somewhat sille, that's me!

i wrote on my FB that 'there are few buzzes comparable to that of buying a book' the day i made my third purchase in as many month from bookdepository.co.uk. but when i received the package bearing its logo on my table yesterday, the first thing that came to mind was 'this tops that', that being the aforesaid FB stat. gotta lurve that feeling! ;)

i don't remember where i first read about this book (update: it was on boingboing). being somewhat a fan of memoirs and a nominal japanophile, it's one of those books i immediately knew i wanted soon i read its review. took me a long time to finally buy it because prior to shopping on bookdepository, shipping cost from amazon.com just ain't worth it (not sure why i didn't check the local bookstores -- they probably have it too). plus the MYR has strengthened much against the USD in the recent few months (bad for my comp's profits, but good for my purchase habit w00t! =)

just finished reading the book last nite (yay - another step closer to my 'read a book a month' goal for 2010 -- which is more like 'not reading anything the first 3 quarters of the year and squeezing everything in the last' but that's quite a mouthful =P anyways...)

author Jake Adelstein is an american journalist who spent 12 years in japan as a crime reporter for the yomiuri shinbun (this is quite something as -- surprisingly -- japanese are rather xenophobic -- many places do not admit/serve foreigners; and yomiuri shinbun is the widest circulated newspapers in japan and the world). the book is about his years there and the japanese underworld a.k.a. yakuza.

reading this book made me rather uneasy. this isn't the japan i know. it reveals the other side of the nation that i'm not acquainted with at all - its print media, a misogynistic society and of course, the yakuza, who are virtually unknown outside the country other than what have been portrayed in movies.

i kept thinking 'all that are going on beneath the glossy kawaii stuff?? how can they (lawmakers and civilians alike) knowingly allow this? these people are outrightly perverted and depraved and ignorant. did you know that japan is a hub of human trafficking and prostitution ring and forced labors, with little or no law to protect their rights? it's sick. :(

Human trafficking is the modern day practice of slavery. Also known as trafficking in persons, human trafficking comprises the fastest growing criminal industry in the world, based on the recruitment, harboring, and transportation of people solely for the purpose of exploitation. Every year traffickers generate billions of dollars in profits at the expense of victimizing millions of people around the world.

Victims of human trafficking are people forced or coerced into labor or sexual exploitation. Labor trafficking is widespread in variety of situations that encompass domestic servitude and small-scale labor operations, to large-scale operations such as farms, sweatshops, and major multinational corporations. Sex trafficking is one of the most lucrative sectors regarding the illegal trade in people, and involves any form of sexual exploitation in prostitution, pornography, bride trafficking, and the commercial sexual abuse of children.

[via]

note - adelstein is now the public relations director of Polaris Project Japan which combats human trafficking.  


the book also reveals how extensive the reach of the yakuza empire, and how progressive they have become with time, with their 9 fingers (apparently, one telling sign of a yakuza is a missing digit) in the multi-billion dollar sex and loan shark industries pie and an unmistakable grip over the political and economic scenes.

while adelstein's candour is engaging and sometimes amusing, there were also some poignant anecdotes about the people he has known and lost. it's a cruel and violent picture that he had painted, but also one of unlikely friendships and binding word of honour.

sometimes it's hard to wrap our head around things like this. we shouldn't be surprised at the depth of human depravity, and yet we are. sigh.

on the other hand, we cheer as burmese democratic icon aung san suu kyi is released from her 7-year house arrest (she's spent 15 of the past 20 years under h/a). Burma has been under military dictatorship for the past 48 years. have never really followed her movement, and not quite sure why she's released but i pray that may this signify better things to come for the burmese, that their nation will be rebuilt and they would no longer need to escape their homeland.


listening to some christmas tunes with thoughts about the above swirling in my head. almost surreal. oh hello kitty. good kitty.