Kuwana City officially outlaws making staff get down on all fours to apologize
The problem of customer harassment appears to be on the rise in Japan, with people taking advantage of the country's famously accommodating customer service as a target of their abuse. It can come in many forms, from repeated phone calls to making clerks shave their heads, but one peculiar form is forcing workers to assume the dogeza position of prostrating themselves in apology.
A few months ago the issue was highlighted by a viral video of a security guard at the Osaka World Expo getting into a dogeza position in front of an angry visitor. However, the official response from the expo is that the guard voluntarily bowed down in this case.
In April, the nation's first customer harassment prevention ordinances went into effect in Kuwana City, Mie Prefecture, as well as Tokyo, Hokkaido, and Gunma prefectures. What makes Kuwana's ordinance unique is that it includes actual punishments for customers who harass staff. First-time offenders will get a warning letter and if their behavior doesn't improve, their names will be made public as an official harassing customer.
This only leaves the issue of what exactly constitutes customer harassment. According to the ordinance, businesses must submit an incident to the mayor's office of Kuwana, which will then consult with a customer harassment countermeasure committee to determine if it should be considered such.
Such a matter was decided on June 30 when Kuwana City announced that a case where a customer demanded a courier get down on all fours to apologize constituted customer harassment. As a result, the customer will be sent a warning letter and now faces a public naming and shaming if it happens again.
Online comments about the news largely felt that the punishment was far too light for treating another human being in such a way.
'Just a warning?'
'Does making people bow down make them happy?'
'That person should be arrested.'
'I can't even imagine if someone told me to get down on all fours.'
'I wish they'd arrest those jerks who yell at convenience store clerks in the morning.'
'A written warning, lol. Is that assuming the first time might have been a mistake?'
'They need to crack down on customer harassment more. Those people are getting too bold.'
'The city should also post their photos and offenses so other businesses can identify them.'
'If I were the courier, I guess I could see that just bowing down and apologizing might be faster than sitting there listening to someone complain on and on.'
'Give the delivery companies their address too so they can blacklist them.'
'That's already a crime. It's called coercion.'
Coercion, a crime that might go by names like 'extortion' or 'duress' in other countries, is the act of making someone do something against their will through the threat of violence or other intimidation. In the previous case of the clerk who was made to shave his head, the customer made several suggestions that he was capable of violence, and thus was arrested for coercion.
But in this case, there appears to have been no threats of violence, which most likely means the courier would have to have felt his job was in jeopardy by not bowing down for it to be coercion. The problem is that would need to be demonstrated in court, which would look really bad for the company as a whole. So, it's understandable they might pursue this as customer harassment instead.
It's probably best that a lot of legal tools are available to handle the different nuances of criminal and anti-social behavior so people can get the protection they need.
Sources: 47 News, Research Institute for Local Government, Itai News
Read more stories from SoraNews24.
-- Tweeted photo of employees bowing in apology angers Japanese internet users
-- Saitama senior arrested after calling telecom provider 24,000 times to complain
-- Kyoto man arrested for forcing appliance store clerk to shave own head in apology
External Link
https://soranews24.com/2025/07/02/kuwana-city-officially-outlaws-making-staff-get-down-on-all-fours-to-apologize/
© SoraNews24
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
SoraNews24
2 days ago
- SoraNews24
Why is self-censoring tape appearing all over Tokyo's host club ads?【Photos】
New law means that one of the host club industry's standard marketing ploys is now illegal. In May, the Japanese government passed new ordinances regarding host clubs, bars where women pay for the privilege of having handsome men sit, drink, and chat with them. The changes were prompted by recent increases in instances of women falling into heavy debt at host clubs and then being pressured to take on work themselves at hostess clubs or other sexual entertainment providers in order to pay back the money they owe. This wasn't a case of politicians punting the issue into the far future for other administrations to deal with, either, as the amendments to the Entertainment Business Law are already in effect. As of June 28, it is now illegal for hosts to exploit customers' romantic feelings as a means to coerce them to spend more money at their club. More concrete amendments to the law also make it illegal for host clubs to allow customers to drink on credit (thus going into debt to the