Whispering campaign started.. Get your ID's ready..

[GomiGirl]

This happened to my mother yesterday.. she has lived in Japan with my father for 3 years - Visa all correct etc.

The lady in the fruit shop who sees my mother every second day greets her by name for the first time yesterday. The check-out lady from the supermarket who has only greeted my father in Japanese, suddenly asks him yesterday in perfect English, "How is your wife?"

My mother arrived home from work yesterday to discover a policeman at her front door. He asked, very politely if he could come inside. He looked around the apartment and asked to see her Alien card, her passport and visa documents. He then asked about my father (who is on a dependant spouse visa) and where he was etc.

He then asked whom they should contact in case of emergency and my mother named my brother and myself and had to give our addresses and company details.

I am expecting a little visit from a policeman very soon. I have the correct visa etc so am not worried.

What the concern is that is seems as if the police have done a check with all of the local merchants about any foreigners that live in the area. Of course we stand out as we live in a Japanese neighbourhood and so the merchants have identified my parents.. (well my dad is over 6feet so he stands out) and have started to check up..

I had an apartment check from the local plods about 6 months ago. I am expecting a return visit this week.

Thank you Ishihara-san, for turning my neighbourhood into Beijing during the Cultural Revolution... Surely the police resources could be better utilised elsewhere..

[ramchop]

Is this a local Koban big boy on the block thing or more of a central police force Ishihara is God initiative?

[GomiGirl]

Is this a local Koban big boy on the block thing or more of a central police force Ishihara is God initiative?

Hard to say as every time but when I have visited the local Koban in the past, there were no english speakers. This guy had perfect English and appeared to have been "sent" to check on the foreign couple in the neighbourhood - and only them. It wasn't a routine check on who lives in the building.. this was a check inside the apartment and to inspect their visas and gaikoku-jin-toroku-sho.

I am not usually this paranoid but...

[Taro Toporific]

...I am expecting a little visit from a policeman very soon. I have the correct visa etc so am not worried...

Gee, doing this household survey is a job REQUIREMENT of every cop on the beat in Japan. The Big Brother treatment is for Japanese too.

Many cops avoid doing the survey gaijin since we are so scary. However, every Japanese will be nailed sooner or later when they move into a new neighborhood. In the countryside, often the local cop will just fill out the form without your knowledge SINCE anybody knows all about the local ALIEN.

In Tokyo, Toshima-ward, it used to take 4-9 months before they would catch up with me just like the NHK collector. In Yokohama, it took 3 months before they came creeping up to my door. Most cops are real SHY about asking a large, wise-cracking gaijin about filling out their form.

Note it is ONLY "custom" to fill out the form; there's no law FORCING you to fill it out. For my first 8 years I used to snatch the form out of the cop's hands, tell them I was "busy" and throw away the form.

[GomiGirl]

We are all registered with the Koaban and they paid me a visit about 6 months ago just to say hi and check to see if I was still living there.. not a problem.

This wasn't a building check or residents.. it was a visa check.

The wierd thing is that all of a sudden the local merchants are greeting my parents by name and in English, but they haven't done this before. Plus how did they all find out their names - first names, not surnames.

Co-incidence?

[AssKissinger]

That's creepy, Gomi. I've never had the police visit me, fortunately. In fact, the only time I ever dealt with them was when I was in a car accident. I think that sucks that police went around talking about your family members with people in the community. It might make people suspect something suspicious or unsavory is going on. I agree it is reminiscent of Maoist China.

[Taro Toporific]

...This guy had perfect English and appeared to have been "sent" to check on the foreign couple in the neighbourhood - and only them. It wasn't a routine check on who lives in the building.. this was a check inside the apartment and to inspect their visas and gaikoku-jin-toroku-sho.

I am not usually this paranoid but...

Sounds, like a police interpreter/gaijin wranger was kicked out of the district office. They often have no work to do...I hang out at the local police dojo which has a "community Saturday" session and the gaijin wranger says the NPA started demanding a weekly timesheet of their work since last April.

[Taro Toporific]

...This wasn't a building check or residents.. it was a visa check.
The wierd thing is that all of a sudden the local merchants are greeting my parents by name and in English, but they haven't done this before. Plus how did they all find out their names - first names, not surnames.
Co-incidence?

OK, I will just ask the local chief tonight since I'll be in the district station to get my new park-anywhere-I-damn-feel-like-it permit. He normally invites me into the office for tea rather than forcing me to stand at the counter. I'll report back what he said about any policy changes when I get back home at 7pm.

[Taro Toporific]

...This wasn't a building check or residents.. it was a visa check....
Co-incidence?

OK, I will just ask the local chief tonight since I'll be in the district station...

Ok, the parents of GomiGirl are safe. My Keisatsu sho-cho(district chief) told me there's only "talk" of reassigning cops to immigration duties and the cops are NOT happy at the thought. He said that Shinjuku-ku does have a pilot program of rousting FGs, but that's only for asians.

After shift change and the o-tama count-o (bullet count at the end of day), we went out drinking at a Hawaiian Tiki bar. After several rounds of drinks he said in to me me, shimpai nai/don't worry and then he laughed in EngRish, "We are not dogcatchers."
Oh, I loooove shacho "jokes".

[cstaylor]

...chalk up another reason for NOT living in Tokyo. No problems yet here in Yokohama.

