People talk about right wing politicians rising in Europe (France, UK, Austria, Russia) but I have never heard a politician speak as much vile racist and sexist filth as the Mayor of Tokyo, and he is wildly popular.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shintaro_Ishihara#Racism
When I lived there (2001-2002) , I saw him speaking in front of Shinjuku Station (the largest Metro station) which is common for politicians in Japan, he was promoting someone else…he said something like “Look over there at Kabuki-cho (Redlight district less than half a mile away) the center of Sankokujin (third world) criminality, especially that of the Zainichi (Koreans born in Japan). I tell you if there is a major earthquake they will run wild in the streets of Japan like the Mongols, raping and looting like animals.”
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Oh but wait…it gets better:
In the 1983 general election, Ishihara’s first public secretary (Toshiki Kurihara) violated the public office election law by pasting 5000 black seals which read “Shokei Arai came from North Korea” on election posters of rival candidate Shokei Arai.[citation needed] Arai and Ishihara belonged to same party (LDP) and both were competing for the same election district (Tokyo-2). Kurihara was soon arrested by the police, but Ishihara did not acknowledge any connection with this violation, and did not apologize to Arai. [citation needed]
On April 9, 2000, in a speech before an SDF group, Ishihara publicly speculated that in the event a natural disaster struck the Tokyo area, foreigners would be likely to cause civil disorder, and stated that illegal immigrants in the Tokyo area were a major cause of crime. He referred to these immigrants as sangokujin (Japanese: 三国人; “third world person”), a term commonly viewed as derogatory.[2] Regarding this statement, Ishihara later said:
I referred to the “many sangokujin who entered Japan illegally.” I thought some people would not know that word so I paraphrased it and used gaikokujin, or foreigners. But it was a newspaper holiday so the news agencies consciously picked up the sangokujin part, causing the problem.
… After World War II, when Japan lost, the Chinese of Taiwanese origin and people from the Korean Peninsula persecuted, robbed and sometimes beat up Japanese. It’s at that time the word was used, so it was not derogatory. Rather we were afraid of them.
… There’s no need for an apology. I was surprised that there was a big reaction to my speech. In order not to cause any misunderstanding, I decided I will no longer use that word. It is regrettable that the word was interpreted in the way it was. [3]
Much of the criticism of this statement involved the historical significance of the term: sangokujin historically referred to ethnic Chinese and Koreans, working in Japan, many of whom were actually attacked by mobs of Japanese people following the Great Kantō earthquake of 1923.[2]Ishihara has made several other derogatory statements about non-Japanese. For instance, in a highly publicized statement at the Tokyo International Anime Fair on March 25, 2006, he said: “I hate Mickey Mouse. He has nothing like the unique sensibility that Japan has. The Japanese are inherently skilled at visual expression and detailed work.”[9] On February 20, 2006, Ishihara also said: “Roppongi is now virtually a foreign neighborhood. Africans — I don’t mean African-Americans — who don’t speak English are there doing who knows what. This is leading to new forms of crime such as car theft. We should be letting in people who are intelligent.”[10]
[edit] Other controversial statements
Ishihara stated in a 2001 interview with women’s magazine Shukan Josei that he subscribed to a theory that “old women who live after they have lost their reproductive function are useless and are committing a sin,” adding that he “couldn’t say this as a politician.” He was criticized in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly for these comments, but responded that the criticism was driven by “tyrant” “old women.”[11]During an inauguration of a university building in 2004, Ishihara stated that French is unqualified as an international language because it is “a language in which nobody can count,” referring to the counting system in French, which he believed to be based on units of twenty rather than ten (as is the case in Japanese and English). The statement led to a lawsuit from several language schools in 2005. Ishihara subsequently responded to comments that he did not disrespect French culture by professing his love of French literature on Japanese TV news. [12]
In the 1983 general election, Ishihara’s first public secretary (Toshiki Kurihara) violated the public office election law by pasting 5000 black seals which read “Shokei Arai came from North Korea” on election posters of rival candidate Shokei Arai.[citation needed] Arai and Ishihara belonged to same party (LDP) and both were competing for the same election district (Tokyo-2). Kurihara was soon arrested by the police, but Ishihara did not acknowledge any connection with this violation, and did not apologize to Arai. [citation needed]
On April 9, 2000, in a speech before an SDF group, Ishihara publicly speculated that in the event a natural disaster struck the Tokyo area, foreigners would be likely to cause civil disorder, and stated that illegal immigrants in the Tokyo area were a major cause of crime. He referred to these immigrants as sangokujin (Japanese: 三国人; “third world person”), a term commonly viewed as derogatory.[2] Regarding this statement, Ishihara later said:
I referred to the “many sangokujin who entered Japan illegally.” I thought some people would not know that word so I paraphrased it and used gaikokujin, or foreigners. But it was a newspaper holiday so the news agencies consciously picked up the sangokujin part, causing the problem.
