Japanese police investigate the scene of a shootout with members of the violent regiment
In the eyes of most people, "YAKUZA (also known as underworld and violent groups)" is a very Japanese thing like cherry blossoms and samurai. After many literary and artistic works such as movies and television dramas, Japan's "violent groups" have been shrouded in a mysterious veil. Because Japan has a system of "designated violent groups", many Chinese mistakenly believe that Japan's "violent groups" are legitimate organizations. In fact, the "designated violent group" system is designed to monitor and restrict this organization. In order to ban triad activities, the Japanese police have waged a relentless struggle with the people. Among them, Fukuoka Prefecture is known as the "Land of Shura (meaning the land where the fierce gods are evilly entrenched)", especially in its northern city of Kitakyushu, which was once a place where the activities of the "violent group" were very active, and the Nihon Keizai Shimbun compiled a report on January 15 to tell you a story of the struggle between the Japanese police and the "violent group".
Kenichi Shinoda, the 6th generation leader of the Yamaguchi Group in Japan
"Violent regiment" is the name given by the police
The origins of Japan's "violent groups" can be traced back to the Edo period, and they were mainly developed by two kinds of people: "gamblers" who opened casinos, and "vendors" who operated stalls at festivals and managed stalls. At that time, the "violent group" protected the people from the unreasonable oppression of the samurai class, and at the same time, the "benevolent" culture of attaching importance to the relationship of trust was beautified, and in popular music such as Japanese commentaries, the deeds of the "violent group" were often passed on as a beautiful word of mouth.
However, after modernization, especially after World War II, the activities of "violent groups" quickly expanded to illegal areas accompanied by violent intimidation. From drug trafficking and prostitution to the collection of protection fees, the public's antipathy to violent groups has been increasing, and the police have also strengthened the suppression of the illegal acts of "violent groups".
After Japan entered the era of bubble economy, the "violent group" began to exploit legal loopholes, engaged in land transactions and underground financing and other businesses, while deepening relations with enterprises and financial institutions, and further expanding their power. As one of these tactics, members of the "violent group" gather scattered land as real estate developers and resell it to large real estate developers. For owners who are reluctant to sell their land, similar means of drinking are used to force them to sell their land. As a result, money from real estate developers and banks flowed into the "violent group". The boundary between the underground economy and the legal economy has become blurred.
The term "violent group" actually came from the Japanese police and became the common language of society after being disseminated by the media. Japan's Act on the Prevention of Misconduct by Members of Violent Groups (commonly known as the Violence Group Countermeasures Act) defines a violent group as "a group whose constituent members are concerned about habitual violent and wrongful acts that contribute to the group."
Fukuoka in the "Land of Shura"
Fukuoka Prefecture is a place where Japanese "violent groups" are more active. It is said that the 1980s and 1990s were the most rampant period of "violent group" activities in Fukuoka Prefecture. Ordinary citizens are sometimes targeted, and people live in fear all the time. At that time, it was not unusual for open claims for protection fees, internal street fires, and the discovery of bazookas and grenades in homes.
"It's not an ordinary place, and I thought it wouldn't change in this lifetime," a Fukuoka native recalled. On a sweltering summer day in 1990, two uninvited guests came to a tavern in Ogura Kita-ku, Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture. "Don't say hello to our organization, it doesn't matter what happens to your store?" One of the men kicked over the trash can and threatened, "If you want to do business here, you have to hire a bodyguard!" In the following week, the 61-year-old hostess was constantly urged to pay "protection fees".
These people are members of kudokai's organization headquartered in Kitakyushu City, and often collect conservation fees from surrounding hotels and construction companies. "Give money obediently, or you will be targeted," said the tavern owner who was persuaded by her friends to pay a protection fee of 100,000 to 200,000 yen a month to the organization, which lasted for four years.
The reason why this friend was so persuaded was because he had experienced the infighting of the organization in front of The Kokura Station. "Who did you tell you could collect money here?" "It used to be our turf, get me out!" A deafening scream was followed by a "Bang! Bang!" Two gunshots rang out, and the people around them were frightened and fled in all directions.
"Fight on top"
The violent regiment has entered the daily life of ordinary citizens. Changing all this is no easy task. In 1992, Japan began to implement the Law on Countermeasures against Violent Groups, and the public security committees in various localities can identify "designated violent groups" according to specific circumstances, and explicitly prohibit 27 kinds of behaviors such as "designated violent groups" requesting sealing fees and requesting exemption or extension of loans. After the implementation of the Law on Countermeasures against Violent Groups, the economic behavior of the members of the "designated violent groups" has been greatly restricted, and the general enterprises have significantly reduced their transactions with enterprises and individuals with the background of the violent groups.
