Cherry blossoms and changing times

On my recent trip to Japan last week, I finally got a chance to witness firsthand the famed cherry blossom season.

The cherry blossoms or “Sakura” flowers experience peak bloom in late March to early April, so my trip was timed to perfection.

Locals say the best way to experience this annual spring occurrence is to attend a Hanami festival. We did not get a chance to do so on my trip to Nagoya, but we did visit the city’s most famous Hanami (cherry blossom viewing) spot – Nagoya Castle.

The grounds around the castle were packed with tourists happily snapping away at these iconic trees. But I also noticed wardens who were policing tourists from touching the blossoms.

Spring blooms: People gathering under cherry blossoms against a backdrop of the Tokyo Skytree, at Sumida Park in Tokyo. — AFP

Just a day before our visit, Japanese social media sites were full of outrage over a viral video that an American content creator posted showing him doing pull-ups on a Sakura tree. Even though this influencer subsequently ­apologised, the damage had been done.

And it is precisely because of streamers like this who post stupid stuff on social media that there is a negative perception in Japan against tourists.

Japan is experiencing a backlash against tourists due to increasing concerns about over-­tourism, particularly in popular destinations like Kyoto and Tokyo. This is fuelled by overcrowding, cultural disruptions and the negative impacts on local communities. Residents are complaining about issues like traffic congestion, environmental degradation and disruptions to their daily lives.

Foreign nationals in Japan have been attracting negative attention in recent months, igniting outrage on social media over what many perceive as disrespectful and ignorant behaviour.

According to the South China Morning Post, the list of offences is long: an American tourist in his 60s was arrested for graffiti at Tokyo’s Meiji Jingu shrine; four Sri Lankans were questioned in connection with the theft of 220 cars; a Chinese woman was accused of running an illegal brothel; a British man was linked to a 13 million yen (RM396,000) theft; and a Chilean woman was filmed doing pull-ups on a shrine’s “torii” gate.

The worry is that these incidents may lead locals to view all outsiders as troublemakers, even as the country experiences record-­breaking influx of tourists, with 36.9 million visitors last year. This surge in tourism is attributed to several factors, including government initiatives to promote tourism and a weakened yen, making Japan a more affordable destination.

I also noticed something strange on my recent trip.

Walk into any Family Mart, 7-11 or any other popular convenience store chain, and chances are the cashier who will greet you would be a foreign national.

This was not the case on my previous visit in November 2023. In fact, the presence of a foreign workforce was also evident at the airport and hotel.

It is a huge change when you consider that Japan is a predominantly homogeneous society that is notoriously resistant to foreign citizenship.

According to Nikkei Asia, the number of foreign residents in Japan grew at double the government’s expected pace last year to a third straight record high of 3.77 million, data released In March indicated.

And many of these foreigners are coming in from South and South-East Asia. Much of the rise came from immigrants moving to Japan for work. By nationality, Vietnam accounted for the largest share of last year’s increase at 69,000, followed by Nepal at 57,000.

But why this about-turn on labour policy? This surge is ­driven by Japan’s ageing population and growing labour shortages. The declining birth rate has also created a severe labour shortage, ­making it necessary for businesses to seek foreign workers.

Surprisingly, it is not just the blue-collar workers that are flocking to the Land of the Rising Sun. Japan is also looking for skilled and managerial-level workers.

Japanese companies are stepping up their hiring of college graduates and technical trainees from other Asian countries because of the worse labour crunch the country has faced since the early 1990s.

And with the influx of these foreign workers, Japanese-language schools for foreign nationals have sprung up in all major cities. The Nepalese employees I engaged with at my hotel and convenience store all spoke fluent Japanese.

Has the largely homogenous society changed? Are the Japanese less distrusting and more accepting now?

The jury’s still out on that. Despite the growing number of foreign workers, challenges remain, including retention, integration and ensuring fair wages and working conditions.

But more than that, foreign workers, and tourists in particular, need to be more respectful of the Japanese culture and norms. After all, the word for a foreigner in Japanese is Gaijin, which means “outside person”.

Complete assimilation may not be possible or warranted, but the twin impacts of record tourism and rising foreign labour will inevitably lead to increased tensions within Japanese society.