Hello. My name is Ayumi Kinba, CEO of J-Links Co.,Ltd.
We are a company that “provides an opportunity and place for Japanese people and foreigners to have fun together, think together, and make things better together” with “making a future where Japan and people from around the world can live happier lives through things and matters in Japan” as our mission.
On July 28th 2015, we invited director Zoher Chenti from Kobe Mosque to Osaka Sangyo Sozokan, and held a “Muslim and Halal Seminar.” Our wish is to have “Muslim people enjoy things from Japan without worry.”
This seminar was intended for “People who are learning about Islam for the first time,”
With a focus on
(1) Know what Islam is
(2) Find something that you can do right now
(3) And take action
In addition to basic information, we introduced the lifestyle of the director himself, his family, as well as his friends in Japan, along with the current state of Muslim travelers in Japan. There were some participants that had done previous researches using the internet and books, but many of them mentioned that their impressions changed after directly talking to Muslim people, or noticed that they had misunderstandings.
After the seminar,
Some companies actually started taking actions, such as
“I will first try making a space for praying.”
“I think we will try making some halal menus at our restaurant,”
And we are very glad that we held this seminar.
It is a small step that was taken in Kansai area, but if more people start from where they can, I think, and also hope that it will lead to great changes.