… After World War II, when Japan lost, the Chinese of Taiwanese origin and people from the Korean Peninsula persecuted, robbed and sometimes beat up Japanese. It’s at that time the word was used, so it was not derogatory. Rather we were afraid of them.
… There’s no need for an apology. I was surprised that there was a big reaction to my speech. In order not to cause any misunderstanding, I decided I will no longer use that word. It is regrettable that the word was interpreted in the way it was. [3]
Much of the criticism of this statement involved the historical significance of the term: sangokujin historically referred to ethnic Chinese and Koreans, working in Japan, many of whom were actually attacked by mobs of Japanese people following the Great Kantō earthquake of 1923.[2]Ishihara has made several other derogatory statements about non-Japanese. For instance, in a highly publicized statement at the Tokyo International Anime Fair on March 25, 2006, he said: “I hate Mickey Mouse. He has nothing like the unique sensibility that Japan has. The Japanese are inherently skilled at visual expression and detailed work.”[9] On February 20, 2006, Ishihara also said: “Roppongi is now virtually a foreign neighborhood. Africans — I don’t mean African-Americans — who don’t speak English are there doing who knows what. This is leading to new forms of crime such as car theft. We should be letting in people who are intelligent.”[10]
[edit] Other controversial statements
Ishihara stated in a 2001 interview with women’s magazine Shukan Josei that he subscribed to a theory that “old women who live after they have lost their reproductive function are useless and are committing a sin,” adding that he “couldn’t say this as a politician.” He was criticized in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly for these comments, but responded that the criticism was driven by “tyrant” “old women.”[11]During an inauguration of a university building in 2004, Ishihara stated that French is unqualified as an international language because it is “a language in which nobody can count,” referring to the counting system in French, which he believed to be based on units of twenty rather than ten (as is the case in Japanese and English). The statement led to a lawsuit from several language schools in 2005. Ishihara subsequently responded to comments that he did not disrespect French culture by professing his love of French literature on Japanese TV news. [12]
He has said other things too, like America ships its low class blacks and Hispanics to Japan (speaking of the military) to commit crimes against Japanese people… 🙄
Now you would think if a guy like this is so popular there would be Japanese hate groups roaming the streets like in Russia, but it is exactly opposite…well for now. It is one of those things I still don’t understand about Japan, no matter how much my wife tries to explain it.
He also routinely says Chinese, Koreans, and Japanese are all different races.
Contrast this with:
In Japan to be a Japanese citizen you have to take a Japanese name that can be written in Chinese characters (kanji). Marutei Tsurunen (ツルネン マルテイ or 弦念 丸呈 Tsurunen Marutei, born 1940-04-30) is the first European and openly foreign-born Japanese member of the Diet of Japan (a Korean had previously served in the Diet, but presented himself as Japanese). He is a member of the Democratic Party of Japan, where he serves as Director General of the International Department.
He joins Sarkis Assadourian, Nabih Berri, Gisèle Halimi, Tom Lantos, Pierre Lellouche, Amir Peretz, Jacques Saada and Dominique de Villepin among politicians who are serving or have served in a legislature in a country other than their country of birth.
[edit] Biography
He was born Martti Turunen in Jaakonvaara, Finland.In 1967, at the age of 27, he traveled to Japan as a lay missionary of the Lutheran Church, accompanied by his first wife, who was also Finn (they later divorced). [1]
In 1974, when he was 34, he met his second wife, Sachiko, and he became enamored with the country. Having decided to become Japanese, he gained his citizenship in 1979, at the age of 39, and took on a Japanese version of his Finnish name.
Over the next decade, Tsurunen completed the first Finnish translations of The Tale of Genji and several other Japanese books while teaching English in Kanagawa prefecture.
He has two children, an older daughter and a son.
[edit] Politics
In 1992, at the age of 52, he ran for the town assembly in Yugawara and was elected. He subsequently wrote a popular book called Here Comes a Blue-Eyed Assemblyman (青い目の議員がゆく, Aoi me no giin ga yuku?).He served on the Yugawara assembly until 1995, when he made his first bid for the House of Councillors and lost.
In 2001, after writing another book called I Want to Be Japanese (日本人になりたい, Nihonjin ni naritai?), Tsurunen again failed to achieve a seat but was the first runner-up for the DPJ.
