Warning: Long read
Firstly – I will disagree with many of my friends on this topic.
I’m a frequent visitor to Japan. I stand with the Japanese on this issue. Their country and people’s history go back close to 2,000 years. If I were them, I’d also would rather the organic population decline than to let in Indians, Pakistanis, Afghans, Arabs, Blacks, and Whites.
Islam is alien to the Japanese eco-system. So is Hinduism. If you open the floodgates to massive immigration – you’d turn into another Canada and Germany. This is not hypocrisy on my part as my family migrated to the West in the 70’s. We moved when immigration was trickled and allowed immigrants to systemically integrate and assimilate into the host culture. The last 20 years has been the opposite – floodgates opens and ghetto, ethnic enclaves pop up over night across the West. These people not here to assimilate or contribute to society. Often – all of them come from zero-trust societies where being clever and half is more important than personal and societal ethics. For those here who grew up in the West – like my friends in the UK – you are also pretty much Western – I hope. Where integrity and society based on trust fuels relationship between people.
Not littering on the streets, standing in queue for their turn, not playing loud music in public areas, and general conforming to the rule of the law.
Japanese people take pride in their country and people. Their history is glorious. For the longest time, they had a hard cap on immigration from the non-Asian/non-eastern religions regions. Indians were also included in the hard cap for being an alien culture.
They did not mind the Muslims from countries such as China (ethnic Han), Malaysians, Indonesians, Brunei, and Philippines.
The South-East Asia Muslims are a synchronistic of Islamic and Asian cultures. They are not loud, they act accordingly, and generally well-mannered and peaceful. There are a few mosques in Japan – which is fine, but they do not want mosques popping up all over the place (or Hindu temples).
Praying on the streets, disturbing the peace, misbehaving – all commons amongst Indians, Afghans, Pakistanis, Arabs, and Africans that recently migrated to the West.
Even when I was growing, we visited family in the U.S., and watched some random Bangladeshi (given their looks and dress), separating meats on the sidewalk – I can’t make this up. When you let in large group of people into your country, they tend to come from a lower socio-lower income level thereby living in closed off neighborhoods with like-minded people. There is no desire to learn and adopt the country’s culture and rule of the laws. These new-comers are just happy to make it out of their miserable countries. Many here will get upset at my words – but it’s the 100% truth. The massive Hindu population across the Anglo countries has placed the Hindus that came 60 years ago and properly assimilated. These newcomers like a plague have systemically destroyed the once pristine reputation of the Indians – which all South Asians benefited from to an extent.
Japan rightfully does not want its culture and identity altered as to what has occurred in the West. When you ride their metro or buses, there is absolute quiet – unlike the South Asians, and Africans, and Arabs who are loud people – and have this innate desire to be heard and seen in public.
The Japanese also dislike the Westerners that come there. A Japanese friend told me the deep-hate brewing against aggressive Whites who come and sexually harass Japanese women in front of their husband/boyfriends.
The Japanese do not want these people any where near their businesses, and womenfolk. “Gaijin” means foreigners in Japanese. It’s equally applied to people from the West or East – basically anyone not Japanese.
Finally – Much of the foreign workers in Japan are Main-lander Chinese, and a small amount from Brazil – Japanese descendants.
For those crying racism – I can forgive the folks who grew up in the England as they have a traumatic past given the sheer racial physical abuse the South Asians were subjected to, and still are. I understand your perspective is different from mine as I didn’t suffer nearly as much as you. Please do not take offense to my words above – but they are reflection of the state of the world today. This is not Japanese racism, this them being very polite and gentle. If you want to see the other end of the spectrum - read their behavior towards non-Japanese during WW2.