Former Japan national team FW Takayuki Morimoto (32), who signed a one-year contract with Sportivo Luqueño of Paraguay’s 1st Division in February this year, was arrested for a hit-and-run incident in the country. There is no doubt that it should not be done as a person, and in Japan it is about being subject to legal and social sanctions. But what about Paraguay, which is culturally different from Japan? I asked a Japanese man who lived in the area about people’s awareness of drunk driving.

According to the men, living in Paraguay feels the “force of alcohol” of the people. Even if you drink a few cups, you won’t get drunk and few people will walk. It is said that he often hears stories of having a cup or two in a restaurant in the evening and then driving home, as if it were water. Although I do not defend it, there is a kind of “laziness” towards Japan, which is strict about driving while intoxicated, and Morimoto may have behaved in the same way as the Paraguayans.

But that doesn’t mean that drunk driving is totally innocent in the country. If a serious accident with property damage or a serious personal accident occurs, it will be reported on television and newspapers, and a prison sentence may be imposed. The rider of the motorcycle Morimoto collided with has no special life, but there is information that he has a broken bone. How does the court judge this? What will happen to the treatment at my club? There is no choice but to look to the future.[Nobuhiro Chiba]