5 ms·

One can only speculate, but here are some possible factors : 1) Firearms are not widely available, and must be registered. Violent crime usually involves knive

by cyorir 12y ago

One can only speculate, but here are some possible factors : 1) Firearms are not widely available, and must be registered. Violent crime usually involves knives rather than firearms. 2) Japan has little in the way of slums or ghettos. Low-income communities are not as prone to problems with crime. 3) Low availability of drugs. With less reliance on drugs, drug trafficking and associated crimes are less prevalent. 4) Homogenous society. There is little in the way of ethnic tension, with only a few notable minorities. 5) Gang culture. Organized criminal groups like the yakuza are more business oriented than violence oriented. They are more likely to go after the crimes that provide more money, including white collar crimes and crimes like extortion. They also prefer to lay low, avoiding violent activity which would draw the attention of the police and politicians. 6) Police culture. The police only move forward with an investigation if there is enough to go on, leading to a high conviction rate. 7) Low unemployment. Most people who want work have it. Otherwise there are usually enough welfare programs to keep others content and out of trouble.

nosuchthing 12y ago
Kamagasaki has been a place name since 1922. An accurate count of occupants has never been produced, even in the national census, due to the large population of day laborers who lack permanent addresses. It has the largest day laborer concentration in the country. 30,000 people are estimated to live in every 2,000 meter radius in this area, part of which has been in slum-like conditions until as recently as 2012, containing run-down housing structures and untidy streets. The area surrounding Kamagasaki is upscale, clean and attracts tourists with popular sightseeing spots including the Tsutenkaku, Shinsekai, and Nipponbashi. However, in Kamagasaki, homeless people can often be seen sleeping in the streets throughout the day. Many Bōryokudan offices are located in Kamagasaki, and drug and weapons trafficking is thought to occur daily. Illegal gambling stores are often in business in broad daylight. A seemingly endless line of illegally parked cars extends along the national highway just across from the Nishinari police station. The police do not bother issuing tickets knowing that the fines will never be paid. The city government of Osaka does not allow the name "Kamagasaki" to appear on official maps and discourages the use of the name in the media. A film set in the neighborhood by director Shingo Ota which was partially financed by the city, called "Fragile", was pulled from the 2013-2014 Osaka Asian Film Festival after Ota refused to cut scenes from the film that identified the location of the community and referenced certain aspects of its culture. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamagasaki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamagasaki
- magic_beans 12y ago
  Um... what is the comment referring to?
  - CocaKoala 12y ago
    He's pointing out that official statistics on crime in Japan may not accurately reflect reality.
    - rmc 12y ago
      And how it sounds like Japan does have slums
sasas 12y ago
> Low availability of drugs. You been to Roppongi recently? Drugs are being pushed everywhere by specific demographics (non Japanese working for the Yakuza). > Police culture. The police only move forward with an investigation if there is enough to go on, leading to a high conviction rate. Do you have a reference ? I suspect that's an incorrect statement. They have a high conviction rate due to putting people under duress. [1][2][3][4][5] [1] http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-20810572 http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-20810572 [2] http://californiainnocenceproject.org/2013/01/japan-concerned-over-false-confessions/ http://californiainnocenceproject.org/2013/01/japan-concerne... [3] http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/11/world/asia/11japan.html?pagewanted=all http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/11/world/asia/11japan.html?pa... [4] http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/07/world/asia/07iht-japan.1.5596308.html?pagewanted=all http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/07/world/asia/07iht-japan.1.5... [5] http://www.imadr.org/sayama/justice.html http://www.imadr.org/sayama/justice.html
- cyorir 12y ago
  Roppongi may have a significant drug trafficking problem, and you can probably find other such areas with similar problems (Shinjuku or Shibuya, perhaps?) but I think that for the most part these areas are the exception rather than the rule. There are many parts of Japan without the same drug problems. I should have said, "prosecutors move forward with a case" rather than, "police move forward with an investigation." The idea is that Japan has a lower prosecution rate than the US, due to a limited number of prosecutors and limited resources. I suspect that the difference in conviction rate arises from a variety of factors, including both lower prosecution rate and coercion. [0] http://kelley.iu.edu/riharbau/RePEc/iuk/wpaper/bepp2008-16-rasmusen-raghav-ramseyer.pdf http://kelley.iu.edu/riharbau/RePEc/iuk/wpaper/bepp2008-16-r...
  - sasas 12y ago
    Thanks for the link, interesting read. Can't help but think back to reading forum posts of numerous gaijins being locked up for 3 weeks kept under duress in order to secure a confession. [0] [0] http://www.reddit.com/r/japan/comments/1t09ud/did_time_in_a_japanese_jail_ama/ http://www.reddit.com/r/japan/comments/1t09ud/did_time_in_a_...

