• Mon. Dec 23rd, 2024

Japan Subculture Research Center

A guide to the Japanese underworld, Japanese pop-culture, yakuza and everything dark under the sun.

Fukuoka convenience stores to remove yakuza mags

Bysarah

Mar 28, 2010
Fan magazines and comic books glorify the yakuza in Japan
Fan magazines and comic books glorify the yakuza in Japan

Fukuoka prefectural police requested March 25 that convenience stores in the prefecture no longer stock yakuza fan magazines. Four chains have already begun removing the products from their racks, while two more say they will do so beginning next month.The stores include Lawson, Family Mart, Mini Stop, Popular, Daily Yamazaki and Circle K Sankus.

According to police, a crime prevention group requested in December 2009 that convenience stores and book stores stop carrying the publications, citing that several monthly magazines “glamorize organized crime and may encourage youth to join the groups.”

Officials insist they do not intend to censor freedom of expression, and that the move is purely voluntary. Some warn, however, that the move opens the door for possible censorship in the future.

Read the original article here.

4 thoughts on “Fukuoka convenience stores to remove yakuza mags”
  1. Fukuoka District Court just ruled that the police request is “highly necessary” in terms of protecting children and does not impinge on freedom of speech because it’s a ” voluntary request”.
    Sounds like a bad move to me

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *