The Australian embassy in Japan issued a warning urging travellers to show cultural sensitivity following public outrage over a video showing a tourist drinking an offering left at a Japanese grave.
The footage, shot near the Aokigahara forest and posted by Instagram user Lochie Jones in August, shows him entering a cemetery in the Yamanashi prefecture and stopping near a headstone with a can of popular Japanese beer Kirin placed in front of it.
Jones says he has decided to “leave it up to chance” and flips a coin before cracking open the beer can and drinking it.
“By the way, suicide in Japan is a serious f****** issue. The mental health here has to be some of the worst, and I can absolutely understand why. The Japanese women are absolutely vicious and cold,” he says in the video while looking for a coin. “The men still have their honour but it’s been weaponised against them. They’ve been tricked into not having any feelings and it results in one of the highest suicide rates in the world.”
“Happy blessings and rest in peace,” he says as he drinks the beer, then burps loudly, and places cigarettes on the grave as he exits. “I won’t leave him empty-handed, I’ve got some f****** Marlboro.”
In Japanese tradition, food and drink offerings placed at graves serve as tributes to honour the dead, not refreshments for visitors.
Consuming the offerings is widely viewed as profoundly disrespectful and akin to stealing from the dead.
The video provoked backlash against Jones, with one person writing on his post: “Imagine going to another country to disrespect people’s graves and steal the offerings left for loved ones. Very depraved behaviour.”
Another said: “In Japan, the offerings you see on a grave aren’t decorations or props, especially not for content. Families leave food, drinks, and incense as gifts for the spirits of their loved ones. That is why taking them is almost like robbing the person who passed on something a loved one left for them. What you did is not just bad manners, it’s deeply disrespectful.”
On Tuesday, the Australian embassy issued a statement urging travellers to display “appropriate behaviour when visiting Japan”.
“The Australian Embassy, Japan, works closely with Japanese authorities to ensure that travellers from Australia respect and observe local laws and rules. We encourage appropriate behaviour when visiting Japan. We take these matters seriously acting in cooperation with relevant authorities,” the statement read.
Meanwhile, local media reported that police had launched a formal inquiry into Jones. The Fuji Yoshida precinct of the Yamanashi police was investigating the video and “currently verifying the facts”.
In the wake of the backlash, Jones made an apology. “Look, if you felt I desecrated your dead, I am sorry. It was a mistake. I’m coming clean. I shouldn’t have portrayed that,” he posted on Instagram.
The two-part apology, however, contained a rant about what he called Japan’s “large-scale hive mind that would be subject to the whims of a predatory reptilian system that views you as little more than sheep or cattle for experimentation or slaughter”.
“Gambling and smoking is vilified, but your culture and the normalisation of paedophilia is inviting demonic forces into the mainstream,” he added.
If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.
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