by cyorir 12y ago

nosuchthing 12y ago

Kamagasaki has been a place name since 1922. An accurate count of occupants has never been produced, even in the national census, due to the large population of day laborers who lack permanent addresses. It has the largest day laborer concentration in the country. 30,000 people are estimated to live in every 2,000 meter radius in this area, part of which has been in slum-like conditions until as recently as 2012, containing run-down housing structures and untidy streets. The area surrounding Kamagasaki is upscale, clean and attracts tourists with popular sightseeing spots including the Tsutenkaku, Shinsekai, and Nipponbashi. However, in Kamagasaki, homeless people can often be seen sleeping in the streets throughout the day. Many Bōryokudan offices are located in Kamagasaki, and drug and weapons trafficking is thought to occur daily. Illegal gambling stores are often in business in broad daylight. A seemingly endless line of illegally parked cars extends along the national highway just across from the Nishinari police station. The police do not bother issuing tickets knowing that the fines will never be paid. The city government of Osaka does not allow the name "Kamagasaki" to appear on official maps and discourages the use of the name in the media. A film set in the neighborhood by director Shingo Ota which was partially financed by the city, called "Fragile", was pulled from the 2013-2014 Osaka Asian Film Festival after Ota refused to cut scenes from the film that identified the location of the community and referenced certain aspects of its culture. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamagasaki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamagasaki

magic_beans 12y ago
Um... what is the comment referring to?
- CocaKoala 12y ago
  He's pointing out that official statistics on crime in Japan may not accurately reflect reality.
  - rmc 12y ago
    And how it sounds like Japan does have slums

sasas 12y ago

> Low availability of drugs. You been to Roppongi recently? Drugs are being pushed everywhere by specific demographics (non Japanese working for the Yakuza). > Police culture. The police only move forward with an investigation if there is enough to go on, leading to a high conviction rate. Do you have a reference ? I suspect that's an incorrect statement. They have a high conviction rate due to putting people under duress. [1][2][3][4][5] [1] http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-20810572 http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-20810572 [2] http://californiainnocenceproject.org/2013/01/japan-concerned-over-false-confessions/ http://californiainnocenceproject.org/2013/01/japan-concerne... [3] http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/11/world/asia/11japan.html?pagewanted=all http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/11/world/asia/11japan.html?pa... [4] http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/07/world/asia/07iht-japan.1.5596308.html?pagewanted=all http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/07/world/asia/07iht-japan.1.5... [5] http://www.imadr.org/sayama/justice.html http://www.imadr.org/sayama/justice.html

cyorir 12y ago
Roppongi may have a significant drug trafficking problem, and you can probably find other such areas with similar problems (Shinjuku or Shibuya, perhaps?) but I think that for the most part these areas are the exception rather than the rule. There are many parts of Japan without the same drug problems. I should have said, "prosecutors move forward with a case" rather than, "police move forward with an investigation." The idea is that Japan has a lower prosecution rate than the US, due to a limited number of prosecutors and limited resources. I suspect that the difference in conviction rate arises from a variety of factors, including both lower prosecution rate and coercion. [0] http://kelley.iu.edu/riharbau/RePEc/iuk/wpaper/bepp2008-16-rasmusen-raghav-ramseyer.pdf http://kelley.iu.edu/riharbau/RePEc/iuk/wpaper/bepp2008-16-r...
- sasas 12y ago
  Thanks for the link, interesting read. Can't help but think back to reading forum posts of numerous gaijins being locked up for 3 weeks kept under duress in order to secure a confession. [0] [0] http://www.reddit.com/r/japan/comments/1t09ud/did_time_in_a_japanese_jail_ama/ http://www.reddit.com/r/japan/comments/1t09ud/did_time_in_a_...