We have published a statement by Richard Nishiyama here as well as details of a public meeting where you can find out more and get involved in working out where to take this from now.
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2 days ago
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
More news on the Barco situation
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15 comments:
I`m not currently in Hiroshima, but I once lived there and am a concerned "friend of Hiroshima". I am really shocked to hear about what happened at El Barco. I really sympathize with Richard-san and wonder if he could elaborate on the "agents from the US gov`t" that were present. I am curious as to the reasons why anyone from the US gov`t would be interested in El Barco...? Do they suspect that Osama bin Laden is taking Salsa lessons there? And why assist the inept, racist, fascist police in Hiroshima/Japan on this case? Hiroshima is an odd place--left-leaning/progressive teachers and politicians, hard-right police force and various right-wing nuts about town. I think the best strategy at this point is to publicize the meeting you will have at Aster Plaza (i.e., HiroTele, RCC, Chugokushinbun, etc.) and/or have some sort of protest with media coverage. Then, to ratchet things up a bit, create a public relations mess for the city in time for the 8/6 memorial activities. Not to disrespect or diminish what happened on that day in any way, or take away from the ceremonies, but to throw a spotlight on hypocrisy coming from the city officials (the "city of peace and harmony" rhetoric) and force them to acknowledge what happened and explain their actions, take responsibility for them, ensure that it doesn`t happen again, etc. I`m not sure if any of that is feasible, but if you ask me, the timing is right--you have about two months to organize and make your case known. I think enough decent Japanese citizens and city officials will be shocked to learn of this "incident", which is an absolute disgrace. Regardless of the heinous crime committed by one "gaijin", the rights of the entire community should not be sacrificed or trampled on! Keep up the good work, Gethiroshima, and please keep all of us--in Hiroshima or not--informed of what`s going on.
I'm very sorry about this case.
The japanese police should be more violent as we see in others places like Peru, Brazil, USA...
People like this "Bar Owners"should be quiet and say thanks to the Japanese Goverment. They have the chance to live here.If they are councerned about Japan? As the officer"said",go back to your country!
An American dancing with a japanese girl?bla..bla..bla...
Everybody knows that many south Americans hate the Americans or the guys from the Americans Bases.
Before talk about. japanese law, Americans or even others countries, better this "Bar owners"
look back to his own country, the great fucking mess,killers;I'm sorry again, it wasn't a Peruvian fault, it was the Devil that said;kill the little girl!Hahahaha!All bullshit!!!!!By the way, I'm not japanese!Thanks to the Japanese Police Department.Keep doing the job and put this mother fuckers" Gaijins" out of here !Protecting and supporting the "Gaijins that working very hard and respecting the laws.
I'm sure a more violent/racist police force is what all the hard working gaijins are crying out for in this city (that's irony anonymous)
You seem to be missing the vital point that the owners of Barco have done nothing that the rest of bar/club owners in Hiroshima/Japan do every week of the year.
I'm not going to bother getting into a debate with the likes of you though. Sounds like you've got a bit of a devil inside of you, and by your reasoning, me being an Englishman means I must have a bit of Fred West about me.
