Yakuza infighting puts nation on edge

Japan Times ^ | Sep 19, 2015 | Mark Schreiber

[WhiskeyX]

Around the start of this year, the weekly magazines — Shukan Taishu, Asahi Geino and Shukan Jitsuwa in particular — were brimming with articles feting the centennial anniversary of the Yamaguchi-gumi, which had gone from being a small group of tough guys on the Kobe waterfront in 1915 to Japan’s largest designated criminal syndicate, with an estimated 23,000 members.

Nine months later, the gang is back in the news, this time with stories about its big breakup.

On Aug. 27, a total of 13 gang affiliates, based in Kobe, Awaji Island and other cities in Hyogo Prefecture, as well as Fukui, Okayama, Kyoto and Kumamoto, were ordered purged from the main organization, either by zetsuen (severing of ties) or hamon (excommunication).

[Red Badger]

Wedding bells are breaking up that old gang of mine.........................

[Noumenon]

Sounds like a job for Young Guy! Motor Detective!

[Lx]

But they're so cute.

[struggle]

I seriously doubt there’s going to be a gang war over this - the yakuza are too deeply entrenched in semi-legal activities and they don’t want to give a reason for their shaky relationship with the police to fall apart. The reason why the Yamaguchi-gumi is moving to Nagoya is because the Kansai money is drying up.

I remember seeing those dudes all the time in Kyoto on Gojo.

[katana]

“That’s alright — this thing’s gotta happen every five years or so — ten years — helps to get rid of the bad blood. Been ten years since the last one.”