Maciamo said:So you are saying that in Japan people aren't really free to walk in tshirt or bike around the neighbourhood during regular working hours without fearing to be arrested.That's not what I would call a free society. In the Benelux, you would need to provoke a policeman to get any reaction at all. People just don't get stopped and checked for ID for no reason if they did not cause an accident or commit a crime/offence. I cannot accept being stopped and interrogated on my work, where I live, where I am going, asked for my ID, etc. for no reason. It sounds Nazi or Communist, but in any way not like a free society.
Out of curiosity, did you ever call them out on their rude behavior? Did you ever confront them on it? I have a few friends who have been to Japan who are fluent (one is getting his Ph.D. in the language and literature), and they had stories like that, but they always ended with the gaijin confronting the offensive party. Things like, "I heard Japan was a land of polite people; apparently I was wrong" may prove effective.Maciamo said:That is also why I left Japan, because eventhough I learnt Japanese and did my best from the beginning to speak Japanese, even once I became fluent so many (older) Japanese would ignore me or say "No English !" and make gestures. That was the height of rudeness, and like in the opposite situation also bordering on racist hatred, as they just assumed that someone who didn't loook Japanese couldn't possibly speak Japanese.
CC1 said:Sounds like it is very good that you don't live in Japan!
Anyone care to guess how many times a Japanese cop has asked me for any I.D. other than my driver's license?
Anyone care to guess how many times a Japanese cop has remarked on the fact that I spoke Japanese to them? Or how many times they remarked on my being a foreigner at all?
Mike Cash said:I take it no one is interested in venturing a guess at the two questions I posed above:
GaijinPunch said:Indeed. I don't see why people b!tch and moan about a foreign country and choose to live their. If you don't like it, leave! There are plenty of other places in the world.
Mike Cash said:I take it no one is interested in venturing a guess at the two questions I posed above:
gaijinalways said:But I am a bit confused when people talk about foreign residents and say this isn't our home. What do you think I have been doing for 9 years, visiting?! Now if they were doing the ID checks equally, yeah, that would be fine, but they're not. Funny, 99% of the crimes in Japan are by Japanese. Terrorism, home grown so far (sarin attack, 1995, hijacked plane, 1970).
Maciamo said:And do you know any places which is perfect ? If I were to follow your advice, there would be no place for me to live, as I would always find plenty of things to complain about. The idea is to find the most liveable country among all those imperfections. Personally, being harassed by the police so often is just untolerable. Maybe I was unlucky, or it's the area in which I lived, or my schedule that coincided with ID check times... Anyway, I feel much better since I have left Japan.
こういう意見は、警察による職務質問に不満を抱く外国人の間でよく聞かれるのですが、gaijinalways said:Funny, 99% of the crimes in Japan are by Japanese. Terrorism, home grown so far (sarin attack, 1995, hijacked plane, 1970).
I sincerely believe that if I look like a criminal, every man does ! I think I rather look like someone who wouldn't protest when bullied by the police. Remember what has been said many times on this forum about the Japanese police; they rarely interfere with yakuza and other dangerous-looking people, but once an innocent-looking foreigner (who they suppose can't speak Japanese and doesn't law Japanese law) shows up they jump on him/her ! I guess that's why people like Mike Cash don't get stopped and asked for ID or bothered for nothing - they are too afraid !ArmandV said:Maybe you looked like a criminal-type to them. It could be the attitude you projected while walking the streets? Some people just seem to draw attention. You could be one of those.
Maciamo said:I sincerely believe that if I look like a criminal, every man does ! I think I rather look like someone who wouldn't protest when bullied by the police. Remember what has been said many times on this forum about the Japanese police; they rarely interfere with yakuza and other dangerous-looking people, but once an innocent-looking foreigner (who they suppose can't speak Japanese and doesn't law Japanese law) shows up they jump on him/her ! I guess that's why people like Mike Cash don't get stopped and asked for ID or bothered for nothing - they are too afraid !
Mike Cash said:I look like probable cause incarnate. If I were a cop, I'd be rousting me all the time.