It's all that simple (irony)
Well, I`m awfully sorry to have commented on this article/case as I did (above, "anonymous" #1), only to have it degenerate into all-too-typical, vicious "blogosphere" invective. I didn`t mean for that to happen. Perhaps I should have toned down the "fascist police" language, etc.; however, that angry feeling comes from a deep reservoir of frustration due to a few years of living in Japan/Hiroshima and having been treated "like an animal" at times--exactly as Richard described it. "Anonymous" #2, wherever you are from, whatever your beliefs or opinions, you have to admit that it is an injustice to raid a club frequented by "gaijin" simply because another "gaijin" committed a heinous crime, then imprison and attempt to strongarm (while insulting, basically torturing) the owner for not having some obscure document that permits him to have dancing and drinking--while so few other clubs have the necessary documents (as an aside, how many "entertainment" businesses are Yakuza-run or Yakuza-related? Why don`t the police do something about them? They`re the ones who bring prostitutes and drugs here, not the "foreigners" they use to do their dirty work or as fall-guys! Or is it that the police have a relationship with organized crime...? hmmm...) It is a simple case of attempted intimidation, on the barest of pretenses. What`s next? Detention centers for all Peruvians, or for all foreigners? Yellow Stars? Why are all these "gaijin" here in the first place? Could it be that the Japanese economy needs them? Could it be that Japan has a growing immigrant population that it is cruelly exploiting (as in the USA, UK, Western Europe, etc.), but that it doesn`t have the decency to even attempt to assimilate? What are Mazda or other companies that employ large numbers of non-Japanese doing to help their workers adjust to Japanese society? This type of strong-arm police intimidation is not the way to build a "city of peace" or an "international community", by any means! And I put "gaijin" in quotes because I think the term is absolute rubbish. This Yamato-damishii nonsense, the myth of Japanese homogeneity and so on, is a lot of rot. As is the "good foreigner" and "bad foreigner" nonsense. Yes, there are many who are a disgrace, as in every country--especially when there are military bases nearby, or tourist spots. But in the event of some disaster--say, like the 1923 Kanto earthquake, when Koreans were rumored to be looting, so many were lynched--the supposed "distinction" between "good" and "bad" disappears. In other words, we "non-Japanese" are all "motherfucking" foreigners in many people`s eyes! There are no differences--we are all disposable, less than human, etc., in ignorant people`s eyes. I mean, you have people like Gov. Ishihara posturing a few years back, speaking to the SDF about the need to stop "foreign looters" in the event of an earthquake in Tokyo, etc. Come on, as if that is their biggest worry! And you have outright harrassment, like what happened at El Barco, amidst a daily barrage of indignities and prejudice that non-Japanese have to face here, day-in and day-out. The fact of the matter is that the foreign community needs to stick together in a time like this, and the Japanese citizenry should do more to ensure that their society reflects their true values and beliefs. If that involves racism, ignorance, fear, and the abuse of law, then it`s fine: why not model yourself on the abuses you can easily see in other countries (as "Anonymous" #2 gleefully pointed out), such as the USA, etc. Why not build a wall around these islands, or put all the foreigners back on Dejima? Why not go all the way and follow this logic to its conclusion: adopt Nazi Germany as a model for Japan...? Oops, sorry, tried that once before, right? Didn`t turn out too well, now did it? Well, then, why not put your mouth where your money is--in other words, divert a little bit of the billions of Yen spent on the JET-programme, say, which is supposedly about "internationalization" and so on, and spend it on making Japan a better place for the thousands--perhaps someday millions--of "foreigners" who will be needed to help this country function. Or, again, we can all just sit back--say "screw it", "ain`t my concern", "I`m one of the good gaijin", or "it serves those foreigners right", "if they don`t like it, let them go home!", etc.--and turn a blind eye to the growing number of (fellow) non-ethnic-Japanese who choose to call this place "home", if only for a short while, while we pocket our Yen or give lip service to "kokusaika".
Hmm, this is starting to bring back some unpleasant memories. I know this is an emotive issue and one that deserves discussion, but I was very dismayed to read Anonymous#2's post.
I am planning to leave this post here for refeerence, but this kind of post will be deleted in the future. Discussion is very welcome here, but we do insist that that discussion be reasoned and civilized. If contributers are unable to refrain from abuse and they should jump into the mud pit at places like Gaijin Pot (although if you cut and paste content from here we'd appreciate it if you would attribute it to the source).
I really think it's important that everyone puts their name to their posts. We've been down this road before and it cost us two very unpleasant years and nearly a million yen just to have a case against us thrown out of court, and we do not want to go there again. Unfortunately the Blogger software doesn't prevent anoymous posting without forcing every poster to have Blogger account. We don't want to go that far and are looking for alternative blogging software which will force registration.
Getting back to the issue at hand, we really need to move beyond the "if you don't like it, go back home" argument. It is an argument that no longer applies when this is your home. If you see injustice in your home - or for that matter even in a temporary home - I believe it is one's duty to try and do something about it.
