This research will analyze the effect that the yakuza, Japan's organized crime syndicate, has on the Japanese economy and on the life of the people of Japan. The effect of the yakuza will be illustrated with an exploration of the yakuza's infiltration of many legitimate businesses and how this specifically affects the Japanese economy. Further, there is short examination of the effect the yakuza have had in efforts by/ the Japanese government to reform the economy in the face of the worst recession in Japan's history since the end of World
The yakuza is Japan's organized crime syndicate. Although the yakuza has old roots in Japan, the yakuza did not prosper until after World War II. Nevertheless, the yakuza is an ingrained part of Japanese culture. For example, Japanese cinema often has been filled with popular images of yakuza gangsters (Economist, 1990, pp. 19 21). Yet the Japanese cinema is not exploring some unknown underground culture, because the yakuza is usually not such a secretive organization. Until recently, the yakuza has been readily identifiable in the biggest cities of Japan. Often, the offices of the yakuza are readily identifiable, and the members are attired in tasteful business suits with business cards to match. One crime syndicate even prints its own internal telephone directory; the offices are staffed 24 hours a day. However, the nonchalant appearance is beginning to change in the face of Japan's recession (Ormonde, 1992, p. 48).
The presence of the yakuza should properly be considered an
oddity in Japan since the nation is known for the safety of its streets, not its crime problems. There are estimates of 80,000 gangsters in Japan. In fact, some 33 percent of all prisoners in Japan's penal system are believed to be yakuza associates. The yakuza prisoners are unusual in that most have their criminal defense paid for with yakuza money, not provided pro bono by the criminal defense bar as is typical ...