club), and the system of 'scout back' payments, in which host clubs would receive payments for referring in-debt female customers to hostess club owners, adult video producers, and other adult entertainment employers. There's one other major change to the law, and it affects how host clubs are allowed to advertise. As it so happens, SoraNews24 headquarters in Tokyo isn't that far from the section of the Kabukicho neighborhood that has one of Japan's largest number of host clubs, and well as one of the densest concentrations of horst club billboards. So now that the Entertainment Business Law revisions are in place, we decided to stroll on over and see what's changed, and sure enough, the place is looking different these days. We've blurred the faces and names of the hosts/host clubs in these photos, but the large and numerous blacked-out sections? That's not photo editing on our end – that's how host club ads in Shinjuku actually look right now. The above photo was taken at the Ecolo Park Kabuki-cho 21 parking lot corner, which has been covered in host club ads for many years. About a third of the space now is solid black, with entire advertisements entirely removed or completely covered. ▼ A Google Street View screen capture showing what the place looked like in December of 2024 So why the change? Under the new laws, it's now illegal for host clubs to publicize an individual host's earnings for the club, either in numerical terms or relative references like 'our club's number-one host,' in its advertising. References to things such as being the club's most often requested host from customers is also banned, as are both titles and pseudo-titles, such as 'the million yen-a-night player.' Broadcasting an aura of success has long been a major part of host club marketing, as creating the mystique that a host is in high demand makes time with him feel like a previous commodity, and a host who's then skilled enough to make the customer he's talking to at that moment feel like he's especially fond of her gives her an additional ego boost by making her feel like she stands out from the rest of his admirers. It can also act as lucrative leverage in convincing customers to spend beyond their budget, because of course they don't want their favorite host to lose his status as one of the club's brightest stars, do they? Now all of that is off the table in terms of allowable advertising though, which means that there's a lot of stuff that needs to be covered if host clubs want to keep their existing signs up. While wide strips of black tape is the most common way host clubs are complying, some have picked other colors top try to blend into the ads background better or tried to do a street art-style paint-over. With the short time between when the new ordinances were announced and when they went into effect, odds are all the self-censoring tape is just a temporary response while waiting for new signs to be printed that are compliant with the new law, but host club advertising is going to look a little different going forward. Screenshot: Google Street View All other photos ©SoraNews24 ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! [ Read in Japanese ]
Japan Today
4 days ago
- Japan Today
Toy guns won from crane games all over Japan could be used as real guns, warn police
By SoraNews24 You can win all kinds of things from crane games in Japan, from slices of cake to not-so-precious gemstones. So, it's perhaps only mildly surprising that the National Police Agency issued a warning that illegal firearms were also up for grabs by mechanical claws in game centers across Japan. According to the NPA, some 16,000 Real Gimmick Mini Revolvers were imported to Japan from China and used as prizes in crane games. The brightly colored pistols came with a set of eight plastic bullets that can be used to ping cans or annoy siblings, with a recommended age of 12 and up. However, the specs of the gun itself are such that it could also potentially be used to fire live ammunition as well. ▼ It's right there in the name. The gimmick is that they're real. This is a surprisingly common problem, and the NPA has also released a list of 16 other Chinese-manufactured guns that could potentially fire real bullets due to the use of a hard enough plastic or metal hammer in the correct position and a large enough barrel. Anyone with these toys should be aware they are in possession of an illegal firearm and turn them over to the police as soon as possible. And of course, no one should ever attempt to shoot live rounds from any of them for many reasons, but a big one is that they are just toys and run an extremely high risk of blowing up in the shooter's hand before ever letting off a shot that would go nowhere near its intended target. The Real Gimmick Mini was found by the Hyogo Prefectural Police to have been one such gun, when they discovered one while investigating a home on a separate matter. The gun was confirmed to be dangerous by forensic testing afterward, and subsequent efforts have so far recovered 450 of the toys. Comments online were surprised that a potentially lethal weapon could not only get into the country but into the nation's crane games as well. Some also felt the importers should be punished or more closely regulated to stop this from happening again. 