Japan shows the way

Have you ever read in the newspaper that a political leader or a prime
minister from an Islamic nation has visited Japan ?
Have you ever come across news that the Ayatollah of Iran or the King of
Saudi Arabia or even a Saudi Prince has visited Japan ?
Japan is a country keeping Islam at bay. Japan has put strict
restrictions on Islam and ALL Muslims.
The reasons are :
1) Japan is the only nation that does not give citizenship to Muslims.
2) In Japan permanent residency is not given to Muslims.
3) There is a strong ban on the propagation of Islam in Japan.
4) In the University of Japan , Arabic or any Islamic language is not
taught.
5) One cannot import a 'Koran' published in the Arabic language.
6) According to data published by the Japanese government, it has given
temporary residency to only 2 lakhs, Muslims, who must follow the
Japanese Law of the Land. These Muslims should speak Japanese and carry
their religious rituals in their homes.
7) Japan is the only country in the world that has a negligible number
of embassies in Islamic countries.
8) Japanese people are not attracted to Islam at all.
9) Muslims residing in Japan are the employees of foreign companies.
10) Even today, visas are not granted to Muslim doctors, engineers or
managers sent by foreign companies.
11) In the majority of companies it is stated in their regulations that
no Muslims should apply for a job.
12) The Japanese government is of the opinion that Muslims are
fundamentalist and even in the era of globalization they are not willing
to change their Muslim laws.
13) Muslims cannot even think about renting a house in Japan .
14) If anyone comes to know that his neighbour is a Muslim then the
whole neighbourhood stays alert.
15) No one can start an Islamic cell or Arabic 'Madrasa' in Japan. There
is no Sharia law in Japan .
16) If a Japanese woman marries a Muslim then she is considered an
outcast forever.
17) According to Mr. Kumiko Yagi, Professor of Arab/Islamic Studies at
Tokyo University of Foreign Studies , "There is a mind frame in Japan
that Islam is a very narrow minded religion and one should stay away
from it."

VERY SMART PEOPLE, THESE JAPANESE ! -----

 

It's amazing how widespread this email has become. The negative is always easier to spread than is the positive though. I'm not a Muslim; but neither am I a Christian. I know some Muslims that I don't care for; and I know some Christians that I don't care for. I also know some of each faith that I count among my friends. Religion doesn't make good people, and neither does it make bad people. To coin a phrase, "Religion doesn't kill people. People kill people."

Being neither Muslim nor Christian, I don't suppose that anti-Muslim propaganda, or anti-Christian propaganda, should be of any concern to me; but being a human being, it bothers me. If I'm in a group of people who are slagging off another religion, or another ethnicity, and I don't say something, then I become complicit through my silence. I won't do that. I either have to speak up, or leave the group. And I kind of like this group, so thus I speak.

It's difficult for Muslims to immigrate to Japan. Newsflash! It is difficult for anyone to immigrate to Japan.

Gaining citizenship is next to impossible for a Muslim in Japan. Gaining citizenship is next to impossible for any foreigner in Japan.

The Japanese aren't necessarily anti-Muslim; they are anti-foreigner.

The Japanese culture is one of the most xenophobic cultures in the world. Historically, the Japanese have believed themselves to be superior to all other cultures. There was next to no contact between Japan and the Western world until Commodore Perry forced open the gates of Japan at the point of a gun in 1853.

You might find alternative insight into the issue of Muslims in Japan at the following sites:
Islam in Japan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"The majority of estimates of the Muslim population have been put at around 100,000 in estimates."

"In Japan the government does not take religion into account as part of the demographic concern under religious freedom."

"The Japanese government does not keep any statistics on the number of Muslims in Japan. Neither foreign residents nor ethnic Japanese are ever asked about their religion by official government agencies"."

Islam in Japan
"In 1928 the Muslims of Kobe established their own society and, in October 1935, established the Kobe Muslim Mosque, the first permanent mosque in Japan. The high-profile Tokyo Mosque was opened several years later, in May 1938, with an impressive list of political dignitaries and prewar activists in attendance."

"As individuals, Muslims in Japan usually fare no worse than any other foreigner in Japan. If the Muslim in question is fair-skinned and clean cut, then they may be received rather well within Japanese society. If they are dark-skinned and bearded, then they may face more problems. Most Japanese have a tendency to make their judgments about foreigners based on their appearance and outward sociability."

"The Japanese have long held negative stereotypes about the Islamic world. As Japan modernized in the Meiji period and after, most of the public’s information about the Islamic world came via Western, and in particular British, sources. Relatively few Japanese had the opportunity to revise these stereotypes through direct contact and experience. As a result, the attitudes toward Islam that can be found in Victorian British sources exercised a disproportionately large influence on the Japanese understanding of Islam in its formative period."

"At the same time as most ordinary Japanese remain uncomfortable with the notion of Islam, at the diplomatic level, the Japanese government has been trying to paint a different picture."

"These efforts began in earnest in January 2001 with the “Kono Initiative.” This initiative was named after then-Foreign Minister Yohei Kono, and was also referred to as the “Dialogue among Civilizations with the World of Islam,” apparently in honor of then-President Mohammed Khatami of Iran."

"In September 2003, the first event of the “Japan-Arab Dialogue,” was held in Tokyo. Then, in July 2004, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs launched the “Seminar Series to Understand the Middle East and Islam.”

BNI response to the viral email re: ‘Islam and Japan’ | BARE NAKED ISLAM
The BNI site posted here is blatantly anti-Islamic, dedicated to spreading negative half-truths about Islam, and even it refutes the above email, line by line.

 

Before I rip into the spam e-mail in post #1, I would like to make some introductory comments.

Firstly, my critique is of the truth claims made in the article, and the author of the article, not of the person posting the article. Secondly, my stance on religion, and in particular, theism of the various Abrahamic flavours is reasonably well known at this site, so my criticism of the article should not be construed as an endorsement of or support for Islam. If I have taken some effort to refute the idiotic truth claims of the e-mail, it is because I believe the e-mail only harms the interests of countries who are trying to defeat Islamic extremism and terrorism. Circulating dishonest drivel that is easily refuted by factual evidence only serves to provide Islamic extremists with propaganda material with which to recruit moderates to their cause, and with which to further reinforce Islamic prejudices against western culture and western societies. There are many things about Islam that can be justifiably criticised, with the evidence to support the criticism: It is not necessary, and it is counter productive to peddle silly, demonstrably refutable lies about Islam.

The article in post #1 has been disseminated widely through the internet, mostly without any apparent attempt to fact check any of the truth claims contained within it. Some sites have questioned the claims made in the "Japan Leads The Way" article, and have refuted most if not all of the claims in "JLTW" except for part of item (15 -the status of Sharia Law in Japan.....Sharia Law has no legal status / standing in the Japanese legal system). tulianr has linked his post to one such refutation, from a very unlikely website indeed.

Islam in Japan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Sometimes understanding the "why" of something provides useful information as to how the "what is" has come to be.