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Shock
resignation turns Japan's underworld upside down
 Yoshinori Watanabe Yoshinori Watanabe shocked Japan's underworld late July with the announcement that he was standing down as the kumicho, or chairman, of the Yamaguchi-gumi, Japan's biggest yakuza syndicate, according to Asahi Geino (8/11). Even more surprising than Watanabe's retirement after 16 years at the helm was the announcement of his replacement - Shinobu Tsukasa, a 63-year-old who was only appointed as the gang's wakagashira, or number 2 man, just two months ago following an eight-year hiatus when nobody had occupied the position. Hundreds of yakuza gang bosses from across Japan went to the Yamaguchi-gumi's Kobe headquarters for the July 29 meeting as they were watched by scores of police and media representatives. Watanabe, 64, announced his retirement in a statement read out by Saizo Kishimoto, general manager of the syndicate's headquarters. "I've been kumicho for 16 years, but been sick for the past four years and can no longer fulfill my responsibilities, so I'm retiring," Asahi Geino quotes Kishimoto saying on Watanabe's behalf. Apparently, the huge meeting room where the gang bosses sat in silence while the announcement was made, with the hush broken only when some broke down in tears. Watanabe then stood up and addressed his underlings. "Lots has happened over the past 16 years," Asahi Geino quotes Watanabe as saying. "I hope you'll stick by me from now on." In the lead-up to the day of the announcement, most media reports cited ill health as the reason behind Watanabe's retirement. Though it's true the gang boss has been battling a wide variety of ailments and was briefly hospitalized a couple of years ago, it seems the real reason for Watanabe's withdrawal from the underworld lies in a different area. In November last year, the Supreme Court ruled that Watanabe, as head of the syndicate, could be held liable in civil cases brought about because of crimes committed by members of the Yamaguchi-gumi. The ruling meant that anybody who sued the yakuza gang could also name Watanabe as a defendant and be entitled to claim compensation from him individually. Watanabe responded to the ruling by announcing the following day that he was taking a sabbatical. Ever since then, the Yamaguchi-gumi had effectively been run by a council of its top leaders, the men's weekly says. Watanabe was the first ever leader of the Yamaguchi-gumi to be alive when his successor assumed office. His rise to the top came just four years after he had been appointed wakagashira. "Everyone said at the time it had been remarkably quick, but Tsukasa, the sixth leader of the gang, was only made wakagashira in May and, just two months later, is now at the very top," a reporter for a national daily tells Asahi Geino. "It's simply unheard of." Meanwhile, Tsukasa, whose real name is Kenichi Shinoda, will probably be preparing his sakazuki naoshi. Sakazuki is the traditional exchange of sake toasts to mark an agreement in the yakuza world. The sakazuki naoshi is the first time a yakuza boss formally shares a cup of rice wine with the gang bosses who fall under the organization umbrella. The exact date of Tsukasa's sakazuki naoshi remains unknown, but most observers have penciled in late September as a likely time. Hanging over Tsukasa's head, though, is a possible jail term. The Osaka High Court has already ordered him to serve a 6-year sentence for allowing his bodyguard to be illegally armed with a pistol. Tsukasa has appealed the ruling, but if the Supreme Court backs the earlier ruling, the newly minted gang boss has no further course of appeal and will have to go behind bars, possibly throwing the Yamaguchi-gumi into turmoil. Retirement for Watanabe means a shift in many areas for him, not the least of which will be a new home. He currently lives in part of the Yamaguchi-gumi headquarters in Kobe's Nada-ku. Although he will remain connected to the gang by acting as an adviser, he won't be involved in the day-to-day running of the Yamaguchi-gumi. "They've already built a house for him owned by a company affiliated with the Yamaguchi-gumi," a gang insider tells Asahi Geino. "It's up in the (quiet) slopes of Mount Rokko." (By Ryann Connell) August 5, 2005 Complete archives at http://www.sitbot.net/ Please let us stay on topic and be civil. OM
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