Last July, a small Japanese magazine called Facta published an article on Olympus’s spectacular money-losing investments. Another magazine,Zaiten, followed up with an expose on Olympus’s failed investment branch, ITX. This prompted Woodford to begin examining the company’s records. By 12 October, Woodford urged the company chairman, Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, to step down due to “serious governance concerns”. The response of the Olympus board was to strip Woodford of his executive position, while playing it to the Japanese media that he had been fired due to cultural clashes with management.

The Japanese mainstream press went with the cultural angle. But the foreign media – led by the Financial Times – began an assault on Olympus, strongly questioning its management decisions. When mainstream Japanese newspaper Sankei Shinbun ran an interview with Woodford in which he voiced his misgivings, the rest of the Japanese media began pursuing allegations of malfeasance as well.

Japanese Corporate Chess is an easy game until the pawns start refusing to play as pawns. This can only be done once you reach the other side of the board...or the ocean.

By 26 October, with Olympus stock prices tanking, Kikukawa stepped down as chairman to become a director – while remaining on the board. The Tokyo stock exchange’s head lambasted the company shortly afterwards. Japan’s financial services agency began their own investigation, and the Japanese police began to look at whether Olympus executives could be charged with special breach of trust.

The series of mysterious transactions that have taken place at Olympus since 2006 would take pages to describe. To sum them up succinctly, between 2006-2008 the company is said to have bought three firms for ¥73.5bn, and wrote them down ¥55.5bn in 2009. In addition, the firm spent ¥210bn buying UK medical-instruments maker Gyrus Group in 2008, of which almost a third of the costs were paid to two mysterious financial advisory firms in the US and the Cayman Islands.

Most of the press coverage, except for that from the astute Hiroko Tabuchi at the New York Times, has been primarily focused on the dealings involving Gyrus, but a look at Olympus’s investments in the three supposedly unrelated companies – Altis, a waste disposal and recycling company, Humalabo, a nutritional supplement maker/facial cream seller and News Chef, a seller of microwave cooking ware and asset management firm – may be more revealing of core problems at the firm.

For the rest of the story, go to The Guardian 

Saturday, October 15^th, Occupy Wall Street went global. Around 300 people around Tokyo came out to march in 2 separate locations. Japan Subculture went to check out what was happening at Hibiya Park, where 100 protestors marched through the Roppongi district.

How did Occupy Tokyo come about? The story is another testimony to the efficiency of social networking in organizing demonstrations. According to participants, just a few days prior to the event, “meetup” group members on the forum Occupy Together were testing out interest in Tokyo. Michele from California, one of the first to post on the Tokyo thread, tells about how she and many others decided to participate; “It started off with the post ‘What’s going on in Tokyo? I’m ready if you are’, and picked up from there”. It moved from the forum to Twitter, and then Facebook; and on Saturday about 150 people showed up at Hibiya Park to march in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street protests.

While many of the demonstrators carried signs in step with the New York City movement, many were not related to income inequality at all. Several people were out protesting against nuclear power, TEPCO, and the government, and there was also a small cohort carrying signs that said, “Free Tibet”.

All pictures were taken by Said Karlsson. More of his work can be seen at www.saidkarlsson.com.

The Procession

 The Characters

many present were echoing Occupy Wall Street's dissent

"Japanese people - keep your mouth shut til you get slaughtered like sheep? Smash your TV!"

many held signs protesting the Chinese government's treatment of Tibet

a woman in a passing bus contemplates the protest

boys in a passing bus take interest

anti-nuclear signs were among the most numerous

Michele, from California, and her son (middle and left) with friend Rohini from Seattle have washed and re-used this towel many times since before the Iraq invasion. It previously read, "War is Wrong"

A head clerk at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forest and Fisheries was arrested June 19 for groping a woman on a train while riding the Kawagoe Line in Saitama. Over a period of about 10 minutes, the man reportedly touched the left breast of an 18-year-old woman sitting next to him. A man sitting across from the pair noticed what was happening, and succeeded in restraining the suspect when he attempted to run. The man denies the accusation and says he was just sleeping.

An employee at a tax office in Kanagawa was arrested June 20 for groping the breast of a female acquaintance while at an izakaya. The man denies having touched her on purpose, saying she came and leaned on him.

A grimmer tale: Police apprehended a 47-year-old elementary school teacher on June 19 for distribution of child pornography. Police say between March 16 and 19, a shared folder on the Aichi man’s computer, visible through eMule, contained a porn video with what appeared to be an elementary-aged girl in it. The man admits to the charges, saying he had shared the video so others would share files with him. The school district superintendent made a public apology to the town, and said it feels like the district has been betrayed.

In Wakayama, an ear, nose and throat doctor went to trial June 16 for charges of attempted indecent assault of a female office worker at the clinic. During the incident, which happened last July, the doctor is accused of molesting the woman during a staged tuberculosis examination.

