Job Discussion Forums

[starteacher]

I cannot recall where I read this as it must be embedded in some thread somewhere.

I got a call from a young police officer knocking on each door to gather information about persons living at an address : asked for names, telephone, date of birth and place of work. Nothing very detailed at all. Even wrote my name in English but getting the furigana wrong way round.

Though did ask had the previous owner move (which was 3 years ago), so this was the first time in 3 years. I've never stayed in a place long enough to know if such a survey is or does get done repeatedly.

Anyone have any experience of this ?

[Shonai Ben]

about half way through my first year here same thing happened.A knock on the door and a policeman standing outside.
He basically asked my name and nationality.Communication was difficult but he seemed staisfied and left.
Never saw him again.........seemed strange at the time though and it never happened again.

[Apsara]

That's quite common. They came here a few years ago asking about who was living in our apartment. In smaller towns, like where my mother-in-law lives, there are maps of each block on the corners somewhere with the residents' family names indicated for each house.

Traditionally one of the jobs of the local police was to know who was living in their area, so they still make some attempt to do so even in the urban areas.

Last year they came again, but I had just had the news of a death in the family and didn't feel like dealing with them at the time. I guessed they were just checking who was in the building again (we have a screen that shows us who is downstairs and I could tell they were ringing all the doorbells because I heard the bells of the apartments above and below) so I didn't answer (works for the NHK guy too ) and they haven't been back since.