Changing Japanese perception of Islam
Published on: Sunday, September 22, 2019
By: James Sarda
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When it comes to the Japanese audience, they think Arabs are very dangerous. That they are related to this and that movement.
It reflected in a donation drive following a book she wrote about the Japanese earthquake in 2011, when she wanted to help her former compatriots. She organised a Kimono show despite getting approval from the UAE authorities only two days before the event as it is an offence to raise money in the emirates without permission.
“Everybody wanted to help but how was I to send the donation from the UAE to Japan? Everybody had the same mind.
The money is here but cannot easily send because of the cultural differences,” she said, at the recent 37th Sharjah International Book Fair. The amount raised was shared by the Disaster Team of Japan and The Japan Muslim Association.
“Even though everybody’s direction is one, the way is not straight,” said the author of three books about Arab culture in Japanese.
“Whole life we can’t walk straight. Have to go through here and there,” she said, of her attempt to bridge the cultural differences.
“I’m introducing the UAE culture but it is not easy because the culture is very far from us. They don’t know how we eat, what kind of food, what clothes they wear. I explain all these details.
“I experienced a lot of differences and difficulties,” said the mother of five and founder-director of the UAE-Japan Cultural Centre.
The author-translator has put out three books to make the Japanese change their perception about Arabs and Arab culture. To bridge the borders, so to speak.
“When it comes to the Japanese audience, they think Arabs are very dangerous. That they are related to this and that movement. Those in the UAE know this is not so. They know the safety and life they enjoy.”
She also tried hard to dispel Japanese thinking about Arab women being suppressed and having no freedom.
She thought writing about it would be the best approach in this regard until she realised that when it came to writing it can be very difficult to express the word. Also who would be the target audience that would enjoy it in Japan.
Nevertheless, although not everybody in Japan is interested in the Arabs she still felt it was very important for someone to write in Japanese about Arab culture.
At the same time, to show how Japanese perceive Arabs, she felt it was also important for Arabs to understand other cultures.
“It is not one-way. Always culture is vice-versa. Understand each other’s culture.” But here lies the handicap because it is very difficult to find someone to translate from Japanese to Arabic.
Nakao is unsure how successful she has been in this regard as she has no way of knowing how her works have been received in Japan.
“The media is controlling all the news. A writer can only hope. Without doing it you will be destroyed inside. But even if one person is moved, it is good.
“I write with humour so that they can enjoy while ate the same time change their opinion about Arab people,” she said.
She said, for instance, when she writes in Japanese about the wedding of her daughter, it can be difficult for the Japanese to understand that weddings in Japan are unlike weddings in the UAE where the bride and groom are separate in a different place.
“So if I have to talk about the Arab wedding, I have to explain from zero. That is my challenge. People get bored but I have to explain in the simplest way.”
She said when she translated the works of the Ruler of Sharjah, Sheikh Kassimi, she was not allowed to change a word. She had to explain, for instance, why the UAE had a Minister for Tolerance.
“People don’t know what is the tolerance of Arabic people as tolerance for Japanese and tolerance for the Europeans is very different.”
She said that is the challenge she faces in translating every sentence. She said the Arabs and Japanese have a long history.
“When it comes to the religious, cultural and political differences you have to write in a very simple and entertaining way.”
Kanako Nishi said as a fellow writer with journalism experience, journalistic skills are absolutely needed in writing a novel.
“It (journalism) is essential to communicate the facts of the situation – in her case writing a novel about a Syrian girl adopted by Japanese parents in that war-torn nation.
“But I feel journalism is a straight line that goes from point A to point B and the curving line is our feelings. With a novel we can get to that place.”
She said Japanese know what is going on in the world but what is lacking is the emotion behind it.
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