Contact Admin. This is a transcript from AM. The program is broadcast around Australia at Not sure what this is? In scenes reminiscent of a s spaghetti western, residents of a Japanese town have banded together to drive out a mob of gangsters. There are more than 80, active members of the yakuza in Japan. The yakuza, one of the largest organised crime groups in the world, run protection rackets, prostitution and drug rings. But some people are sick and tired of the gangsters and are running them out of town.
North Asia correspondent, Mark Willacy, reports from Tokyo. Kagoshima used to be a quiet sort of place, renowned for its smoked eel and beautiful bay. But then the gangsters moved in, instantly recognisable by their sharp sunglasses, full-body tattoos, and surly manner. The yakuza bought a building in town and set up shop, but then the people of this community in south-western Japan decided to band together to drive them out.
Sound of crowd chanting "We want the gangsters out", chants the crowd. So, the residents of Kagoshima formed an anti-gang group and took out a court injunction preventing the yakuza from using the building. So, the gangsters stabbed community leader, Hiro Takasayo. He survived and led the people of Kagoshima to victory in court, forcing the yakuza out of the city.
Hiro Takasayo speaking "I am relieved" says Mr Takasayo, "I thought it would take years to get them out. Expelling the gangsters is a just cause, I did what I had to do. Kagoshima lawyer speaking "The removal of the gangsters has come true, they are gone. Sound of crowd chanting Inspired residents in nearby Saga prefecture are also standing up to the hoodlums, hitting the streets to protest against the yakuza's plan to move into a former retirement village.
The Japanese mafia has a well-earned reputation for violence, and one recent turf war resulted in six killings and more than a dozen bombings and shootings.