[cstaylor]

Whenever I read an article about the Japanese police, I always hear Roscoe's voice: "We gonna get those gaijin boys this time".

[cstaylor]

1,643 foreigners found violating immigration law in Tokyo in 1 month

More than 1,600 foreigners were found violating the immigration control law in Tokyo and nearby regions during a month-long clamp-down operation through last Friday, the Justice Ministry's Immigration Bureau said Tuesday.

Looks like you guys were checked during the sweep.

[devicenull]

meh, could be worse. as long as you are not an illegal there isnt much of anything to worry about IMHO.

[cstaylor]

meh, could be worse. as long as you are not an illegal there isnt much of anything to worry about IMHO.

[quote]They came for the Communists, and I didn't object - For I wasn't a Communist]

[American Oyaji]

Taro!


Please make your icon smaller.

[NeoNecroNomiCron]

Taro!


Please make your icon smaller.

yours it to big to lol

[Caustic Saint]

Taro!
Please make your icon smaller.

yours it to big to lol

AO's is 120x120. Yours is 128x128.

You were saying?

[NeoNecroNomiCron]

Taro!
Please make your icon smaller.

yours it to big to lol

AO's is 120x120. Yours is 128x128.

You were saying?

I never denied it, I know mine is to big that why the situation is funny hence the lol :P but mine is worth the extra 324 pixels, no?

[kamome]

mine is worth the extra 324 pixels, no?

No.

[jim katta]

Wow! Hey Gomi, do you and your family still feel okay spending money at the konbini that tried to rat you out? I would totally be offended and consider taking my biz elsewhere. I mean, I'm assuming your mom and dad went there regularly for a long time, so a superficial, though friendly, merchant/consumer relationship had been established. Did this merchant really just nark on you guys like that after years of service???

I agree with the statement "first the came for [fill in the blank] and I said nothing..." This is really creepy. If you are law abiding and not causing a stir, getting the gestapo treatment is kinda uncool. But, again, I guess when you're living in a country not your own, there's really on so much you can protest in righteous indignation. Still, very uncool.

[stuckinkysuhu]

I was always under the impression that immigration deals with immigration stuff and the koban dudes just deal with registration for local residents and stuff. I have had a visit from immigration when I first moved here just to get stuff straightened out but they called first and made an "appointment" and stuff so I didn't feel too offended. I also had a koban visit but after they left and I went out I saw them doing the same thing to my Japnanese next-door neighbour who had also just moved in. If they really are starting "crossover" I hope it means expanding the force and not pulling cops doing regular police duties off the street .

[cstaylor]

That was what Ishihara was pushing for during his election cycle. Remember the Ikebukuro crackdown right after he won? This is the next step in his campaign.

In one sentence: all immigrants are criminals, therefore the NPA should run immigration instead of the foreign ministry. I don't agree with him, but that's his position.

[Nagged]

Sorry if this is a stupid question, but out of the 1,600 illegal residents, how many were legal residents?

My friends assure me that Govenor Blinky is widely regarded as an idiot. Hopefully he won't get re-elected.

[cstaylor]

My friends assure me that Govenor Blinky is widely regarded as an idiot. Hopefully he won't get re-elected.

He's not regarded as an idiot by the people who matter: Japanese with voting rights within Tokyo-To.

Yet, just like his pledge to rid Tokyo of the crows, this problem won't be easily solved either. I wish he had just finished the job with the crows before moving onto immigration issues.

[Nagged]

My friends assure me that Govenor Blinky is widely regarded as an idiot. Hopefully he won't get re-elected.

He's not regarded as an idiot by the people who matter: Japanese with voting rights within Tokyo-To.

Yet, just like his pledge to rid Tokyo of the crows, this problem won't be easily solved either. I wish he had just finished the job with the crows before moving onto immigration issues.

Probably not enough press exposure with the crows.

[kotatsuneko]

is the immigration visit only a tokyo thang?

never had it here. and our govt/immigration/legal building is just around the corner, a block away from the areas biggest police station so it cant be due to lack of manpower..

imho sapporo could *do* with one of those cleanouts starting at the uni's records of foreign students - who dont attend and work for the yak/triads along with the annoying african nation idiots downtown who laughably make out they are americans.. its no wonder why decent black americans have such a hard time with fools like those doing them an injustice - noticed the same thing in firenze also..

as the governer of hokkaido is sponsored/in the pocket of sokka gakkai i guess he's preoccupied with screwing what little money is assigned to the isle for his father cults needs instead.. shame really..

[American Oyaji]

I have never had a cop or police official come to my house.

If they did, I wasn't there. I was too busy working.

[devicenull]

meh, could be worse. as long as you are not an illegal there isnt much of anything to worry about IMHO.

They came for the illegals with no right to be there, but I had a visa and didnt care.

-fixed

[devicenull]

My friends assure me that Govenor Blinky is widely regarded as an idiot. Hopefully he won't get re-elected.

He's not regarded as an idiot by the people who matter: Japanese with voting rights within Tokyo-To.

Yet, just like his pledge to rid Tokyo of the crows, this problem won't be easily solved either. I wish he had just finished the job with the crows before moving onto immigration issues.

meh, if you care enough about it, do what you need to do to get voting rights as well.

[cstaylor]

Not a problem for me (yet), since I live in Yokohama.