Singaporean woman allegedly punched by elderly man in Japan, netizens cite 'Butsukari Otoko'
A holiday to Japan turned sour for a Singaporean woman who says she was punched in the elbow by an elderly man, which netizens attributed to a curious phenomenon in the country.
"Butsukari Otoko", which literally translates to "Bumping Man", refers to men who deliberately collide with or shoulder-check other people, especially women, in crowded public spaces.
While walking in Sapporo Pole Town — an underground walkway - TikToker @aliciatadah, who goes by the name Ally, said in a clip that she was with a group of six friends when the incident occurred.
Recounting the incident, Ally thought that she was "overthinking it" when the elderly man first punched her. However, just seconds later, "he tried to punch my friend that was right behind."
While her friend managed to dodge the blow, the group was left stunned.
It is unclear when the alleged incident took place.
Captioned "First time for everything right I still love Sapporo & Japan duh [sic], weird people everywhere [sic] even in my home", the TikTok clip posted on Dec 9 has so far garnered over 51,000 views, 999 reactions, and 117 comments.
Noting that she was not in the elderly man's way, Ally said she could not figure out why he had hit her. "If you come to Sapporo, and you are walking underground, beware of a random old guy that's gonna punch you in the arm," she concluded.
'They hate tourists so much': Netizen
The incident prompted commenters to share similar experiences in Japan.
"Just today a local CHILD. [sic] kept screaming that I was a gaijin (tourist) [sic] and refused to use the toilet I just came out of and was glaring at me. (I left it clean)," said a user, alluding to the Japanese term for foreigner that is often considered offensive.
Another recalled: "I got pushed by some old man at Sapporo too... but nobody bothered like it's norm. [sic]"
"Men will shove people in the subway stations, and usually they target women," yet another user added.
Meanwhile, a TikToker added that they "got yelled at for no reason in Kyoto" and said the incident shaped their entire view of Japan after realising how much some locals "hate tourists".
Others reported more serious incidents, with one noting: "Last month I got pinched by an older man on the bus, and I even filed a police report," while adding that little could be done to prevent such behavior.
Stomp has reached out to aliciatadah for comment.
