Japan Takes Tough Stance on Hooliganism
by Geoff Connor
Following a number of high-level security meetings, including two hosted by the British Council in Tokyo and Seoul in March and attended by senior British officers and security advisors, the Japanese National Police Agency (NPA) and the Japan World Cup Organizing Committee (JAWOC) have devised a series of measures aimed at curbing hooliganism at World Cup 2002.
The first steps that the NPA and JAWOC have undertaken are designed to minimize the number of potential troublemakers to be allowed into Japan. Japanese security officers, having gained the cooperation of UK, German and Dutch authorities, now intend to request the cooperation of other European countries to take similar measures and prevent known hooligans from leaving their own countries. Security officers have also been advised to gather more information on organized hooligan groups from the South American continent, where Argentinian hooligans pose constant problems for the Argentine authorities, and, surprisingly, the Oceania region where Australian soccer supporters have been known to engage in the occasional brawl after a tinny or two too many.
Those that do slip through the net may still encounter problems as they attempt to enter Japan. The NPA is currently considering asking each participating nation to surrender lists of potential troublemakers that Japanese immigration officers can use to crosscheck visitors.
Click on the image
to buy this book
JAWOC officials plan to vigorously screen the tickets and IDs of both Japanese and foreigners attending matches, while each supporter will be searched three times before being seated. Organizers also plan to erect 2.5-metre high security fences around each stadium to further deter fans who arrive at the ground without tickets. In addition, approximately 700 civilian security staff will be stationed inside each stadium, while mobile riot squads equipped with water cannon will control the outside of the stadia. Further measures are expected to be formulated and announced after the World Cup draw in December. Interestingly, the Japanese police have been practicing riot control procedures with fellow officers posing as hooligans and armed with Union Jacks.
As yet, it remains unclear as to exactly what kind of judicial punishment will be meted out to those arrested for violent activities during the World Cup. Deportation following a spell in a detention center and the payment of a hefty fine appears the most likely cause of action to be adopted by the Japanese authorities. Those arrested for more serious offences could face a lengthy period of rice, pickles and green tea in a strictly regimented Japanese prison.