COMPLETIONREPORT

A Study of Japan Muslim Friendly Tourism: An Interdiciplinary Approach
Abdul kodir(+2)
Lecturer
Department of Sociology,
Faculty of Social Science,Universitas Negeri Malang
The Japanese government in welcoming the 2020 Summer Olympics has committed to preparing halal
tourism for Muslim tourists. This study aims to understand how the current conditions are related to theavailability of halal tourism components in Japan. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode penelitiankualitatif. the process of collecting data is done through interviews and observation. Researchersinterviewed several informants including Muslim tourists from Indonesia and Malaysia, Halal Restaurant
employee, Japanese tour guide service providers, Japan Halal Associations (JHA), tour guides, Prof.
Mariko Arata (Gastronomy Study, Ritsumeikan University), Researcher from Waseda University andMuslim Students from Indonesia. In addition, observations are carried out in various famous tourism
locations such as in Tokyo (Tokyo Dinesyland), Kyoto, dan Osaka (Universal Studio). Observations weremade to observe the availability of prayer rooms and halal food.
This study found interesting results. First, language problems pose fundamental problems. Some
instructions and information in Japan are still minimal in providing information that uses English. The
lack of English language instructions also makes it difficult for Muslim tourists to assess the halal foodcontent or not. Second, the issue of halal food availability. Indeed, some prefectures always provide halalspecific restaurants, but the difficulty of access in Japan which is reached by foot with complicatedtransportation systems in Japan is also a serious problem in the ease of access to halal food. Third, thedifficulty of providing prayer rooms at tourist sites is also a complaint for Muslim tourists. For example,in classy tourist locations such as Tokyo Disneyland and Universal Studio Japan and several other tourist
spot locations. It is impossible for tourists to get out of the tourist location for a moment and then look
for the nearest mosque. Fourth, the issue of halal certification. When seen in several halal restaurants,
there are many indications that the restaurant has been certified. However, some Muslim students in thestudy in Japan gave several complaints regarding the transparency of halal certification, especially infood. This transparency is important so as to make it easier for Muslim students or Muslim tourists toconsume without burden. Fifth, in addition to transparency, the issue of certification is also in theorientation of the certification body which is only for business profit. The orientation also added new
problems such as the questioning of the existing certification agencies having specialization in the fieldof religion and science. This needs to be pointed out as a sign that the presence of the halal tourism market
has led to a large number of business-oriented certification bodies, thus the Japanese Government must
seriously regulate the certification body to be structured and serious in implementing the halal industry.
The problem above, overall are only a small fraction of the halal tourism industry running in Japan.
However, the Tokyo Olympics are getting closer. If it is a serious ambition to the number of Muslim
tourists from various countries which are not matched by the availability of halal tourism needs - which
are not only adequate food, certification and mosques - then it can be a serious threat to the continuity of
the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and can have an impact on the continuation of the halal tourism industryin JapanPublication of the Results of Research Project:
Verbal Presentation (Date, Venue, Name of Conference, Title of Presentation, Presenter, etc.)
Date: August 31, 2018
Venue: Golden Tulip Hotel, Batu, East Java, Indonesia
Name of Coference: International Conference on Social Knowledge Science and Education(ICSKSE) 2018
Title of Presentation: A Study of Japan Muslim Tourism Friendly: An Interdciplinary Approach
Presenter: Abdul Kodir, S.Sosio, M.Sosio
Conference Proceeding (Name of Publisher and its Date, Title and Author of Thesis, etc.)
Name of Publisher: Atlantis Press
Title: Current Issues of Halal Tourism: Case study in Japan
Author: Abdul Kodir, Abdul Karim, Citra Dewi Kartika Paksi
Book (Publisher and Date of the Book, Title and Author of the Book, etc.)