Japanese and Korean shock at Norwegian killer envy

In a rambling 1,500-page manifesto posted online shortly before the massacre, Anders Behring Breivik said he was on a self-appointed mission to save Europe from what he saw as the threats of Islam, immigration and multi-culturalism, Japanese media reports said on Tuesday (July 26).In the document, Breivik also commended Japan for not allowing many Muslims to immigrate, although the country has no ban on specific ethnic or religious groups.

On the streets of Tokyo, residents reacted with defiance at the news.

"I don't agree with him. And more importantly, it's all depends on how Japan's demography will change from now on; so I don't understand why he envies us," said 59-year old Hironobu Kitamura, refering to Japan's shrinking population.

However immigration is a sensitive topic in Japan, where many people worry that letting in more foreigners would mean more crime and less social cohesion.

"Most crimes are committed by Chinese or Korean immigrants, so I can't help thinking that Japan would be a safer nation if it closed itself off," said 58-year-old housewife Yukiko Yamamoto, who also said she disagreed with Breivik''s view of Japan.

Foreign residents account for only about 1.7 percent of Japan's population, with Chinese the largest group followed by ethnic Koreans, many of whom are descendants of people forced to come to Japan before its colonial rule over the Korean peninsula ended in 1945.

Japan, with it's unique and some say insular culture, prides itself on having a low crime rate. And despite media hysteria over an increase in crime, police figures show that violent crimes have been falling steadily over the past 5 years. Similarly, despite the common mispersception on the streets, police figures also show violent crimes committed by foreigners have been on the decline for some time now even as more foreigners make Japan their home.

Experts, however, say the country will need to open it's doors to more immigrants very soon, whether they like it or not.

"He was complementing us, but actually we'd rather create an open country that can be complemented by all sorts of people around the world," Hidenori Sakanaka, executive director of Japan Immigration Policy Institute.

"Japan is already an extremely fast aging society with an extremely low birthrate. The only way Japan can survive is to open widely the doors to immigrations and accept more immigrants as early as fast as possible," said Sakanaka, who is also a former official of Japan's Immigration Office, said.

Reaction was similarly negative in Seoul. The 32-year-old Breivik had also praised South Korea for its similar low percentage of foreign residents.

"That man took other people's life by committing a terrorist act, envying our single culture but hating multiculturalism. It's totally his personal thinking and it can never be justified by anything," said 33-year-old Kim Tae-yoon.

Another Seoul resident, 54-year-old Kim Chang-moo said the killer's praise of South Korean culture is even an insult.

"Our country's patriarchial culture is about respecting senior people and following them, but he believed it blindly and it is rather insulting us. He is wrong," said Chang.

Many South Koreans condemn Breivik's acts, but immigration and multiculturalism, like in Japan, are sensitive issues in the country with foreign residents accounting for only about 2.7 percent of the population.

More than one in ten of these are foreign women, mostly from Southeast Asia, who are married to South Korean men and moved to the country. Local reports say many suffer from domestic violence brought about by cultural differences.