Why in Japan do they almost always return lost items and what does the ‘eye of society’ have to do with it?

In Peru It is very normal that we lose things. At meetings, parties, and even on a simple outing to the park, we leave behind a cap, wallet or watch. Unfortunately, many of these items are never returned and there is always uncertainty: where did I lose it? Where did it go?

This is a reality that is experienced throughout the world, except in some countries such as Japan which not only sets a good example in terms of hygiene with the images of fans cleaning the stadiums after a match for their team in the World Cup Qatar 2022 but it is well known (and accurate) the saying that in Japan they always find everything that is lost.

Forgotten cell phones, backpacks, watches, umbrellas: the 126 million people who live in Japan tend to lose a lot of items every year, but almost all of it returns to its rightful owners.

In Japan There is a highly efficient system in place for reuniting lost items, combining infrastructure, legal incentives, and cultural norms, and it never ceases to amaze the world. According to the BBC, 83% of mobile phones lost in Tokyo are returned.

The process generally begins at local police stations, called koban. Subsequently, all objects are stored in the Lost Property Center in Lidashi Tokyo, which in its six floors houses almost a million lost objects, and where they have a room dedicated exclusively to umbrellas (on a rainy day, the Police can find up to 3,000).

The most common objects delivered are wallets, bags and umbrellas; and the record in the total amount of money delivered was 3.8 billion yen in 2018 (about 120,000 soles). In 2019, the country reached a record number of 4.15 million lost items delivered to the Centers.

A few years ago a story on Twitter that exemplifies Japanese culture went viral. a woman named Keiko He shared his daughter’s reaction on the social network when she found a 50 yen coin.

To her mother’s surprise, the girl insisted on returning the coin to a nearby koban. The officers reacted in the best way: “Several officers came out of the koban, they asked where and when the coin was collected, and they filled out the document of lost objects.

This is not an unusual story in Japan children often hand over coins, trinkets, or whatever they find to the Police without hesitation.

In Japan A law came into force in 2007 that requires those who find items to return them to their owner, the Police or some other authority. This law derives from the lost property legislation of 1882.

Under article 28 of the legislation, it is established a reward of 5 to 20% of the value of the returned item. And in the event that the item is not claimed, whoever found it has the right to keep it after three months have elapsed (There are exceptions in telephones or some other object with personal information).

However, if no one wants the item, it is transferred to the city and auctioned off.

The Japanese lead a lifestyle based on ‘hitone-me’ (eye of society). The existence of that eye leads them to perform good deeds, even without an authority in between to watch over them.

In this regard, Professor masahiro tamura from Kyoto Sangyo University, told the BBC: “Our inner morals often help us change our behavior, but so does ‘the eye of society’.”

“The Japanese care a lot about how other people view their behavior, so their attitude towards lost property is linked to their image in society,” Tamura concludes.

Source-larepublica.pe