There are currently 24 "designated violent groups" in Japan, and the number of organizations in Fukuoka Prefecture has reached 5, which is second to none in Japan. Among them, kudokai is the only designated "designated violence group for specific dangers" in Japan, and is considered to have the risk of repeated acts of violence by using murder weapons to cause significant damage to human life and body. Despite having only a few hundred members, in July 2014 the U.S. Treasury Department called "the most brutal group among yakuza, the world's largest criminal organization," and imposed economic sanctions on Kudo-kai president Goku Nomura and president Nobumio Tanakami.
The Fukuoka Prefectural police also cracked down on the "violent regiment". In 2010, Fukuoka Prefecture implemented for the first time in Japan the exclusion of violent groups that would be punished for providing benefits to "violent groups." In 2014, the police launched another "top-of-the-line operation", weakening the Kudokai from the leadership. On September 11, 2014, police arrested Goku Kudokai's boss Nomura and more than a dozen leaders for homicide in connection with the shooting of the head of the fishery cooperative group before 1998. At the same time, starting from the source of funds, we will strictly ban the protection fees and supply fees of various names.
In Kitakyushu City, construction companies used to "supply" up to 5% of the contracted project amount to Kudo Kai. After the implementation of "Fighting on top", the influence of the violent regiment on the construction industry declined. A man in his 60s said: "There used to be violent groups, and I didn't want to take jobs anymore. After the battle on top, it began to return to normal. ”
Members of the violent regiment who went to the Fukuoka Prefectural Police Headquarters to attend the hearing
The police ban was met with a frenzied counterattack
These police actions also caused crazy "retaliation" from the violent group. In 2012, Fukuoka Prefecture established a system whereby notices prohibiting members of "violent groups" from entering restaurants and other shops are posted. A building in Ogura Kita-ku, Kitakyushu City, was shot more than 70 rounds in a month after posting a notice. A lot of restaurant operators get "You're next!" Intimidating phone calls.
A taxi driver in his 40s left a shocking scar on his neck and his left hand still faintly ached. He recalled that in the early morning of September 7, 2012, after sending one of his female guests home, he suddenly heard a terrible scream. He looked back and saw a man with a knife slashing at the female guest's face. "I was also scared, but I couldn't see death and rushed up", the taxi driver's own neck and hand were also severely injured, and it took 2 months to recover.
The female guest was the operator of the tavern because a notice was posted on the entrance of the shop to expel the "violent group". Other shops were thrown grenades, causing more than a dozen people to be lightly and seriously injured. Police officers involved in searches related to violent groups were even shot. The Kitakyushu City Restaurant Union approached the police and said they "wanted to remove the notice," and the police bowed their heads and pleaded, "Although it will take a little time, please work with the police." A bar owner in his 60s recalled: "I couldn't see the progress of the search, and many of my colleagues withdrew the notices." I was also scared, but I could only stick to my heart. ”
The former Kudo Kai office has now been turned into a cake shop, and the owner is decorating for Christmas
Former atrocities have become "urban legends"
The efforts of the police and the public have not been disappointed. The landscape on the street has changed a lot. In January 2018, the Fukuoka police announced that by the end of 2017, the number of members and associate members of violent groups in the prefecture had decreased by about 200 from the previous year to about 2,040, the lowest since the implementation of the 1992 Law on Countermeasures against Violent Groups. The kudo-kai membership halved to 610 from 1,020 at its peak in 2008, the smallest number ever recorded. According to the analysis of the Organized Crime Countermeasures Division, "the awareness of citizens to drive out violent groups has increased, the income of violent groups such as protection fees has decreased, and the members have a difficult life", and many people choose to leave the group to find another way to make a living.
The public land price in 2017 shows that commercial land in Kitakyushu City has risen after 24 years. The security situation has improved, and the commercial value of the land has risen.
A male office worker who was traveling to Kitakyushu City on business told the lady owner of the tavern: "There are many places to drink near Kokura Station, and I want to go to another restaurant to drink." The hostess was full of emotions when she heard it: "I still can't believe that I can safely go out for drinks at night here." "There are witnesses who are amazed by the change in the status quo, and there are new generations of young people enjoying peace." After school activities, sometimes I go out with friends after dark to drink," said a 17-year-old female high school student on Peace Street in front of JR Kokura Station. Never seen it. Only heard of it. Maybe it's an urban legend, right? ”
Fukuoka is just a microcosm of Japan. The influence of the "violent group" is gradually declining in Japan. According to Japan's 2018 edition of Japan's "Situation and Countermeasures of Violent Groups", the total number of violent group members in Japan is about 34,500 (including members and associate members), and the number of people is decreasing year by year.