Cops in Tokyo

[drainer@mpinet.net]

I would say that the police in koenji and ogikubo have a reputation for 
doing exactly what you just mentioned, so I am not very surprised.

However, I should state first and foremost that foreign residents aren't 
their only target. Koenji has its share of problems due to the influx of 
young people who live there and drug usage is not all too infrequent in the 
area. As far as the yakuza go, there are known "offices" there; drug dealing 
is not uncommon.

If you're getting this sort of harassment on a weekly basis, close to where 
you live, you're probably right to assume that maybe a neighbor or someone 
you are in close contact with decided to report your "activities" to the 
police, especially if you have, as you say, been in contact with political 
activists.

My advice to you is just to carry on about your business -- as long as 
you're not breaking the law you have nothing to worry about. Pay respect to 
the police, but never underestimate them. Whenever you see them, don't 
initiate eye contact, and it's always wise to "walk the other way," so to 
speak. Obviously I don't I am not saying that you should run away like a 
criminal, but what my suggestion is a good way to avoid confrontation. The 
police in Japan love to size people up when they're given the chance 
(similar to police in Europe and South America).

Also keep in mind that riding a bycicle in Tokyo at night is an invitation 
to get pulled over by the police, no matter the color of your skin.

Alternatively, what you could do is invest on a scooter or motorcycle (if 
you're in Japan for the long run). They'll never stop you once you have a 
full face helmet :)


-d




----- Original Message ----- 
From: "M Arnold" <ma_iku at hotmail.com>
To: <KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu>
Sent: Sunday, April 23, 2006 3:49 PM
Subject: Cops in Tokyo


> I'm very curious to hear more about Kinema Club, Nippon Connection, and 
> any of the other recent Japanese film activities. If anyone has info, 
> please share!
>
> This message isn't really related to Japanese film, but I wanted to post 
> here and see if others have had similar experiences recently.
>
> As some of you know, I'm living in Tokyo now doing Japanese film-related 
> research. Life in Tokyo is swell as always, but since last December I've 
> been hassled by the police a number of times. Until recently, in years of 
> studying and working in Japan, I had never once been confronted by a 
> Japanese policeman. However since December, when four cops on bikes and 
> foot surrounded me on a street next to the station in Koenji, pretended 
> that they didn't realize I was white, and then asked for my foreigner ID 
> card and wouldn't tell me why, cops have been stopping me on the street 
> every few weeks. One time, when I was riding my bike along a road near my 
> apartment, a patrol car passed me and suddenly swerved onto the sidewalk 
> several meters in front of me. A cop jumped out, rushed over to stop me, 
> and said he wanted to check my bike registration number, but after he 
> looked me over he backed off without calling the number in.
>
> Another time I was riding my bike west on Ome Kaido from Shinjuku when a 
> cop stepped out from the shadows, waving his flashlight. He asked to 
> search my backpack with the excuse that a lot of people are wandering 
> around the area these days with concealed weapons such as big butcher 
> knives. I told him I was a graduate student researching Japanese film, and 
> he said he was very happy that foreign students were taking such an honest 
> interest in Japanese culture. He then asked me if I knew who Mishima Yukio 
> was, and told me I need to read Mishima's "Kodogaku nyumon" (On Action) 
> before I leave the country. (Just to be safe, I went and picked up a copy 
> at Book Off for 250 yen.)
>
> [Just a quick sidenote: Mishima's infamous "Yukoku" is currently screening 
> at Kineka Omori. http://www.cinemabox.com/schedule/omori/index.shtml]
>
> Among other incidents, the most ridiculous one happened two weeks ago when 
> I was walking past the front of Koenji station in the a.m. with a film 
> director, actress, and a salaryman acquaintance of theirs. The actress 
> went off somewhere, and as the three of us walked past the entrance to the 
> station, a short-ish, young looking guy in plain clothes jumped off the 
> railing he was leaning against and, with eyes darting back and forth, 
> asked me to show my foreigner registration card. He flashed his badge for 
> an instant and said he was a "head patrol officer" (junsacho) for Public 
> Security (Koan). I pulled out my ID while my two companions stood there 
> with their mouths gaping open. "I don't believe this," they said. "It 
> happens a lot recently," I replied. Once the officer checked my card he 
> retreated back to his position on the railing. Two or three other normal 
> looking people who had been wandering around the station entrance walked 
> over to him momentarily, said something, and then went back to their 
> positions as well.
>
> Walking away, my two middle-aged Japanese companions couldn't believe what 
> had just happened. Once they collected their senses, they decided such an 
> unconvincing Koan officer must be a fake--either just a police otaku who 
> gets his kicks from pretending to be an undercover cop, or worse, a yakuza 
> who hangs around the station extorting money from gaijin who don't have 
> proper ID. (He certainly looked too wimpy to be a "head patrol officer.") 
> So they decided to go to the nearby police box, and we asked the regular 
> cops to check and make sure this secret police guy was for real. The 
> uniformed cops walked back over to the head patrol officer with us, asked 
> for his ID, and after chatting for a minute decided, sure enough, he was 
> the real thing. Apparently the Koan folks don't have any contact with the 
> regular police, so the police had no way of knowing there were Koan 
> patrolling their station. We asked the regular cops why foreigners are 
> getting hassled around Koenji, and as their faces got redder and redder, 
> they told us the usual unconvincing excuses--crimes by foreigners are on 
> the rise, many foreigners are overstaying their visas, etc. Immediately 
> afterwards, the director and I walked to a nearby park for a cup of coffee 
> and noticed two other men following us part of the way.
>
> It almost seems like a joke, but frankly I'm starting to get a little 
> worried. I never used to pay much attention to the police here, but now 
> whenever I pass one, I expect to get stopped. For a moment after the 
> Koenji incident, I wondered if the cops might have me blacklisted for 
> hanging out with dirty movie directors and radical film researchers, or 
> for taking pictures in Yasukuni on August 15, or for watching movies at 
> the Shinjuku Kokusai Gekijo. (The director who was with me in Koenji 
> thinks I'm being targeted for having spent a little time with certain 
> 'left wing' directors in recent months.)
>
> I wonder if anyone else has had problems recently. I've heard from friends 
> and other Japanese film fans or researchers who have had more trouble than 
> usual with the police in recent months (including one member of this 
> list). I have no idea why the cops have gotten so dangerous all of a 
> sudden, but if any non-Japanese list members are planning to wander around 
> western Tokyo, you might want to make sure your bike is registered and 
> you're carrying a copy of "Kodogaku nyumon" with your passport.
>
> Michael Arnold