Please note that, with two exceptions, the information provided in this Response is dated 1997 or earlier. Additionally, specific references to left-wing political activists being targeted by organized crime could not be found in the sources consulted, although more general references are included.

Organized crime groups in Japan are known both as yakuza and boryokudan (Committee for a Safe Society 1992; Parliament of Australia Feb. 1995; CSIS Nov. 1998). The largest of these groups, or gangs, is "Yamaguchi-gumi" based in Kobe (ibid.; Ryan 1995; Lyman and Potter 1997). They are reported to operate relatively openly and with public acceptance (Parliament of Australia Feb. 1995; Ryan 1995, 57; CSIS Nov. 1998). A 10 March 2000 AFP report stated that it is not against the law to be a gang member in Japan. A program associate with The Asia Program of the Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars claimed that "yakuza are largely tolerated by the police (so long as they do not harm ordinary citizens)" (Cox n.d.). The following information is based on a 1993 Senate report from the U.S. and is contained in a report by the Parliament of Australia on the activities of Japanese organized crime in Australia:

The success of Japanese criminal groups on the domestic front has been facilitated by their being allowed to operate in the open. Boryokudan have functioned largely as public corporations, maintaining offices which display their group logo, and even carrying business cards identifying their gang.

The Boryokudan, until recently, submitted membership lists to the National Police Agency (NPA). While the Japanese police have recently used the substantial intelligence base generated by these lists to expand anti-Boryokudan efforts, a significant number of Japanese police officers have traditionally held some degree of respect for the gangsters. Breaking with past acceptance of Boryokudan, on March 1, 1992, the Japanese Government began enforcement of a new 'Boryokudan Countermeasures Law.' The Japanese Government has also promulgated new money laundering statutes to go into effect at the end of l992 (Parliament of Australia Feb. 1995).

Different sources have referred to links between Japanese organized crime and right-wing groups. A 5 June 1994 article from The Boston Globe reported the killing of a Fuji Film Corporation executive believed to be linked to the company's refusal to pay "rightist demonstrators [who were] harassing their executives" and stated:

Police officials, scholars and rightist activists all agree that Japan's right wing, which long has had ties to the underworld here, is being taken over by the notorious yakuza. Increasingly, these gangsters are using the political organizations as cover for extortion and violence against business and government officials.

At the same time, financial and physical support from the yakuza has boosted the power and influence of Japan's extreme rightists far beyond what their numbers - estimated at between 20,000 and 120,000 - would otherwise command in a nation of 126 million people. ...

Takagi [a professor specializing on the Japanese right] estimates that 80 to 90 percent of extreme right groups "now are yakuza." Police sources put the percentage lower - between 25 and 50 percent - but law enforcement officials acknowledge it is increasingly difficult to determine which rightist groups have criminal affiliations and which do not. ...

The two groups increasingly "are acting together against common enemies" in the government, business and the media, Ota [police superintendent in section dealing with extreme right] said, as political reform efforts gradually undermine ties between long-established mainstream and far-right groups. ...

Rightist leaders acknowledge their closeness to yakuza groups masquerading as political activists. They say it is regrettable from a political standpoint, but that they cannot do without the yakuza support. ...

[In the late 1980s] the criminals began to set up their own formally registered political organizations.

"Politicians don't want to have a direct link with organized crime groups," Miyawaki ["a veteran security and defense official who once headed the National Police Agency's section dealing with rightists"] said. But if the criminals call themselves right-wingers, he went on, "the politicians feel more at ease and the public has more of a tendency to accept it."

These groups, often known among those who are aware of them as "broker uyoku" because of this role, "can be very dangerous," said Setsu Kobayashi, a professor of law at Keio University who has links both to the New Right Issui-Kai and to Ichiro Ozawa, the most powerful behind-the-scenes operator in Japan's political mainstream. "These are organized criminals who use the political organization to provide a legitimate cover."

The broker role grew large during the bubble economy of the late 1980s, when Japan was awash in money. This gave criminal-dominated rightist groups knowledge of illegal activities by politicians and corporations, Miyawaki said, creating possibilities for a virtually unlimited stream of payoffs.

Other sources also mention Japanese organized crime's links to right-wing groups (The Straits Times 13 Oct. 1996; Reuters 14 Jan. 1998; Cox 13 Dec. 1996; Japan: A Country Study Jan. 1994).

There are also other reports of official corruption related to Japanese organized crime, and links between police and gangsters.