In similar news, we occasionally hear of bad behavior in the SDF, but this one is grimace-worthy: A 22-year-old private in the Maritime Self Defence Force was arrested for public obscenity and assault in Kyoto prefecture after he reportedly flashed his man bits at a 55-year-old woman then splashed what police believe to be urine on her back. All this in a public library.

My husband run a hostess club illegally? Never!

Actress and talento Moe Yamaguchi was “really stunned” when she learned her husband, web entrepreneur Shigeo Ozeki, has been illegally running a posh hostess club without a license.

Ozeki and two other men were arrested May 26 for their suspected connection with “Birth Nishi-Azabu“, an exclusive but unlicensed hostess club hidden in a residential neighbourhood in Tokyo’s Minato ward. Opened in 2004, the cabaret club entertained an exclusive list of clientele with attractive young women such as models and students from famous universities. The club is said to have welcomed Tokyo politicians and celebrities, and pulled anywhere between 7 million and 8 million yen in profits per month.

Ozeki denies having anything to do with the club, saying he sold the goodwill to an acquaintance (who was also arrested) after opening it in 2004. Authorities are suspicious of monthly deposits from Birth into Ozeki’s bank account between 3 and 4 million yen, and believe he may have continued to directly manage the operation.

Police say Yamaguchi was present when they searched the couple’s Hiroo home. She released a statement Tuesday evening through her agency apologising for her husband’s behavior. “I was just really stunned when I heard the news,” she said.

Along with being married to his celebrity wife, Ozeki is known as the founder of the online shopping website EC Navi. The couple were married in 2002. According to Cyzo, Ozeki has often fancied himself a high-rolling businessman and bragged about his lavish lifestyle. In recent times, however, weekly magazines have carried rumors of embezzlements and dismissals from one of his own companies, along with stories of some rather conspicuous womanizing. Cyzo says that although Yamaguchi has been disturbed by the news, she still believes her husband.

Read the Japanese articles here, here and here.

Welcome to a joshi-kousei kengaku club.

As an evolution of the deai cafe and other fuzoku phenomenon, “high school girl viewing clubs” began appearing at the end of last year. The number of establishments has rapidly increased in Kanagawa and Tokyo prefectures, with many opening in locations such as Akihabara and Suidobashi.

Authorities investigated a club in Yokohama late last month under suspected violation of the Labor Standards Act. The venue, located amongst the restaurants and bars of the city’s Naka ward, has no sign, and those looking to visit must call ahead and get the location of the building.

Inside a club, bubbly Jpop music is piped into dark rooms and corridors. “You can relax and enjoy your time here because it’s not a brothel and it’s not illegal,” says a woman at the reception. Five small booths await paying customers with waiting times reaching far beyond an hour during busy periods.

Visitors choose between 3,000 yen for 30 minutes or 5,000 yen for 50. Upon paying, customers enter their booth, which is divided by a curtain, and look through a one-way mirror into the room full of young girls. For an extra 2,000 yen, a customer can select a girl to have sit directly in front of his booth for 10 minutes.

Because the booths are separated by curtains, customers are conscious of the men next to them. Inside the rooms there is nothing; no box of tissues, no garbage bin. A sign on the wall prohibits photos and videos.

Girls’ voices can be heard from outside. “After this let’s go get something to eat.” “I’m knackered today..” Dribs and drabs of daily life. Some chat, others read manga, but none show any sign of embarrassment at revealing their goods to the men on the other side. Some girls come in wearing normal clothing, and grab uniforms that the venue provides for them. They change, showing little sign they even know men are watching.

As the Sankei put it, “It’s like an aquarium with high school girls on display.”

The girls who populate the clubs see it less as a sexual service than just an easy way to make money. According to police, the girls get paid between 800 and 1,000 yen per hour at the club, and no sexual services are involved. About 40 girls in Kanagawa alone have registered for the job, and some girls reap up to 10,000 yen per day.

The shop advertises itself as offering enticing glimpses of real schoolgirls, and requires all potential “employees” to show their school ID to prove they’re in high school. Middle school students and girls over 18 aren’t allowed.

Police point out that, while the room is walled in one-way mirrors, the girls can still partially see the men, and have some idea of what they’re doing.

According to fuzoku journalist Yukio Murakami, the popularity of “high school girl viewing clubs” comes from how well they target a specific clientele. “Men are becoming more herbivorous,” he says. “I think ‘lite fuzoku’ that provides no actual sexual service kind of matches the generation.” Although herbivores are interested in girls, Murakami says, they’re also afraid of what might happen if they get caught looking on the street or in a train. Clubs give them a space to peep without fear.

Fuzoku writer Chuya Nakao says, “While there’s a lot of regular sex shops that have closed down because of the economy, ‘lite fuzoku’ has definitely taken off.” He predicts that fuzoku itself is certainly not going anywhere, as women learn they can have fun and make easy money through this kind of shop.

