Very interesting post BlogD.

Quote Originally Posted by BlogD
The contrast between the late 80's and today is very marked. I rarely hear stories of foreigners on bikes being pulled over, and never hear of gaijin-card checks any more.
I am not sure how often you used to be checked by the police, but I have been checked 4 times in one month between mid-January and mid-February this year, including 3 times the same week, and everytime well before midnight (between 8 and 10pm) and everytime less than 2min from where I live. I have been checked twice by the same guy 2 consecutive days and had to show my alien registration card each time (as if he couldn't remember me). Everytime I was wearing a suit as I was going back home from work. I haven't been checked since then though. They only briefly checked, were polite and didn't ask too many questions, but it is quite annoying (and embarassing when Japanese around are watching you) to be the only person checked like that. Usually they check if the bike is not stolen with the registration number, and I am aware that Japanese could be checked too after the last train (around 12:30). But in my case, they only checked the bike's number twice, and the other 2 times only asked for my gaikokujin torokusho (which mean they didn't care about the bicycle at all).

I have only been checked one other time outside these 4 and it was 2 years ago when I was going to the combini around 1am. I was shocked as it was my first time and 2 policemen got out of their car and came running toward me as I was waiting for the pedestrian traffic light to turn green. They asked me about 10 questions (do you speak Japanese, where do you live, what do you do, why are you in Japan, etc.) before finally asking if that was my bicycle. I said yes and immediately showed them my registration paper I still had in my wallet since I had bought the bike just a few weeks before. They were quite surprised I had that paper with me (nobody does) and apologized after checking one more time my bike's number by talkie-walkie. Bastards. That won't help my contempt for policemen as being people who haven't been able to finish high school and have nothing better to do than bully working citizens while getting paid with their taxes to release their frustration.