A 28 August 1997 UPI report stated that the government has officially designated the Yamaguchi-gumi "as a crime organization" and that it "is under constant police surveillance."

A 14 March 1998 report from the South China Morning Post stated that in 1996, amid efforts by Japan's Ministry of Finance to "shut down the jusen, housing loan companies,"

Riot police surrounded the ministry while bureaucrats were forced to use a side entrance as specially equipped trucks containing hundreds of gangsters disguised as right-wing radicals drove around the ministry in slow circles, broadcasting messages aimed at ministry officials. ...

In 1995 a long suppressed report arising from a government investigation revealed that the jusen, which were mostly run by former Finance Ministry officials, had formed corrupt associations with gangsters. It also revealed the full extent of their exposure through bad loans to the gangs. ...

One of the keys to how corruption on such a grand scale was allowed to come about could be seen in a small incident at the time the ministry was under siege. Amid the intimidating broadcasts, a member of Japan's Security Police boarded the gangsters' control vehicle. The driver and the police officer were seen smiling at each other and seemed to be on extremely cordial terms. "We will do one more circuit and then call it a day today," the driver was heard telling the officer. The friendly aside revealed one of the sources of the enormous power Japan's gangsters wield: extremely close, almost symbiotic, relations with the police. They were able to threaten the very centre of Japan's power structure in part because of their relations with the police.

The relationship is one of mutual dependence. The police turn a blind eye to illegal activities in exchange for information, bribes and post-retirement jobs in gang-controlled industries. The gangs, for their part, rely on police protection to openly run, and advertise, illegal gambling and prostitution businesses throughout Japan. ...

Hitoshi Yamada, head of the Japan Bar Association's gangs sub-committee, said another reason for the close links between the gangs and police was rooted in the past, from a time when the gangs' strengths were used to fight communism.

A right-wing radical newspaper once ran an article saying the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department had ordered gangsters to be mobilised to fight a left-wing demonstration, Mr Yamada recalled. More than 95 per cent of Japan's right-wing organisations were fronts for gangsters, he added.

"The Security Police would never arrest gangsters broadcasting right-wing propaganda," he said.

"The police also originally turned a blind eye to prostitution and gambling rackets as a part of a carrot and stick approach," Mr Yamada said. "They would let them run these rackets in exchange for information about left-wingers and gangs dealing in drugs."

The detective association's Mr Kodama, who used to help fight communists and leftists for the Security Police, said the police had also used the gangsters to assassinate leftists.

"When you have had that sort of relationship in the past, it is hard to break it off later because (the gangs) have only to remind you of it," he said.

The gangs also maintain strong ties with politicians ...

Japan's newspaper industry and mass media also have a poor track record in dealing with gangsters. ...

Several unsolved murders of newspaper reporters in recent years are believed to be gang related.

Despite the level of control Japan's gangsters still have over police, corporations, politicians and the media, some constraints are inevitable.

In the past year, 32 senior executives from Nomura, Daiwa, Nikko and Yamaichi Securities, as well as from Dai Ichi Kangyo Bank have been arrested for making illegal payments to racketeers. These companies also received administrative penalties from the Ministry of Finance after it was determined their relations with gangs were "institutional".

Raids and arrests related to illegal connections with gangsters have also been seen at offices of Toshiba, Mitsubishi Electric, Mitsubishi Motors and Hitachi in the past year.

Although the police actions targeted only small, independent criminals, instead of groups affiliated to major gangs, it still marked a major step in the right direction.

"After the Cold War ended, there was a change in thinking about gangsters. It was decided they were no longer needed to fight the communists," Mr Yamada said. In 1990, the Government passed a new law that allowed police to disband groups repeatedly linked to violent incidents.

The law turned out to be ineffective because gangs would simply dissolve and re-form as either corporations or political groups, Mr Yamada claimed.

Other sources also report the corruption of Japanese police by Yakuza (STN 4 Jan. 1998; PIRN 7 May 1997). Japan: A Country Study stated that "yakuza operate in most cities and often receive protection from highranking officials in exchange for their assistance in keeping the crime rate low by discouraging criminals operating individually or in small groups" (Jan. 1994).

No information specific to the state protection available to those who fear they have been targeted by the Yakuza, could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. However, there are reports on the effectiveness of actions taken by Japanese authorities against organized crime.

