to my son, the teacher would need a doctor more than a lawyer, but nonetheless, the family is demanding ¥13 million in damages from the teacher & from Fukuoka City. The boy's original lawyer claims the boy is suffering post-traumatic stress, & once said, "I'd like to have my blood replaced. I don't see any sense in living." A spokesman for the newly formed group of lawyers said "We wanted to extend support to the boy, who apparently believes he is the one responsible, & wanted to let him know that he is not in the wrong." Now in pre-war Japan, children were taught that they were divine, that Japan was 'the land of the gods.' Sadly, this idea seems to linger in some minds. All we can do is hope that this teacher never teaches anyone, not even a dog, ever again -- & if he avoids a hefty fine or jail, then Japan's image will take another beating. Deservedly so.
'Don't feel left out or disappointed if none of your Japanese friends or colleagues ever invite you back to their home, as this isn't further proof of racism. It's just that Japanese rarely entertain at home, as their homes are often far too small. However, if you do get such an invitation, you should consider it a true honour, as this means that your host feels comfortable & close with you.'
(Taken from the 'Gaijin's
Guide to Living in Japan')
'As the weather is now very much less pleasant, you might enjoy somewhere indoors. Well, try Tokyo's 2 main public libraries. The Central Reference Library (non-lending) is located inside Arisugawa Park, Hiroo, & has many foreign newspapers, periodicals & books. The Central (lending) Library is also located inside a park, Hibiya Park. Bring your Gaijin card to get a membership card (if you are a Tokyo resident). Apart from having 5,000 books magazines & newspapers, it also offers a free copying service. Open 10-8pm. For information, call 3502-0101..'
(For more suggestions, check out the 'Gaijin's Guide to Enjoying Tokyo')
Miss last month's 'Empty Seat'? Not to worry. You can check
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2003 |
That's another one put to bed, as they say! I sincerely hope you folks get as much fun reading this stuff as I do putting it together. My counter tells me how many of you visit here but I can only guess how many take time to read through this, or what you think of it all. However, no news is good news & as people all over the world (the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Singapore, Germany, Israel, France & Hong Kong, to name a few) keep dropping by, I suppose I must be doing something right. Some of you might think I really hate Japan & the Japanese, but look at the facts. (1) I have been here almost 13 years now, & (2) I don't plan to leave for at least another 10. Does that sound like I hate this place? No, but as the English language media here (all Japanese owned) fails to ever criticise the way things are, I do. It's a dirty job but somebody's got to do it, as they say. Anyway, I shall give my rant organ a break until the middle of November, but if you care to look in around that time, you would be most cordially welcome!
The Gaijin
Don't forget: If you want to know when the next 'Empty Seat' is online, or just want to contact the ol' Gaijin, you can use the Guestbook link below or drop me an email. I'll read it all, honest, & then . . . Well, we'll see!
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will usually remain empty, even during the rush hours. This can rankle at first but should really be seen as a relief in a place where space is hard to find. It is also amusing to see a tired 'salaryman' torn between sitting next to a foreigner or remaining on his feet! |
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since 03/10/15 !
