HAT is it that draws some people towards their own destruction, like moths to a flame? Sometimes it is the most dedicated and generous people who end this way: foreign-aid workers, social activists. Even journalists, sometimes. And once in a while it is a lawyer, who chose a less-travelled path.
One such attorney met a sad end this year. Toshiro Igari, a former prosecutor who worked on cases against the yakuza, Japan's mafia, was found dead in August. His death was ruled a suicide. But Jake Adelstein, an American journalist who specialises on yakuza activities, suspects murder.
In a moving tribute that he recently published, Mr Adelstein describes the respect that Mr Igari earned in his crusade, and the anger it provoked among crime bosses. "In life, we encounter only the injustices we were meant to correct," Mr Igari had said. He was both a lawyer and a mentor to Mr Adelstein, who himself has been threatened by the yakuza for his work.
As in few other countries, the business of Japan's criminal gangs is woven densely into the life of the country, its economy, government and society. Some elements within the yakuza operate openly, lending the police an illusion of control. But there is a deeper and uglier dimension lying beneath the surface, profiting by human-trafficking, extortion and the trade in hard drugs. It can be exceedingly violent.
n a moving tribute that he recently published, Mr Adelstein describes the respect that Mr Igari earned in his crusade, and the anger it provoked among crime bosses. "In life, we encounter only the injustices we were meant to correct," Mr Igari had said. He was both a lawyer and a mentor to Mr Adelstein, who himself has been threatened by the yakuza for his work.
As in few other countries, the business of Japan's criminal gangs is woven densely into the life of the country, its economy, government and society. Some elements within the yakuza operate openly, lending the police an illusion of control. But there is a deeper and uglier dimension lying beneath the surface, profiting by human-trafficking, extortion and the trade in hard drugs. It can be exceedingly violent.
"Sometimes, the only way to honour the dead is to fight for what they died for. It’s the only way I know how to mourn," writes Mr Adelstein. We hope that this journalist, whom Mr Igari once called "trustworthy, crazy, and courageous", works carefully in the dark, and avoids the flame.
http://www.economist.com/blogs/asiaview/2010/11/japans_yakuza
Extract from Igari's final book -
http://www.scribd.com/doc/46533478/Miro-Mijatovic-v-Pride-FC-Nobuyuki-Sakakibara-Yamaguchi-Gumi
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