A Japanese man who demanded that a security guard at the Expo 2025 Osaka kneel has sparked public outrage over customer harassment.
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Video footage of a security guard kneeling and bowing before a Japanese tourist at an entrance to the expo in Western Japan’s Osaka prefecture, went viral in both Japan and China after an onlooker filmed it and posted it online.
The incident happened on April 17, days after the event opened. It is the second time the city has hosted a World Expo, after the first one in 1970.
In the video, the man demands the guard to dogeza, a form of traditional Japanese etiquette which involves kneeling, bowing and touching one’s head on the ground to apologise to a person of higher status.
The organisers responded on April 22 that the man demanded the security guard dogeza because he was unable to give accurate directions when he asked where the car park was.
A survey carried out by Japanese phone call service company After Call Navi last year showed that nearly half of its respondents had demanded employees to perform the dogeza pose.