CHEAP DRUGS AND SEX SELL WELL IN JAPAN DESPITE RECESSION

TOKYO, April 2 AFP - Cheap drugs and sex have boosted sections of Japan's
shadow economy despite the recession here, but as the price of illicit
pleasure drops, the industry has become more dangerous, experts said.

"There is a general expansion in revenue generated by organised crimes as
well as the sex industry," said Takashi Kadokura, an economist at Dai-Ichi
Life Research Institute who has studied Japan's underground economy.

"The key word to explain this expansion would be low price. Because of the
low price many customers are attracted to go into this market and therefore
the market in general has expanded," he said at the Foreign Correspondents'
Club of Japan.

Japan's shadow economy comprised 4.9 per cent of gross domestic product or
Y25.1 trillion ($A354.77 billion) in 2000, down from a peak of 7.6 per cent
in 1990, because tax evasion which accounts for over 80 per cent of the
total dropped after the economic bubble of the late 1980s burst, he explained.

In sharp contrast illegal funds generated by Japan's Yakuza gangsters rose
from around Y820 billion ($A11.59 billion) in 1990 to Y1.9 trillion
($A26.86 billion) in 1999, the latest figure available.

"Most of the illegal revenue comes from the increased drug trade," said
Kadokura who recently published a book titled White Paper on Japan's
Underground Economy.

Cash generated through racketeering or betting has dropped following the
promulgation of a law in 1992 to regulate the industry, but a rise in drugs
smuggled into Japan from China has created a new source of income.

Stimulants which once cost several hundred thousand yen now fetch around
Y10,000 ($A140) on the street, cheap enough for junior and senior high
school students to buy.

"That is why although the price has gone down there has been an explosion
of new users so the Yakuza are able to generate profits," said Kadokura.

Certain areas in the entertainment business have also enjoyed a boost.

Sex industry sales have risen as a proliferation of cheap massage parlours
and low-budget prostitution services become more popular.

Revenue generated by the industry grew to Y1.7 trillion ($A24.03 billion)
in 2000 from Y1 trillion ($A14.13 billion) in 1990, according the the
economist's calculations.

There are no official data on the sex industry so Kadokura compiled his own
numbers by ringing parlours listed in entertainment magazines. He found out
the waiting time for clients and was able to calculate the revenue
generated at a single shop. He then multiplied this figure by the total
number of outlets.

Leading the rise in sales are massage parlours, where customers can enjoy a
quick thrill for Y10,000 ($A141), significantly less than the Y60,000
($A848) bill charged for traditional house prostitution.

But as Japan sinks deeper into recession people have become more desperate
and the underground industry is getting dirtier.

Women unable to find work are being forced into prostitution and as the
price drops they must have sex more often to make ends meet.

"I would think it is more dangerous (now). For example among the Japanese
high school girls there is this phenomenon of 'enjokosai' non-professional
prostitution for money.

"In this field also the unit price is coming down and so to maintain the
same level of income you have to increase the frequency ... so morally
speaking it is not something good," said Kadokura.

Though the seedier end of Japan's sex industry has slashed prices to
generate business, high-class hostess bars continue to prosper as affluent
businessmen still want to celebrate their success.

Rie Hara is a 'Mama' or marketing manager at one of the most exclusive
hostess bars in Ginza, a stylish sector of Tokyo.

She started out as a hostess 15 years ago and gradually worked her way up
through the industry.

The money is not as forthcoming as it was during the bubble years but Hara
still charges first time customers a minimum of Y80,000 ($A1,130) yen to
enter her club for the night.

Unlike the many sex parlours and massage salons nationwide, traditional
hostess bars simply provide women dressed in kimonos to pour drinks for
their male clients and talk to them.

"The clubs in Ginza represent a very unique culture of Japan. There is
nothing tangible nothing that you can really touch that we can provide but
I think we are providing a place of relaxation a place of comfort and also
clubs are a place where you can pursue the traditional stylishness of
Japan," said Hara.

But even old school hostesses are feeling the pinch. Certain girls once
earned Y80 million ($A1.13 million) a year, but this is unheard of now,
said Hara.

Similarly club managers force their staff to bring customers to the club
themselves or forfeit their salary, or they reduce the hours the girls work.