Apparently there has been a huge recent trend of middle-aged Japanese men falling in love with Filipino hostesses and following them back to the Phillippines, only to be unable to thrive in the workforce, to run out of money, and to have their new wives leave them. These “desperate Japanese” end up appealing to the Japanese embassy for help.
The lower cost of living in the Philippines allows them to enjoy a good life initially, but unable to speak English or the local language, the men, mostly in their 50s, cannot find work and use up all of their money in a year or two, he said.
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The consular official said the embassy had dealt with less than 50 “Desperate Japanese” until 2000, arranging their return to Japan, but the cases had risen in the last five years with the number rising to around 180.
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He said “Desperate Japanese” as a phenomenon was almost exclusive to the Philippines, adding that the “Philippine pubs”, found even in rural Japan, provided comfort to the men facing a midlife crisis.
“These men, they may have been victims of their company’s restructuring and may have felt isolated at home,” he said.
“So they may have been heartened by a young Filipina at the local hostess bar and decided: ‘what the heck, I’ll go to the Philippines.'”