Japanese prove easy prey for Chinese honey
traps
A "badger game" is a type of extortion scheme in which the victim,
often a married man, is coerced into a compromising position and
then subjected to some form of extortion, either for money or
information. The Japanese word for this, "tsutsumotase," is written
with the characters for "bijin" (beautiful woman) and "kyoku"
(affair).
According to Asahi Geino, who knows how many Japanese men in China
-- convinced they've met the girl of their dreams -- have been
falling victim to such entrapment.
For at least two, it's proved deadly. The most notorious case
involved the suicide of a 46-year-old Japanese diplomat in May
2004. Investigation later revealed the man killed himself after
being blackmailed by a Chinese intelligence agency.
The man had been known to patronize a notorious karaoke club in
Shanghai catering to Japanese named "Kaguyahime."
Then on August 10, the body of a 45-year-old noncommissioned
officer assigned to the Maritime Self Defense Forces escort ship
"Asayuki," while docked in Sasebo port, was found hanging in a
storeroom. Subsequent investigation discovered that since December
1999 he had made a total of 18 trips to South Korea and Shanghai,
China, of which all but two had been taken without obtaining prior
permission.
And once again, it was discovered that the deceased MSDF officer
had become friendly with a Chinese woman employed at, yep,
Kaguyahime.
According to another MSDF member -- who is presently confined to
quarters while under investigation on suspicion of leaking secrets,
which he denies -- the deceased had remitted approximately 3.5
million yen to his lady friend in Shanghai over the previous
several years.
A source tells Asahi Geino that customers arriving at Kaguyahime
are welcomed by an attractive, Japanese-speaking female manager and
escorted to one of its 10 or so private rooms. For 250 Chinese yuan
(about 3,750 Japanese yen), customers may drink to their hearts'
content. Once seated and served with their drinks, the customers
are invited to take their pick from a bevy of Asian beauties.
"These girls are not coy at all, they come right out and in broken
Japanese ask the customer to take them out on 'dates,'" relates a
Japanese trading firm employee posted in Shanghai on familiar terms
with the shop. "All the karaoke songs they play are moody tunes,
and the lights are turned down dimly in the rooms. Customers can
dance cheek to cheek with the girls. They'll exchange deep kisses
and the girls will let you grope them, offering no resistance
whatsoever."
An outlay of 1,000 yuan permits you to "buy" the girl out of the
club.
"The girls know the refinements Japanese men appreciate, like
lining up your shoes inside the doorway with the toes pointed
outwards, and folding your clothes neatly after your remove them,"
grins the trading firm staffer. "And the sex is fantastic -- not
like making it with a pro, but more like a passionate tryst with a
lover. Before you know it, you're hooked."
Shanghai is by no means the only Chinese metropolis featuring fancy
facilities for fraternizing with fetching femmes fatales. Beijing,
Dalian, Shenyang (formerly known as Mukden)... anyplace where
Japanese travel for trade, diplomacy or leisure, you'll find
plenty. Dalian, Liaoning Province is said to have at least 40 and
Beijing boasts over 100 bars, barber shops and massage parlors,
staffed with obliging gals able to communicate in basic
Japanese.
"Of course prostitution is illegal in China," a locally-based
Japanese correspondent tells Asahi Geino. "But the operators of
these establishments get away with it, either through outright
bribery or by making connections with the security police. That
raises the possibility that anything the girls working there see or
hear on the premises winds up in the hands of national intelligence
organizations."
"In early August, just before the suicide of the MSDA officer in
Sasebo, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent out a
communiqu?, advising embassy and consular staff to avoid
associating with women in such places," says the
correspondent.
Harrumph! sneers Asahi Geino. What a completely feckless way to
deal with the serious problem of the spilling sensitive secrets.
And it's not only too little, but in two cases at least, the
warning has been issued much, much too late.
