Burakumin - are the Japanese still uncivilised?

Skeletons from the mass graves of the Nanking massacre victims, uncovered.

I read this fascinating post in Slashdot today - Google Earth Raises Discrimination Issue In Japan
- which says:

"The Times (UK) reports that by allowing old maps to be overlaid on satellite images of Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto, Google has unwittingly created a visual tool that has prolonged an ancient discrimination, says a lobbying group established to protect the human rights of three million burakumin, members of the sub-class condemned by the old feudal system in Japan to unclean jobs associated with death and dirt. 'We tend to think of maps as factual, like a satellite picture, but maps are never neutral, they always have a certain point of view,' says David Rumsey, a US map collector. Some Japanese companies actively screen out burakumin-linked job seekers, and some families hire private investigators to dig into the ancestry of fiances to make sure there is no burakumin taint. Because there is nothing physical to differentiate burakumin from other Japanese and because there are no clues in their names or accent, the only way of establishing whether or not they are burakumin is by tracing their family. By publishing the locations of burakumin ghettos with the modern street maps, the quest to trace ancestry is made easier, says Toru Matsuoka, an opposition MP and member of the Buraku Liberation League. Under pressure to diffuse criticism, Google has asked the owners of the woodblock print maps to remove the legend that identifies the ghetto with an old term, extremely offensive in modern usage, that translates loosely as 'scum town.' 'We had not acknowledged the seriousness of the map, but we do take this matter seriously,' says Yoshito Funabashi, a Google spokesman." The ancient Japanese caste system was made illegal 150 years ago, but silent discrimination remains. The issue is complicated by allegations of mob connections in the burakumin anti-discrimination organizations."

"My mum is a real blast!" - Islamic education for children in the UK?

Wow. I had just made the post about Mohammed the teddy-bear when I stumbled upon an article from the Daily Mail, dated 18th Dec. 2007: British children targeted with terror sing-along DVD for would-be suicide bombers.

(The caption on the picture above reads:"She blows herself up - and her daughter later sings: 'I will follow my mother's steps' ")

Now this is really worrying. At first I thought it had to be a bad joke - but it's not April 1st. It is about what would be teaching and encouraging innocent children and their ignorant mothers to commit evil. Read the link. It is part of the new reality for UK residents.

The question is, when will the same standard of education be available for the children in NZ society? Enquiring minds need to know. Maybe we should ask New Zealand MP Ashraf Choudhary?