Busted. | Forum | Niseko, Hirafu, Kutchan

tdes 2009-02-19 00:39:28

http://news.www.infoseek.co.jp/top/story/20090218_yol_oyt1t00585/ 外国人スキー客を空港から無許可送迎、豪州人を逮捕…北海道 (読売新聞) 　ニセコのスキー場を訪れるオーストラリア人の送り迎えを無許可で営んでいたとして、道警交通指導課は１７日、オーストラリア国籍で札幌市東区伏古８、バス会社社長ジェレミー・チャーチル容疑者（３５）を道路運送法違反（無許可運送事業）の疑いで逮捕した。　２００５～０８年の３シーズンで約４０００万円を売り上げていたとみられている。　発表によると、チャーチル容疑者は０７年１２月～０８年３月、国土交通相の許可を受けずに、レンタカーのワゴン車数台を使用し、オーストラリア人ら外国人旅行客４２人を新千歳空港から倶知安町のスキー場近くの宿泊施設約１０か所へ、計１６回にわたって送った疑い。　昨年１０月に許可を受けたが、「当時は許可が必要であることを知らなかった」と供述しているという。　チャーチル容疑者は、０５年から片道５０００円で同空港から宿泊施設前まで送迎するサービスを行っていたとみられている。インターネットや口コミで顧客を増やしていったという。

That Chick From Logistics (2009-02-19 12:12:39)

The link infosek.co.jp link thoughtfully provided by tdes is no longer valid. Why does that always happen on Japanese news sites? Annoying, and suspicious. The only other article I've found is on ([url=http://www.hokkaido-np.co.jp/news/society/147742.html]the Hokkaido Shimbun site[/url]) but they've thoughtfully stripped Jeremy's side of the story from the article. The public transportation laws are a huge gray area, always has been. Chuo or Donan probably complained, who would want to use their sh*t service anyway, Niseko is terribly underserved from the airport, anyway why the police feel inspired to conduct a witchhunt and prosecute/persecute people retroactively is beyond me. He received a proper license last year and they're arresting him now? Does that confuse anybody else? Is SkyBus still operating, or what?

tdes (2009-02-19 12:31:07)

It doesn't really seem confusing to me (if the info in this story is correct) - it says in the story he operated for 3 years without a licence. Grey areas are fair enough, but for a transport company ... I don't think so ... so dangerous. I used the normal Japanese bus service when I came to Niseko on holiday and it was fine - good price, on time etc. Why do you think it's shit?

alpachinko (2009-02-19 14:10:49)

Heard rumblings of this happening a few months ago. Apparently the Taxi drivers at Chitose had it in for Skybus because they kept parking in the best spots or whatever and they had been whinging to the cops about it. Skybus are operating as usual though which is great as they do offer a good service (whether its legal or not!) and i believe are the only door to door operators from chitose. If they dissapear and leave us with only the Japanese transport options it will be a massive step backwards for the area.

Seems the Hokkaido police have got a bit of a Gaijin bureaucratic infringement campaign going on at the moment with this and other gaijin run businesses in Hakodate, Asahikawa and Furano all getting their doors kicked in within a few days of each other looking for evidence of dodgy paperwork. They still havent had much luck finding that fellow who murdered the English teacher in Tokyo and then evaded 30 cops in his bare feet though :dry:

That Chick From Logistics (2009-02-19 17:07:17)

tdes: I agree that gray areas are to be avoided, and particularly so when the company is responsible for the safe transport of thousands of people yearly. My main problem is with selective retroactive enforcement. If it were for tax evasion, that would be one thing, but the article is very clear about what he was arrested for: a past transgression that is primarily bureaucratic, not criminal. I have a lot of reasons why I think Donan and Chuo don't fit the bill, I'd need to draw up a list, but I guess the primary reasons are:

* Amateur website and marketing. Japanese fluency required to make heads or tails of it.
* Poorly conceived and inflexible schedule. Late arrivals, as int'l traveler often are, would often need to stay a night in Chitose or Sapporo. probably designed for the benefit of domestic travelers who stay in hotels, not international guests who stay in apartments and condos.
* Spartan buses. Old, out-of-date, uncomfortable. Lack proper storage for skis and snowboards and large amounts of luggage.
* Do not deliver guests directly to their accommodation, requiring local companies to schedule two sets of transporation: Chitose -> Welcome Center, Welcome Center -> Accommodation.

