Opinion

'Rational' discrimination

By Scott T. Hards

Recently, the Sapporo District Court ordered a bathhouse in Otaru to pay damages to three people refused entry because they looked like foreigners. One of them, Arudou Debito (born David Aldwinckle) was not even a foreigner, as he holds Japanese citizenship. The court ruled that "refusing all foreigners without exception is 'irrational discrimination.' As it can be said to go beyond permissible societal limits...."

Debito's group also sued Otaru for not having done enough to prevent discrimination. They based their suit on the U.N. "International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination," to which Japan is a signatory. One part of this document says "Each State Party shall prohibit and bring to an end, by all appropriate means, including legislation as required by circumstances, racial discrimination by any persons, group or organization."

Unfortunately, the judge denied this part of their claim, saying that the city was not required to pass laws to prevent specific examples of discrimination between individuals. Debito alone and the bathhouse have appealed the decision, so the legal battle will continue. If you're interested in this case, I suggest you visit www.debito.org.

Let's look at the judge's notion of "irrational discrimination." That phrase suggests that there is also "rational" discrimination. Really? Could there be situations where it's actually OK to discriminate against someone? As horrible as it sounds, I think the answer is yes.

Consider a blind person applying for admission to a flight school. Or a 35-year-old who wants to play on a little league baseball team. What about a girl who wants to be in the Boy Scouts? Most people will probably agree that there is no problem with these individuals being denied access. A similar case is being debated in the United States now: Augusta National Golf Club, the home of the Masters Tournament, has a policy of not accepting women.

I disagree with that policy, but I believe private clubs have the right to decide who comes in and who does not. Their main business is providing a place to socialize, and people must be allowed to choose their friends. Some clubs have doormen who decide who may enter based on their dress and appearance. Discrimination? Yes, but perfectly legal. Many bars here have "Japanese Only" signs at their doors, too. I hate it, but you cannot force clubs to admit customers that will harm the atmosphere of their business.

But when a business is publicly offering basic goods or services, not what is primarily just a place to meet other people, then we have to draw the line on discrimination. Refusing to let someone buy from a store or enter a bathhouse due to race or nationality clearly violates the ideals of the U.N. convention. Yes, Debito won part of his lawsuit, but the fact that he had to sue the bathhouse in the first place reveals the main problem: Unlike every other industrialized nation, Japan has no laws that make racial discrimination illegal! Even the United Nations has warned Japan that such laws should be passed. Let's hope that higher courts here will overturn the Sapporo judge's ruling about such laws. And most importantly, let's hope there is a Japanese legislator out there concerned enough to draft the bill that should have been law ages ago.

Shukan ST: Dec. 20, 2002

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