Police are attempting to target the clubs to curtail this new expansion into the fuzoku industry. Club “Yokohama Mambo” was investigated by police last month in an attempt to press child welfare laws against the venue, but because the girls are free to come and go as they please, the law wasn’t applicable. Authorities finally landed upon the Labor Standards Act, as it stipulates youth may not work in places that are hazardous from a hygienic or social welfare standpoint. They hope to investigate similar premises under the same law.

Read the original article here.

See the layout of Yokohama Mambo here.

Japanese stories here and here.

In Ishinomaki, Miyagi prefecture, authorities report that recently groups called “West Japan Retail Association” and “West Japan Volunteer Club” have been seen distributing envelopes containing around 30,000 yen in cash to victims living in evacuation shelters. City officials who saw the groups feared residents who didn’t receive money would feel hostility towards those that did, and pleaded that the men contribute the money as a large donation, but were ignored. Similar groups have been sighted in Minami-sanriku. Authorities have investigated the groups, and believe them to be operated by the Yamaguchi-gumi Kodo-kai.

Police sources say they suspect yakuza groups are already involved in cleanup work in the disaster zone. They’re currently keeping careful watch over trash processing facilities and monitoring the purchase of construction equipment that will inevitably become necessary when rebuilding begins.

Just as they always do, police are trying to rally together cooperation in the industry to keep out the yakuza, amongst disaster-struck businesses, builders, landfill owners and the like. Authorities stress to disaster victims that it’s illegal to accept money from organized crime groups, or to use their services. Experts say, however, that as groups become more clever in the way they operate, it becomes increasingly difficult to differentiate between them and normal businesses.

The mob has always been on the lookout for business opportunities in desperate times, and the Yamaguchi-gumi is known to have profited off of cleanup work after the Great Hanshin Earthquake in 1995. Authorities say that “Piles of rubble are like mountains of treasure for organized crime groups.” One man’s trash, eh?

Doing a bit of asa-dachi?!

An English teacher was arrested this Easter Sunday after he did what many Japan residents dream of doing: Telling those pesky campaigning politicians that they’re loud and obnoxious.

English citizen Edward Jones, 34, was in Tokorozawa, Saitama, and had been having a few drinks with friends when the group happened upon a local politician campaigning with microphone and loud speaker outside of JR Higashi-Tokorozawa Station. Jones grabbed the mic from the politician’s hand and yelled at him, amongst other things, “nihon no senkyo wa urusai!” (Japanese elections are loud!) He was arrested for “obstruction of freedom” (自由妨害).

To this we say, “Right on, Jones-san!!” Noisy campaign trucks plague neighborhoods around the country during the weeks leading up to any election, as hopeful candidates mindlessly repeat their names and manifestos for hours on end, finishing each loop with an unwelcome “yoroshiku onegaishimasu!”

Japan’s outdated election rules disallow politicians from using the Internet to campaign (though for a few years now there have been hopes this will change), and candidates are forced to rely on newspapers, TV and public appearances to make their appeal.

Fun fact: The custom where candidates and politicians to stand out in front of a station or other public place and greet passer-bys first thing in the morning is known as asa-dachi (朝立ち). Asa-dachi has a few other meanings, one of which is morning wood.

Original article here.

Police prepare to raid the Yamaguchi-gumi headquarters April 11. Photo from Jiji Tsushin

There goes the neighbourhood.. again. Kobe authorities led a raid on the Yamaguchi-gumi headquarters April 22, bringing a mass of 100 officers as backup for a quick in-and-out of the premises. The 30-minute search was ordered in connection with the April 11 arrest of second-level gang boss Noriaki Imura. Imura was picked up for attempted blackmail after, back in November 2010, he and an associate were visiting an Osaka massage parlour and got angry when they saw one of their favourites get scolded by a staff member, then violently demanded to be paid mikajime-ryo.

This is the first raid made on the Yamaguchi-gumi headquarters since the release of leader Kenichi Sonoda, also known as Shinobu Tsukasa, after serving most of a six-year prison sentence for gun possession. Police are cracking down out of concern that, with the release of the gang’s head honcho, the Yamaguchi-gumi may try and once again increase their influence. Kobe residents had better invest in some good earplugs.

Original article here.

Government officials cited how local citizen’s co-operation would be vital in ensuring the regulations come to fruit, printing the adverts in hopes of reaching a large portion of the prefecture’s 1.4 million people. The fliers are flashy, printed double-side and in color, with numerous illustrations and warnings against the dangers of dealing with organised crime.

The regulations, set to come into effect August 1, include some of the most serious anti-organised crime efforts to date. The ordinances will prohibit construction companies from erecting, renovating or doing maintenance on yakuza-related offices and buildings, a nation-wide first. Organised crime groups will also be prohibited from operating within 200 meters of any parks or schools.

Original article here. If anyone can get a copy, let us know!

Jake’s note: Notice how Sarah now spells organized crime with an “s”. She’s been in Britain too long. It happens. We won’t prohibit this United Kingdom spelling on the website, but now will be as flexible in our spelling as we are in our fight against organi(z)ed crime.