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Saturday, Nov 17, 2012
TOKYO- Among companies subjected to demands from organised crime syndicates such as extortion of money, 18.4 per cent acquiesced, according to a recent survey, the National Police Agency has announced.
The figure was almost the same level as a similar survey conducted in 2010 in which 21.8 per cent of companies that received unreasonable demands complied with them.
The NPA is calling on companies to consult with police when they are troubled by gangsters.
The NPA, the Japan Federation of Bar Associations and other organisations conducted a survey in July, targeting 10,000 companies nationwide. The survey asked whether they had received unreasonable demands from organised crime syndicates in the past five years.
Among 2,885 companies that responded to the survey, 337, or 11.7 per cent, said they had received such demands from organised crime syndicates. Of the 337 companies, 185 had received such demands within the past year.
About 71.8 per cent of the demands pressed companies to pay money, give product discounts or buy items to settle quarrels for which pretexts had been fabricated. Sixty-two of the 337 companies accepted either part or all of the demands. Five companies paid more than 5 million yen, the survey said.
As some companies are believed to have given in to the demands for fear of reprisals, the NPA said it will make efforts to familiarize more companies with consultation services and improve protective measures. So far this year there have been 13 cases in which gangsters attacked citizens and companies and no arrests have been made.
According to the survey, 2,562 companies, or 88.8 per cent of the 2,885 companies surveyed, knew about antigang ordinances that were enforced by Tokyo and the other 46 prefectures nationwide by October last year. Of them, 63.3 per cent said the ordinances were effective in ostracizing organised crime syndicates.
Sixty-one and a half per cent of companies surveyed took measures to avoid becoming victims, such as incorporating a clause in contracts with other businesses that prohibits the involvement of organised crime syndicates; this number doubled from the previous survey.
While 94.6 per cent of companies listed on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange took such measures, only 37.7 of individual business operators did so, the survey said.
