Twitter lit up overnight with the news that the Japan National Tourism Ministry was considering a plan to give away free round-trip airfare to 10,000 foreigners (preferably bloggers) who can spread the myth back home that Japan is (still) a safety country.
Japan is having a bit of a PR crisis in the wake of the March 11th triple disaster and the ongoing nuclear fallout that’s poisoning the foodchain, water supply and soil (despite a valiant attempt to suck up all radioactive cesium with… sunflowers. Yeah, that idea didn’t work too goodly.)
Now the Tourism Ministry is hoping to reverse the trend of dwindling foreign tourism by paying foreigners to emulate Lady Gaga and blog about how Japan! Is! Awesome! (and like, totally safe. What? 300,000 becquerels/meter measured in the northwestern part of Tokyo, right near a major water reservoir? Pish-posh. Japan nuclear technology is totally safe. You can trust us on that.)
Predictably, there was backlash from the Japan blogosphere, saying that the projected ¥1.1 billion budget would be better spent on those directly affected by the disasters in Tohoku. The plan is still subject to approval.
No, you probably won’t sprout a third arm or eye if you spend a week or two enjoying Japan’s unique phenomenon of four distinct seasons or taking pics of Mt. Fuji or eating (possibly radioactive) sushi or harassing geisha in Kyoto or getting mauled by deer in Nara or blending in with the locals by getting blindingly drunk and vomiting all over Shinjuku station (and groping a couple hot chicks on the train). But let’s not pretend that the country is perfectly fine.
I’ll be signing up as soon as the list is open.
Original source (Japanese)
