Tokyo governor Shintaro Ishihara Remarks about Foreigners

石原慎太郎と外国人
By: Imtiaz A. Chaudhry/イムテアーズ　チョウドリー
　

A series of remarks by Tokyo governor Shintaro Ishihara has made the situation worse in Japan. I personally think this is either his way of calling attention to himself, a bizarre attempt to get build a reputation among Tokyoites.

He has changed his remarks almost daily since his initial reference to "Sangokujin" (a derogatory word that literally means "people from third countries," and generally refers to those from the former Japanese colonies of Taiwan, China, and the Korean Peninsula). Now he is claiming that the Pakistanis, Iranians and Chinese in Japan are criminals and drug dealers and that Pakistanis are pushing Chinese-made drugs.

As a foreigner myself, I don’t think non-Japanese are actually involved in many drug cases here. Of course there are all kinds of people in every country. But Ishihara is wrong to imply that all Japanese are good people and all drug trafficking is done by foreigners. Before making such remarks he must learn to think about what he is going to say. Blaming other nationalities without proof is playing with fire and with Japan’s future.

What about the Japanese nationals involved, especially the gangsters? It seems that Ishihara will not say anything about them because they are his own nationals. This indicates that Ishihara shamelessly blames people of other nationalities but will not risk a Yakuza bullet by talking about them. This is both racist and cowardly. It is not acting in the interests of the people Ishihara was elected to represent.

Shintaro Ishihara as a politician:

Look around the world and you will find many politicians like Ishihara who tried to build their popularity by pandering in ugly ways. This is one of the few things Ishihara is good at.

His recent goading of China reveals a long-held disdain for other Asian people.

When a Japanese citizen of Korean descent, Shokei Arai, ran for the Diet in the same constituency as Ishihara in 1983, Ishihara's principal secretary was arrested for vandalizing Arai's campaign posters with the message: "Naturalized from North Korea in 1966." Furthermore, Ishihara's office spread the word that Arai could become a North Korean spy.

Is this an appropriate campaign method for an advanced country politician? Is this the sort of man who deserves to be the Governor of Tokyo?

These types of activities are routine for Shintaro Ishihara and his thugs. They have no place in a modern and increasingly international Tokyo. This city deserves a leader we can be proud of. If Ishihara hopes to be that man, he must change his racist ways and remember that the foreign community is also a part of the Tokyo population., a segment of the population that, despite Japan's immigration policies, is increasing day by day.

If Ishihara cannot live up to his job, he should step down from it.

　

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