SAPPORO -- Japan's convenience stores are taking on tasks once handled by the dwindling number of local police boxes, instituting measures to respond to emergencies including those involving women and children. In some cases, employees are forced to make life-or-death decisions. How much responsibility should these shops have to bear?

Capitalizing on most convenience stores' 24/7 operating hours, the Japan Franchise Association (JFA) consortium of seven store chain operators launched the "safety station" campaign in the 1990s. Originally a regional endeavor, this went national in 2005 after the National Police Agency (NPA) requested cooperation, seeing the potential for the stores to effectively reinforce community safety.

Mainly, the activities include responding to women and children in crisis, looking out for seniors suspected of suffering dementia and preventing youth crime, with around 10 categories in total. These are carried out at the stores' discretion as part of the operating companies' social responsibility tasks. Nationwide, there were 56,719 stores participating as of December 2023.

Helping victims of abuse, stalking, abduction

One factor is the declining number of police substations and local police boxes or "koban" across the country. Kobans have dropped from 6,455 in 2005 to 6,215 in 2024, while the number of substations, where officers take residence, has dropped from 7,333 in 2005 to 5,923 in 2024. At the same time, convenience stores have expanded from 42,643 stores in 2005 to 57,019 in 2023.

The NPA's community safety planning division considers the stores participating in the "safety station" program to be an important part of community safety.

According to a JFA survey, at least 4,448 locations responded to women in crisis over 6,681 incidents in 2023. The most common time for these to occur was between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., with stalking, being approached by a stranger and violence including domestic abuse as the top reasons. Serious cases have included a girl in junior high school fleeing abuse by her father and a mother and child who were saved from abduction and confinement after passing a note reading "please call the police" at the register.

However, issues have surfaced with this approach. In an incident in Asahikawa, Hokkaido, last April, a 17-year-old high school student was allegedly killed by being dropped from a bridge. She had sought help from employees at a convenience store after being held in a vehicle. However, they did not protect her, and did not call the police because the 22-year-old woman suspected of her murder came into the store and said that the victim was mentally unsound.

After this was reported, responses on social media and elsewhere ranged from criticism and presumptions from some that the victim could have been saved if the employees had called police, to others pointing out that store workers are often part-timers, including those who are foreign-born, senior citizens and others, and cannot be expected to provide perfect safety.

Awareness above all

How should stores respond? This past October, the Mainichi Shimbun asked the headquarters of four store chains -- 7-Eleven, Lawson, FamilyMart and Hokkaido-based Seicomart -- about their current situation and challenges. All four stated that they do not have incident reporting guidelines or emergency response manuals. They instead contended that they respond however possible based on a JFA policy that states, "If a woman who feels she is in danger runs inside looking for help, properly protect her in the store and immediately notify the police."

Lawson Inc. stated that, to respond appropriately, "A list of emergency contact numbers is posted in store offices and a one-touch security alert system is installed so that all employees can respond in case of emergency."

While the companies did not establish any concrete measures against interference by a perpetrator, such as allegedly happened in the Asahikawa incident, each said they had by October 2024 held awareness-raising activities at all their stores.

One of the convenience store executives expressed doubt over the meaningfulness of more rules or guidelines, arguing for the importance of thorough awareness and training, saying, "I'm not sure why the staff didn't report it (in the Asahikawa case), whether because it seemed like a joke, they were busy with regular duties or thought it was too much trouble, or there were other circumstances, but I'm reminded that the most important thing is probably staff awareness of the issues."

Expert urges 'police leadership'

The companies' answers further included requests for teamwork with local governments, police and residents. Many called for a system of "convenience store support police."

According to the NPA, as of the end of August 2024, 351 police stations within 27 out of Japan's 47 prefectural police forces, including those in Shimane and Kagawa prefectures and Tokyo, had brought in such a system. By establishing a face-to-face rapport between officers and convenience store staff, better outcomes are reportedly achieved in cases where quick cooperation is needed.

For that reason, the NPA issued a communique to the heads of prefectural police forces and others that September asking them to aim for and promote the system's introduction at all stations.

Hosei University Graduate School logistics professor Yuji Namiki, an expert in convenience stores, pointed out, "The 'sensitivity' needed for appropriate judgments is something that's cultivated in daily life, so it's quite harsh to leave it to the judgment of individual store staff. The customer service aspect of the business also limits how staff can intervene. The role of convenience stores in crime prevention and public safety should only be a secondary function."

Namiki, urging the necessity of measures such as relaying real-time security camera footage and audio to police, said, "Public safety will not improve unless the police take leadership and the private sector cooperates. The entire country needs to seriously rethink how to maintain local safety as Japan's population declines."

(Japanese original by Haruka Ito, Hokkaido News Department)