I have on occasion utilised the bus service myself, but I guess the bottom line is that it doesn't work for our target market. People who just spent 2 million yen on a 10-day ski holiday don't want to ride the bus. Might agree that they're rich wankers, but they're still customers, and well-paying ones at that. Some of these pople have never been on a bus in their life.

[url=http://www.cool-star.jp/]CoolStar[/url] exists, but they're a little bit TOO upscale. SkyBus fit the bill in terms of quality, service, and price. If they get bummed by the powers-that-be, we'll all suffer. Considering the state of the economy and whatnot, really poor timing on the part of the authorities.

alpachinko: totally. they are obviously too busy with college educated foreigners with proper visas to have time to catch murderers.

Go Native (2009-02-19 20:41:04)

Must be an election coming up or something. Always goes well with the voters if they string up a few gaijin!

Nelglenski (2009-02-20 10:42:28)

The article I read was a character assassination piece saying that Skybus were charging gullible tourists outrageous sums for driving them to Niseko. Not true at all.

The problem would seem to be a definition of taxi service versus bussing service. Skybus has a bussing license, I've seen it. But they do not have a taxi license, as they are not, not claim to be, a taxi service.

Both bussing and taxi services involve the transport of paying passengers from A to B in wheeled vehicles. So I suspect the problem lies there.

Chishiki (2009-02-20 12:44:34)

They may be making the argument that because point B is not predetermined (depends on passenger's accommodation) that he is running a taxi business (a bus service has routes mapped out in advance, correct?). I still think the whole thing stinks. I hope Jeremy is OK. Being arrested in Japan is horrible, I have some friends who were rounded up for visa violations, you'd have thought they threatened to detonate a nuke in Shibuya or something. I don't expect much in the way of honest journalism from the newspapers either, I'm under the impression that they just regurgitate what the police tell them.

Go Native (2009-02-20 14:03:16)

Let's face it the Japanese government is always looking for ways to blame things on foreigners and the police are of course complicit in this. It appeals to the xenophobic and racist attitudes of the populace that have been created by generations of propaganda that demonize gaijin. The media here seem more than happy to help propagate these attitudes. I too wish Jeremy all the best. I was thinking we should start some sort of protest where we all wear something similar to the Star of David the Nazis got all Jews to wear in WWII. Maybe a big round eye or something? B)

Paddy (2009-02-20 15:28:26)

Wearing something out of protest like the star of David......

Well, I got to tell ya, you already carry your TOROKUSHOMEISHO with you.

You already, register at the Yakuba every time you move residence, re-new your
visa, re-new your passport and just in case they can't keep up with you, you also
have all your details, filled in for you, every time you stay at a hotel.
Unless you are lucky to have the Long Term Special Permanent Visa.
...I only have the ordinary permanent visa ;-( ....

There is more. your new TOROKUSHOMEISHO is now IC chipped, and the drivers lisence from next year will be likewise. Your mobile phone has a locator in it.

At the air-port, visa holders need to have re-entry permits, visa holders are no longer allowed to enter in the main-stream with their families, think how that feels to a father/mother who teaches their child that all are equal, and then at the customs, they have to line up in a SPECIAL QUEUE.

We already have a bell in our hand, the only diference is that we are not made to say "unclean" as we walk through town !

Now, before somebody tells me that I should quit Japan and blah, blah, blah.....

Living here for 14 years, paying taxes, never being arrested, never cheating on my job or my family, does earn me a little bit of space when it comes to a rant every now and again.

We are already coded, processed, and catagorised, there is no need to wear a star....

up untill 5 years ago, you had to be finger printed every time you re-newed your TOROKUSHOMEISHO.

So please, do not give the powers that be any more ideas on how to keep us apart from the local populace.

Go Native (2009-03-04 10:22:39)

Happy to report that Jeremy has been released and it appears all charges have been dropped.

legacy (2009-03-04 15:04:35)

Glad to hear that he's out, and glad to hear that one of Niseko's lifelines has not, in fact, been cut!

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