'Shouldn't they be catching this stuff when it's imported?' 'It's not even a good toy. I'd be mad if I was given it as a prize.' 'Is this a way for people to smuggle guns? That's scary.' 'Yakuza and half grey members are probably all flocking to game centers now.' 'It's not exactly the most discreet weapon either.' 'Good luck getting bullets anyway.' 'They're even more dangerous because they can't shoot straight.' 'Make the importers track them all down and then arrest them.' No charges have been announced against the importers, and it seems very likely they were completely unaware that these toy guns could possibly be used as real guns. Even the producers were probably oblivious to the toy guns' potential, as game center prizes manufactured in China aren't exactly known to be the pinnacle of craftsmanship. At least it's good to know the threat these thousands of potential guns pose is rather low because ammunition is incredibly hard to come by in Japan. However, if crane games suddenly start offering plastic Real Gimmick Exploding Bullet toys, then we'd be in trouble. Source: National Police Agency, Yomiuri Shimbun, My Game News Flash Insert image: National Police Agency Read more stories from SoraNews24. -- Win real, natural gemstones at Saitama game center, which boasts over 300 crane games!【Video】 -- Do actually useful prizes suck all the frustrating fun out of those UFO catcher crane games? -- Real gems from Japanese arcade UFO catchers: Crane-caught riches, or a shiny scam? External Link © SoraNews24
Japan Today
15-07-2025
- Japan Today
Japanese-style strawberry sandwiches win mainstream fans in UK, but aren't quite like the originals
By Casey Baseel, SoraNews24 Japanese food has made some impressive international inroads in recent years. Turning up your nose at sushi because you're uncomfortable with the idea of eating raw fish is now likely to get your foody credentials questioned in most countries around the globe, as is still thinking that ramen is limited to instant-variety noodles. So what's the latest incredible edible wonder from Japan to become a big hit overseas? Fruit sandwiches, which have now reached a major milestone in the UK. Fruit sandwiches, filled with cream and colorful slices of fruit, have been a thing at Japanese sweets shops and convenience stores for many years (the above photo is one we took at a cafe in Japan). It's only in the past few years, though, that they've really started attracting attention from visiting foreign tourists, whose cravings for the treats remain strong after returning to their home countries, and whose social media photos of the fruit sandwiches they ate in Japan have even non-travelers curious to try them too. Seeing the surge in interest, UK retailer Marks & Spencer has made an addition to its M & S Food line, and is now offering its own Japanese-inspired fruit sandwiches, as shown in the video below. The Red Diamond Strawberry and Creme Sandwich went on sale in late June, and the chain says that they've already sold more than 83,000 of them, with individual branches often selling out before the day is done. Priced at 2.9 pounds, which converts to roughly 570 yen, they're a little more expensive than fruit sandwiches have usually been at Japanese convenience stores, but within the realm of what specialty shops in Japan charge for them. Marks & Spencer's fruit sandwiches may not be the first of their type available in the UK, but previous examples have been at Japanese or Asian specialty stores. The Red Diamond Strawberry and Creme Sandwich appears to be the first fruit sandwich offered by a major mainstream retailer with no focus on Asian foodstuffs in particular, showing that the concept is catching on even with shoppers outside the Japanophile and international traveler demographics. However, like we mentioned above, Marks & Spencer's strawberry sandwich is inspired by the ones in Japan, which is to say that it's not exactly the same. For one thing, though it's cut into two triangular pieces, as is the style in Japan, Marks & Spencer leaves the crusts on, instead of slicing them off like stores in Japan do. The Red Diamond Strawberry and Creme Sandwich is made with a sweetened bread, and while it's not as sugary as sponge cake, it's still a departure from the ordinary white sandwich bread used to make fruit sandwiches in Japan. Finally, while more fruit sandwiches in Japan have whipped cream as a filling, Marks & Spencer uses a whipped cream cheese, which would explain why one UK local in the video above says the flavor reminds her of cheesecake. So maybe we could say that the Red Diamond Strawberry and Creme Sandwich is sort of like a dessert analogy for the California Roll or Tempura Crunch Roll, a variation on a Japanese idea that's finding fans overseas, and might have found enough to stick around for a long time. Source: TBS News Dig via Hachima Kiko, BBC Read more stories from SoraNews24. -- Japanese cafe serves up fruit sandwiches like nowhere else -- U.K. Pavilion at Japan World Expo responds to complaints about shabby afternoon tea quality【Videos】 -- Our Japanese language reporter visits a U.K. sushi chain, is blown away by its original 'sushi' External Link © SoraNews24