Paul Walsh
GetHiroshima
I'm glad to see some very good posts here and shocked about anonymous #2's one. Although Japan isn't my home country it is my grandparents and I've been living here for the past 13 years, almost half of my life. Whether it was a choice or not, this is where I live and where I'm raising my child who was born here. I only got here because the Japanese governament made it esier for Japanese descendents to get a visa, the governament only did this because Japan's economy, more than a decade ago, needed workers to keep going on the pace it was. But first of all I only am Nikkei sansei and got that visa because my grandparents, in the beggining of last century, went to Brazil, when Japan's economy wasn't so good and they had better offers there. We, nikkei-jins didn't get here braking the doors and forcing ourselves in, we were invited to come. Anonymous #1, you are so right on your comment: "Could it be that Japan has a growing immigrant population that it is cruelly exploiting (as in the USA, UK, Western Europe, etc.), but that it doesn`t have the decency to even attempt to assimilate?". I allways paid the taxes and insurances as the Japanese citizens do but when it came to the benefits, for example, I had to take my employer, at the time, to court because as a foreigner he said I didn't have the right to the benefits. It wasn't right and I spent a lot of money, time and strentgh to fight against it almost alone. I won the case and the employer had to give the benefit I've asked for not just to me but to all the other foreign employees too.
We are all human beings no matter where we are or where we're from, and we do deserve to be treated as no less than that. If one doens't get the treatment one deserves, as an individual or group, it is our right to ask or fight for it. What happened last year in Yano was awful l but the way the media carried it out was vulgar. I didn't even know the guy but had to turn my cell phone off because the journalists and reporters wouldn't give me a brake trying to get an interview. They were chasing the latin-americans in the major factories in Kaita and even at our homes as if we were all the same and had something to do with it. Aparently the hunting wasn't over with the highlights on the news.
I believe it is very important to continue addressing this issue - not as a divisive non-Japanese vs Japanese issue - but as residents of Hiroshima (and Japan).
The document "Policy to Promote Multiculturalism in Hiroshima City", published by the mayor's office (link: http://www.city.hiroshima.jp/shimin/jinken/kokusaiteki/sisin_english.ver.htm) provides interesting reading,. The paper should focus us on what goals Hiroshima City Office has set, and provide a touchstone for what's being achieved as well as where these goals are falling short.
Mud-slinging matches between us all, who for better or worse, are trying to create a decent place to live, will eventually only work against us. Please let's keep the debate civil.
Sorry, link didn't publish fully there. You can find the document here:
http://www.city.hiroshima.jp/e/index-E.html
I think one thing people need to remember is this raid has been done at other clubs which are owned by Japanese.
Therefore, I wonder if it really was racist
Which clubs?
Paul Walsh
カフェジャマイカ？
This isn't a chat forum, but I will take the bait this time. Is this a question or a statement. Do you know this to be true, or are you rumormonerging? Either way if you aren't prepared to contribute to the discussion nor prepared to put your name to what you say, don't bother.
there is a filipino pub in Nagarekawa (I don't know the name). 50 policemen raided that place.
Also, the club in Kure, El something where though they weren't raided, they were also told no dancing by the police.
Hmmm I wonder which filipino pub in nagarekawa was raided? i am a filipino and would really like to see these pubs raided and checked every once in a while.
this is for the people who do not know, that hates places like el barco, dancing is not a sin, for your information "salsa" is not about touching women is a way of life is culture and but more than that is an art, what i can tell to you people, and in the other hand before you say anything like go back to your country, you should think about the fact that this "gaijin" like you callit are the people that do the hard work in japan this people are the blue collar community, my point of view is if you are saying this things you dont really appreciate what other people do, telling the facts we suffer from the same in the usa, and many other south american countries, and pretty much everywhere is call "RACISM" MY FRIENDS, wasnt to long ago that a japanesse guy killed some kids in a school?, question for you"HOW MANY KIDS WERE THEY?"wasit the devil like they say, the peruvian guy said? but in this case I DONT SEE PEOPLE MAKING THIS BIG OF A DEAL, im not american, im from a poor country in south america i have been in the us for more than 10 years now, japan is not the world let me tell you, is nice to live because of the culture, the people, but other than that ,it suck....... to the barco owner, you are a good man i know you, hopefully comes out allright for you.
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