What is YAKUZA？Mafia? Gang?

http://cinetri.jp/news/outragebeyond_making2/

Have you ever heard of “Yakuza”? This is the name used for the Japanese mafia. They could also be called gangsters. The number of Yakuza members was estimated to be 18,100 people in 2016 (as announced by police).

There are many groups of Yakuza. Some of the largest organisations are Yamaguchi-gumi(Kobe), Inagawa-kai (Tokyo), Sumiyoshi-kai (Tokyo), Kudou-kai(Fukuoka). The top (Kumi-chou) of these get several billion yen (millions of dollars). However, most of Yakuza don’t even get the equivalent to the average salary of an office worker. This is because the police crackdown has become more strict year by year.

One of the most traditional ways for Yakuza to make money is called “Mikazime Ryo(fee)”. This means that Yakuza charge money to people who conduct business in their area, through intimidation and threats. In addition to that, they get a lot of money from running brothels and illegal gambling businesses.

It is commonly believed that most of Yakuza have tattoos. This is called “Irezumi” in Japan. That’s why, in Japan, people tend to relate a person who has a tattoo to Yakuza. Even if the person is very kind. Of course, not all people think this way. As a foreigner, if you have a tattoo it is going to be alright. So please don’t worry about this.

If you were Yakuza, you have to follow their rules. If you make a mistake, what would happen? You have to cut off your pinky! You do this to show how serious what you’ve done. So watch out when you see a person who doesn’t have a little finger!