World Notes Japan

"Right this way," the barkers used to murmur softly on the streets of Kabuki-cho, Tokyo's red-light district. "She'll show you everything!" No more. Responding to the cries of outraged citizens' groups and local businesses, the Japanese government cracked down last week on adult or, in the Japanese term, "pink" entertainment. Among the new regulations: all pink neon out by midnight, no more come-ons from bar girls, no new massage parlors in restricted areas, no new love hotels near schools or libraries. And no lewd barkers.

By midnight on P day, pornographic posters had disappeared in Kabuki-cho, love hotels had transformed themselves into business hotels, and some strip joints had become coffee shops. The only neon in sight ornamented conventional pubs and restaurants, sushi shops and fast-food outlets. The first police patrol of the area after the crackdown booked only 27 offenders, mainly for soliciting, keeping a restricted business open after hours or permitting minors on the premises. One barker was unfazed. "Politicians and police think they can stamp out pink," he said, "but it all has to go somewhere --someplace darker and dirtier!"