A Halloween reveler in a Godzilla costume poses on a street in Tokyo's Shibuya ward, Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2023. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)
TOKYO — About 15,000 people gathered in the streets of Shibuya for Halloween despite government attempts to tamp down the party spirit.
Shibuya Mayor Ken Hasebo discouraged celebrations in the city ward known for its nightlife following the deaths of 159 people at a Halloween celebration in Seoul on Oct. 29, 2022.
A spontaneous crowd surge in a narrow alley in the city’s Itaewon entertainment district trapped hundreds of people with tragic results.
Hasebo’s campaign included an alcohol ban and a plea for people to move their celebrations to a virtual version of Shibuya.
On Tuesday, police stationed in the streets near Shibuya Station urged swarms of pedestrians to keep moving. This included the ward’s busy scramble intersection, which can see thousands of people cross at once.
Vehicular traffic was blocked near the station and a small plaza that’s home to an iconic dog statue, Hachiko, was curtained off. The landmark is a popular meeting place.
There were no serious troubles, a ward spokeswoman said by email Wednesday. It’s customary in Japan for some government officials to speak to media on condition of anonymity.
Police control crowds waiting to cross the iconic scramble intersection in Tokyo’s Shibuya ward, Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2023. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)
Halloween revelers and commuters stream out of Shibuya Station in Tokyo, Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2023. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)
A Halloween reveler waits to cross the scramble intersection in Tokyo's Shibuya ward, Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2023. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)
Police control crowds waiting to cross the iconic scramble intersection in Tokyo’s Shibuya ward, Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2023. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)
Tokyo resident Mike Tamura celebrates Halloween as Jon Snow from "Game of Thrones" in Shibuya, Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2023. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)
Though thousands turned out to celebrate Halloween, the crowds were thinner and fewer people wore costumes than in past years. Most appeared to obey the ban on street drinking.
“People showed understanding mostly to the messages sent by the ward and it was a quiet Halloween for Shibuya,” Hasebe told reporters Wednesday.
About 23,000 people visited Shibuya last year for Halloween, the ward spokeswoman said. In 2019, months before the pandemic, there were 40,000.
Stars and Stripes reporter Hana Kusumoto contributed to this report.