After the resignation of Kyosen Ohashi, Tsurunen finally entered the House of Councillors on 2002-10-04. His seat was not up for election in the election of 2004.
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November 12, 2007 at 11:10 PM
Dragon Horse
I should qualify this by saying as a black American my life in Japan was not bad. I felt safe everywhere in Tokyo. There are areas of the U.S. where I could be killed for being black or at least beaten. I have also never heard of any foreigner (Asian or otherwise) being assaulted for dating a Japanese woman or attached just for being foreign but for some attacks on ethnic Koreans born in Japan (Zainichi) around the time N.Korea was threatening to nuke Japan.
Another important distinction is that I did not encounter much hatred in Japan of non-Japanese people. The West has a lot of hate groups, and America especially, has a history of hatred against non-whites (especially where blacks are concerned). Hate is irrational and difficult to deal with. Discrimination based on ignorance or lack of contact is not. Most Japanese people I met were quite friendly once they had a chance to speak to me and get to know me. I find with “hateful” people there is no reasoning…they usually need an “American History X” type of experience to shake their resolve.
Japanese people are somewhat xenophobic and ethnocentric, but they are not skinheads or klansmen. My entire time in Japan I was able to secure work and live my life as freely as I did in America. I did find from talking to Americans who have lived in Japan for years (mostly white and black ex-military) that Japanese are friendly if they think you are “just visiting” or “going home soon” when you move in next to them in a residential family area with the intent to stay…then things might get a little messy, but I guess that is to be expected. Japan is not a nation of immigrations and is one of the most ethnically homogeneous nations on earth, with 98% of the people being Japanese and no real long lasting historic religious conflicts between the only two major religions (Shinto and Buddhism).
April 23, 2009 at 5:38 AM
john p burns
Sir/Madam, is this gentleman still the mayor of Tokyo, and if so, would he be interested in speaking to and ordinary citizen of Cairns, Queensland, Australia, and also speaking to a radio personality via him in cairns during the period 1/5/09 to 4/5/09, to suit him
Thank You John P.Burns
April 23, 2009 at 6:27 AM
Dragon Horse
I doubt it, I don’t think he speaks English but you can try. I’m not sure how to get in touch with him.
July 28, 2009 at 1:28 PM
Dave N
Tokyo’s mayor just vocally voices what most Japanese desire–Japan for the Japanese. He is coarse and uncouth, but the sentiment he expresses is noble and positive. Japan is an inspiration to us all by refusing to allow its nation to be polluted by vast hordes of foreigners.
July 28, 2009 at 1:38 PM
Dragon Horse
And Japan is literally dying, the country, at this point will see a decline in its standard of living in the next 50 years (starting in the next 10 years) due to rapid population growth and their ability to reproduce beyond replacement. I would assume as the standard of living slides (one can argue it has been for 20 years) that their will be even less will to have two children per family.
Thankfully most of the Japanese government has not allowed xenophobia to lower than IQ.
“To maintain a constant labor force between now and 2050, the United States will need to “import” only 330,000 immigrants a year; currently, the United States adds about 1 million immigrants to its population annually. But maintaining a constant labor force will be a huge challenge for other developed countries. Japan, an “immigration-resistant” society, would need to import 600,000 a year; and Europe as a whole would need to import 2.9 million a year.”
http://www.rand.org/publications/randreview/issues/spring2008/publisher.html
This will cause social problems. The type of immigrants Japan needs won’t come from Korea, the closest people to them culturally it will likely be Southeast Asia and China. Japan can not even integrate their existing Korean population after 3 generations, and they are not a visible minority, Southeast Asians and many Chinese will be. That being said many in the Japanese Diet know this, even if they don’t know what to do. Hopefully Japan can learn from Europe’s experience with their former colonial minorities and also with America and Canada and find some thing that works for Japan. One thing is certain, the definition of ‘who is Japanese’ and the “insular” society will have to change, and it will be painful, but they really have no choice…unless they want to the “sick men of Asia”.
As far as Japan for the “Japanese” ask the Ainu about that. lol Everyone migrated from somewhere, the Japanese are a composite of “immigrants” and preexisting aboriginals, despite the mythology of the Sun Goddess.
March 14, 2013 at 9:53 PM
Jack
Dragon Horse, I agree with your comments; Asians maybe somewhat xenophobic, but at least I know I won’t be racially attacked on or spit on by scumbag skinheads, racist KKK, or dumb rednecks, for being a minority. And racial tension is nothing like in the West. I’m an Asian American and have been mistreated living in Western countries like the U.S. and Australia.