Much has been written about the stoicism of Japan's tsunami survivors; now they are being lauded for their probity, amid reports that huge sums of money found in the rubble are being faithfully handed in to the authorities. Police say they are receiving several hundred items containing cash every day. The total runs into tens of millions of yen, much of it stashed in the safes that are commonplace in Japanese homes.
With little prospect of the money ever finding its way to its rightful owners, calls are growing for it to be donated to the relief effort. In less chaotic times, lost valuables are kept for three months and given to the person who found them, provided they are not reunited with their owner. The national police agency, meanwhile, has granted officers permission to break open the many safes whose owners can't be identified from external markings.
