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As the only Western foreigner in my town,
I tend to attract a fair bit of attention. People
in Shimane are curious about foreigners and
want to know more about them. Whether it is
children investigating the contents of my shopping
basket ("Oh, look - she can eat fish!") or an
obaachan popping her head over the garden fence
to check out laundry on the line, the people
in my town want to know what I am up to!
Whilst such attention is sometimes unwelcome
and intrusive it is also very comforting at
times. I have always felt that the people here
are looking out for me and have found lovely
home-cooked food left on my doorstep on several
occasions. Everyone seems to know me and I have
never felt as safe anywhere as I do in my town.
They look out for each other too and there seems
to be an unconditional bond of trust between
people. A locked door in the street where I
live is an anomaly and shoppers frequently leave
their cars parked with the engines left running
whilst they pop into the supermarket. It is
all too easy to grow complacent about personal
safety though and recently I have been taking
it for granted. My Christmas holiday made me
think about it again.
I spent the festive season in South Africa
with my family. South Africa is a beautiful
country and an amazing place to travel around
but no one really wants to live there anymore.
I could describe it as paradise with something
missing - you never feel at ease. Every house
has an armed response burglar system and windows
are more metal bars than glass. The rape rate
is incredible and no one stops at a red traffic
light alone at night. I am not just talking
about the situation in Johannesburg - the carjack
capital of the south. My aunt and uncle in Cintsa
near East London were burgled the day before
I arrived. My sister Sarah teaches in Cape Town
where a colleague recently attended her brother's
funeral after he was shot dead in a carjacking
incident there. Sarah has stopped walking to
the shop around the corner after two girls were
pulled from their vehicle and raped a month
ago. People hold on tightly to their bags in
the street and many don't carry one at all for
fear of being mugged. I felt vulnerable and
more conspicuous than I ever have done in Japan.
I realise that Japan is not unique and crime-free
either. The recent gang shootings in Maebashi
and various kidnapping incidents are proof that
we need to work to preserve a safe society,
not merely assume that it already exists. When
I first moved here and saw tiny Japanese elementary
school children walking home unaccompanied along
a busy road I wondered how their parents could
have peace of mind. I have come to realise that
there is no real need to worry yet. A sense
of community and caring still exists here in
Shimane that has been lost for a long time elsewhere
in the world. |
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The Shimanean is a publication of the International
Affairs Division of Shimane Prefecture and the Shimane
International Center.
It may be sent free of charge to all interested parties.
Communications may be made to the editor, Jason Bickley,
at:
Shimane International Center, Kunibiki Messe 2F,
1-2-1 Gakuen Minami, Matsue, Shimane 690-0826
TEL(0852)31-5056, FAX(0852)31-5055
EMAILsiccir@mocha.ocn.ne.jp http://www.sic-info.org/bank/shimanean/8-0.html
This newsletter and much of the Shimane International
Center's work is made possible by donations from many
companies and organizations including Shimane Prefecture,Chugoku
Electric Power Company Inc., Sanin Chuo Shimpo Newspaper
Co. Ltd., Sanin Godo Bank, Shimane Denko and Sanin
Chuo Television Broadcasting Company Ltd. and various
cities,towns and villages in Shimane Prefecture.
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