The 1995 Parliament of Australia report contains the following:

The boryokudan countermeasures law ... does not make the yakuza gangs illegal organisations as such. Instead it provides that gangs meeting specific criteria, such as having more than a certain percentage of membership who have criminal records, be designated as boryokudan. Designation makes it harder for a boryokudan to conduct business. The law prohibits designated organisations from, for example, realising profits from subtle forms extortion that were not specifically illegal under pre-existing law, such as demands for payoffs from a restaurant in return for 'protection', without any explicit threat of reprisal in case of refusal. In all the law bans eleven activities. Its effect has been to deny the designated groups access to previously lucrative sources of income.

On one view, the effect of the 1992 law, the Japanese economic recession and increasing public disapproval has been to make yakuza members try to appear more legitimate: 'More and more gangs are fighting the big freeze by turning away from traditional money spinners such as drugs and gambling, and getting into more-or-less legitimate lines of business instead'. A 1994 media report states that many yakuza groups have tried to bypass the countermeasures law by re-incorporating themselves as industrial, political and even religious groups. The Yamaguchi-gumi has apparently re-established part of its organisation as the National League to Purify the Land, a non-profit charity ostensibly dedicated to stamping out drug abuse. The Sumiyoshi-kai, the second largest gang, has become Hori Enterprises. The Inagawa-kai, the third largest, is now Inagawa Industries. Some yakuza members, however, have apparently become increasingly violent in Japan since 1992.

The boryokudan countermeasures law and the economic difficulties in Japan have apparently led to some reduction in the total number yakuza members. An April 1994 media report noted this and stated: 'some police analysts believe that at this pace, the number of gangs could be halved in another two years. Indeed, a National Police Agency survey estimates that there were 53,000 gang members as of November 1993, some 10,000 fewer than a year earlier. ... A recent media report comments:

"To law enforcement experts, the trend is clear. A leaner, meaner underworld is in the making. 'They are streamlining, just like the business world,' said a former prosecuting attorney who advises company executives on how to protect themselves from gangsters. 'The weaker ones are being weeded out, and the stronger syndicates are growing stronger.' ... Police acknowledge, however, that no major gangs have gone out of business, no leading figures put behind bars. The big three syndicates, the Yamaguchi-gumi, Inagawa-kai and Sumiyoshi-kai, appear as stable as ever" (Feb. 1995).

In September 1998 Japan was reported to have offered "to discuss [with South Korea] signing an extradition treaty to effectively cope with the cross-migration of an increasing number of criminals, including members of Japan's feared yakuza crime syndicate. ... South Korea and Japan have maintained close cooperation in handing over criminals absconding under the principle of reciprocity" (Yonhap 24 Sept. 1998).

STN reported that the parents of a Yakuza gang member "sued the leader of the Okinawa Kyokuryukai crime syndicate, seeking 100 million yen in damages" as a result of the son's death in a "gang shootout" (10 Dec. 1997). While the "Naha branch of the Fukuoka High Court" did not hold the yakuza boss responsible as a consequence of his status as the employer of the man killed, it did order he "and his gang ... pay 58 million yen to the parents ... The ruling stated that the boss bears some responsibility for Kamiya's death, but not as an employer" (ibid.).

AFP reported that Japan's "Health and Welfare Ministry said it had drawn up legislation to cut out gang members, known as yakuza" from moving dangerous garbage and that the proposed legislation was intended "to bar gangsters from the waste business" (AFP 10 Mar. 2000).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

References

Agence France Presse (AFP). 10 March 2000. "AFP: Japan to Clean Up Gang-Ridden Garbage Business." (FBIS-EAS-2000-0310 10 Mar. 2000/WNC)

The Boston Globe. 5 June 1994. Charles A. Radin. "Gangsters Take Cover in Japan's Right Wing." (NEXIS)

Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). November 1998. "Transnational Criminal Activity." http://www.fas.org/irp/threat/back10e.htm [Accessed 7 Apr. 2000]

Committee for a Safe Society (CSS). n.d. "More Notes on Yakuza: Notes ... Abstracted From Book 'Interpol' by Fenton Bresler; Penguin, London, 1992." http://www.alternatives.com/crime/YAKUZM.HTML [Accessed 7 Apr. 2000]

Cox, Mary-Lea (Asia Program, program associate). 13 December 1996. "The Dark Side of Japan." http://members.tripod.com/~orgcrime/japdarkside.htm [Accessed 7 Apr. 2000]

Japan: A Country Study. January 1994. Washington, DC: U. S. Library of Congress Federal Research Division. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/jptoc.html [Accessed 7 Apr. 2000]

Lyman, Michael D. and Potter, Gary W. 1997. Organized Crime. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall.

