Hello All. A little essay I did for the Research Institute of Economy, Trade
and Industry (RIETI)'s "Miyakodayori" Online Journal. Released today.
Incorporates a lot of the themes we've been discussing for quite some time now.
Thanks for all your help. Hope you enjoy. Best wishes, Arudou Debito in Sapporo
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Miyakodayori 70
May 23, 2003
Courtesy Miyakodayori (http://www.rieti.go.jp/en/miyakodayori/)
Japan, the tourist destination?
By Arudou Debito
Japan has always been of two minds about things foreign. Listen to foreign ideas
and consider adopting them, yes. But let foreigners in? That's a different kettle--for
heaven forbid, they might stay. Even top policymakers have stated that Japan is
"not an immigration country".
But Japan can be a land of profound ironies: These days it wants foreigners. (1)
The Nikkei Shimbun reported on May 13, 2003: "In a bid to boost the
number of foreign tourists visiting the capital city, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government
has decided to position the Ueno and waterfront areas [as] key destinations. It
will follow the example of Paris in developing the Ueno region and that of New York
for the waterfront area." Officials hope to double the number of Tokyo tourists
to 6 million by 2006.
Although I can think of few places as unParisian as Ueno (Ueno Zoo, for example,
is famous in children's books for the starving hippos, lions, and elephants it put
down during WWII), the point still remains: Foreigners are being touted as one elixir
for the Heisei Economic Malaise. Bring them in as tourists, take their money, show
them a good time, and expect them to go home.
Unfortunately, domestic trends over the past decade may sully Japan's famous hospitality.
Businesses nationwide, including Shinbashi, Ogikubo, Hamamatsu, Nagoya, Naha, Akita,
Misawa, Otaru and around Hokkaido, have been expressly refusing entry and service
to foreigners. Multilingual "JAPANESE ONLY" signs and policies have appeared
in front of hot-spring baths, stores, restaurants, bars, discos, karaoke establishments,
pachinko and mahjong parlors, and even barbershops.
Reasons for the exclusion? "Foreigners cannot understand Japanese, and they
come from a different culture, so therefore they will not follow our rules. This
will cause trouble for our Japanese clientele." The most novel excuse has been
the threat of contagion: Some Osaka and Kagawa hotels were turning away all foreign
customers, regardless of whether they--or fellow Japanese--have been to a SARS-inflicted
country.
Non-Japanese residents have been bucking this trend. Some have taken these businesses
to court and won. But despite UN treaty obligations, Japan is still the only OECD
country without an anti-racial discrimination law.
And it shows. During the 2002 World Cup, exaggerated warnings about "hooligans,"
from a media and police force unfettered by anti-defamation laws, caused panic.
Businesses missed what should have been an enormous foreign cash windfall from the
world's most popular sport by boarding up their doors.
The Japanese Police Agency produces "Beware of Bad Foreigners" notices,
displaying them in public places like train and subway stations, and bank ATMs.
Police frequently conduct spot ID checks on foreign-looking people riding bicycles,
walking around airport lobbies, and renewing their licenses at motor vehicle bureaus.
"Foreigners commit crimes, so this is all in the name of crime prevention,"
goes the mantra.
But sometimes enforcers get overzealous--because they can. For when people ask for
legal checks and balances, the government wrings its hands and says, "This activity
may be unconstitutional, but it is definitely not illegal." Because, again,
there is no law against it.
Thanks to this paradox of unenforceability, the discriminatory signs, policies, and
notices stay up--for years in some cases--encouraging the spread of foreign fear
and exclusionism to other cities and business sectors.
Now the government wants to bring in more foreigners, potentially subjecting them
to the indignity of being invited but unwanted guests? Ueno as proposed foreign
enclave notwithstanding, these half-measures will end up as a source of embarrassment
for Japan. And not just domestic this time--because those tourists will immediately
go home and tell their friends what a closed-looking society Japan is. Hardly a
sustainable economic policy.
It is time the government stopped its most worn-out tactic: reaching for magic wands
to solve larger structural problems. In this case, the fundamental reform necessary
is the protection of human rights. Japan must keep its international promises, enacting
laws to protect people of racial distinction against discrimination. Let all non-Japanese,
resident or guest, enjoy the privilege of spending their money and enjoying Japan's
hospitality like anyone else.
Notes:
(1) Also see <http://www.kantei.go.jp/foreign/koizumiphoto/2003/05/21kanko_e.html>
Author, Debito Arudou
Lecturer, Hokkaido Information University
Mr. Arudou is a naturalized Japanese citizen, and author of "JAPANESE ONLY--Otaru
Onsen Nyuuyoku Kyohi to Jinshu Sabetsu" (Akashi Shoten 2003, in Japanese).
His website may be found at http://www.debito.org