Tokyo, Nov. 6 (Jiji Press)–A Japanese government survey showed Friday that only 27.5 pct of respondents know the National Ainu Museum and Park, or Upopoy, in the northernmost Japan prefecture of Hokkaido. According to the preliminary results of the Cabinet Office survey, 72.2 pct said that they do not know the cultural facility about the Ainu indigenous people in the Hokkaido town of Shiraoi. Those who are aware of Upopoy and have already visited it accounted for 4.5 pct. Meanwhile, the proportion of respondents who said they do not know the facility but would like to visit it came to 44.9. More than half of all respondents said they are interested in interacting with Ainu people or learning about their culture. A government official concerned said, “We will make efforts to attract more visitors by enhancing exhibits and public relations activities.” Opened in July 2020, the facility was visited by about 290,000 people in fiscal 2025, far lower than the annual target of one million. The share of respondents who are aware of the Ainu reached a record high of 96.4 pct, while 4.6 pct said they have seen information deemed discriminatory or prejudiced against the indigenous people on social media. The survey was conducted by mail between Sept. 17 and Oct. 25 this year among 3,000 people aged 18 or over who have Japanese nationality and live in Japan. The preliminary results are based on answers collected from 47.5 pct of them by Oct. 16. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
