suspicious persons

[calcuttahart]

ok....so many of you kids are probably really smart and comfortable here in japan by now.... well, most days i'm not. i've been here about 7 months and only have a basic grasp of the japanese language. hence little things happen all the time that make me realize just what a clueless gaijin i am....and i am going to share one of these moments (a

Comments

[peanutxpeanut]

Holy shit D: I would fall for it.

[suojure]

I lived in two smaller cities/town when I was in Japan ... never had anything like that when I lived in Sakurai, but within a week of my partner and I moving to Tawaramoto, we had two uniformed policemen at our front door, flashing their badges and asking a heap of questions. They were perfectly friendly, didn't try to come beyond the front door (I've heard they're not allowed to enter private residences on a general basis?), just got our names, viewed our alien rego, and then stood around making general chit-chat with us for a while. I think they said something about them just wanting to know who's in the neighbourhood in case of emergencies or something like that. It never occurred to me that they'd be something other than police, and I think in my case they were genuine. We never had any issues afterwards so presuming they WERE genuine!

[starlady38]

That's pretty normal from everything I've heard--my advisor was doing her doctoral research and the cops she was interviewing in some parts of Tokyo confessed to being uneasy that they had such data from "only" about 85% of the residents in their precincts.

Of course, here in Kyoto the only people I've had at my door are Jehovah's Witnesses and NTT reps.

[suojure]

I twice had the local postoffice workers come to my door ... once because they'd mistakenly overcharged me for a parcel I sent home (so they were apologising and returning the money ... and bowing a lot), and second time because my little Hello Kitty phone dangly thing had fallen on the floor without my noticing, so they came all the way to my apartment to give it back to me. I went to that post office once a week for two years, so when I finally moved, I went in and gave them a big box of Australian chocolates, just to say thanks for being awesome.

[starlady38]

My local post office people have been sugoi too! One came to put a note in my box at 9:30 pm saying they'd charged me the wrong rate for a parcel, and since it was the last day before the New Year holidays he went back with me to the post office so I could fill out the form for the correct rate...then took my box to the main post office the next day, Saturday morning, with no mention of the Y1200 they'd undercharged me. And other people there scratched out stuff on customs forms so my packages wouldn't get rejected...is there a rule somewhere that local post office people have to be amazingly nice?

[ninja_setsuna]

If a police officer demands you show your gaijin card, you do have a legal right to ask the officer to show their credentials as well! However after they do (provided they are real of course) you must do the same.

[taiyou_no_ao]

woah how creepy. I don't think the police would ever come to your house unless they received a complaint or it's something really serious...espessially not for personal information...the ward office has all your personal info so if the police every needed it that's probably where they would go to get it. Also I have never heard of anyone being asked to show their gaijin cards on any ocassion other than entering/exiting the country, being stopped on a bike, or if you get yourself in some kind of trouble. And as the person above me stated, if you ask a real officer must show his ID. If I was in your situation I don't know what I would have done, probably play stupid gaijin. I never open my door unless I know who is out there or am expecting someone to come by...if you don't answer the door and it was someone important they will more than likely leave some kind of notice with a number to call..so if you're not sure I think it's better to be safe than sorry.

[suojure]

There's some site online that very clearly outlines the cases in which a policeman in Japan can ask for your gaijin card, and they can ask you to show it as long as they have 'reasonable suspicions' or some rubbish like that. So in theory they can't just randomly ask you to show it, they have to have a reason to be suspicious of you. Which is why you always get foreigners on bikes being asked to show theirs - because foreigners on bikes are suspicious. Very suspicious. My ex was riding to a friend's party late one evening the same night that a car had been stolen in the town we lived in. Not satisfied with demanding to see his alien rego (which he obligingly showed), he was followed home, where he had to get his passport, then detained by the police for several hours for questioning. God forbid you're ever caught riding your bike late at night when a car has been stolen in the same TOWN, it's all sorts of suspicious!

[taiyou_no_ao]

I find it interesting that happened to a guy as I heard foreign men are the ones normally harassed by police. Almost every foreign guy I know who has been here over a year has been asked to show their card atleast 3 times. I've been here 2 years and never been asked or even got a second glance by police and I don't know any other girls who have either. There was one time I was just waiting for the guy to ask for it...It was 3 am and I was going to the konbini and there was a cop standing on a corner. I have never seen any cops around here this late at night except driving around in cars. Both times I walked by him I was just waiting on him to say something to me but he never did.

[taiyou_no_ao]

oh and to the OP, don't let little stuff get to you so much or you're never going to be happy. No matter where you are in the world you will always make stupid mistakes and you can never make everyone like you. Just accept you will never be japanese and make the best of it and do your part to be polite and likable and if someone still has a problem with you, well you will probably never see them again anyway. I see so many miserable gaijin and I fail to see what everyone is so angry about. Just as many people, probably more, hate me at home.

[rirakkumiru]

If you live with a Japanese family they NEVER come over, even to say hi.

BTW, you aren't the only foreigner who has been unsatisfied with their life in Japan (I'm living proof!).