Parliament of Australia, Parliamentary Joint Committee on the National Crime Authority. February 1995. Asian Organized Crime in Australia. http://www.fas.org/irp/world/australia/docs/ncaaoc4.html [Accessed 7 Apr. 2000]

Public Intelligence Review and Newsletter (PIRN). 7 May 1997. Natti Bumpo. "Yakuza, Sex Slaves, Drugs, Subway Gas, Ultrantionalists and Secret Socities." http://www.aimnet.com/~suntzu75/pirn9708.htm [Accessed 7 Apr. 2000]

Reuters. 14 January 1998. Takao Miyazawa. "Tokyo Rightist Sought to Stop Japan's 'Big Bang'." (NEXIS)

Ryan, Patrick J. 1995. Organized Crime: A Reference Handbook. Santa Barbara, CA: Contemporary World Issues.

South China Morning Post [Hong Kong]. 14 March 1998. Benjamin Fulford. "In League With the Yakuza." (NEXIS)

The Straits Times [Singapore]. 13 October 1996. Kwan Weng Kin. "Extremists' Political Links Loose But Alive." (NEXIS)

Sun Tzu's Newswire (STN). 4 January 1998. George Alexander. "Yakuza May Have Faked Itami Suicide." http://www.aimnet.com/~suntzu75/stn/1998/stn98001.htm [Accessed 7 Apr. 2000]

_____. 10 December 1997. Asahi Shimbun. "Yakuza Boss Ruling Blasted." http://www.ccnet.com/~suntzu75/news_archives/jp970021.htm [Accessed 7 Apr. 2000]

United Press International (UPI). 28 August 1997. "Japan Mobster Gunned Down in Posh Hotel." http://www.ccnet.com/~suntzu75/9708a.htm [Accessed 7 Apr. 2000]

Yonhap [Seoul, in English]. 24 September 1998. "South Korea: ROK Ready to Discuss Signing Extradition Pact With Japan." (FBIS-EAS-98-267 24 Sept. 1998/WNC)

In addition to the Japanese legislation and case law available in the REFWORLD database available through Regional Documentation Centres, please find attached a copy of Japanese laws and an immigration handbook published in the English-language indexed Internet Website of the Ministry of Justice of the Government of Japan, (http://www.moj.go.jp/ENGLISH/index.htm). The documents obtained from this Website, updated on 21 May 1999, include English versions of the Japanese Nationality Law, the Immigration Control Act, and the Aliens Registration Act, which govern acquisition of nationality and residence by foreigners in Japan. The attached documents include analysis and commentary on the practical application of these laws published in the Website, under the headings of the Civil Affairs Bureau and Immigration Bureau. In addition to the discretionary powers stipulated by law, the latter section, under the sub-heading "Immigration," provides a commentary on the discretion that authorities can exercise in dealing with illegal residents, including the possible consideration of family situation and other specific circumstances of each individual. In addition to this, Country Reports 1998 (available at Regional Documentation Centres and in the U.S. Department of Justice Internet Website) also provides comments on the acquisition and loss of Japanese nationality, discretion of authorities, and situation of illegal residents, in its entry for Japan under the subheading "National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities."

The Research Directorate cannot provide its own analysis of the law or speculate on its possible applications in individual cases.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

Attachments

Ministry of Justice, Japan. 1999. The Nationality Law. http://www.moj.go.jp/ ENGLISH/CIAB/law01.htm [Accessed 7 Sept. 1999]

_____. 1999. The Choice of Nationality. http://www.moj.go.jp/ENGLISH/CIAB/ ciab-04.htm [Accessed 7 Sept. 1999]

_____. 1999. Civil Affairs Bureau. http://www.moj.go.jp/ENGLISH/CIAB/ciab-01.htm [Accessed 7 Sept. 1999]

_____. 1999. Immigration Bureau. http://www.moj.go.jp/ENGLISH/IB/ib-01.htm [Accessed 7 Sept. 1999]

_____. 1999. Immigration (Immigration Handbook). http://www.moj.go.jp/ENGLISH/ IB/ib-04.htm [Accessed 7 Sept. 1999]

_____. 1999. Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act. http://www.moj.go.jp/ ENGLISH/IB/ib-19.htm [Accessed 7 Sept. 1999]

_____.1999. The Alien Registration Law (Provisional Translation). http://www.moj.go. jp/ENGLISH/IB/ib-54.htm [Accessed 7 Sept. 1999]