Rumors Spread on Japanese SNS about Muslim-Friendly Meals in Kitakyushu Elementary Schools
Over 1,000 Protest Calls and Emails Flood City Hall
City Council Petition Misunderstood as Implementation of Allergy-Free Menu
Board of Education Cla
Recently, news spread across Japanese social media platforms claiming that an elementary school in Kitakyushu City had decided to provide school meals for Muslim students. After hearing this, more than 1,000 protest calls and emails were sent to the city, paralyzing its work. However, this turned out to be false. According to the Mainichi Shimbun on September 23, the Kitakyushu City Board of Education posted an explanation on the city website on the night of September 22, stating, "There is no such fact."
The misinformation in question was related to a petition by a Muslim woman from Afghanistan. She had submitted a petition to the City Council's Education and Culture Committee, requesting that school meals for her Muslim elementary school child exclude religiously prohibited items such as pork. Rumors then spread online that the petition had been adopted. Based on this, claims circulated that Kitakyushu City would now provide special meals for Muslims. In reality, however, the petition was submitted in June 2023, reviewed in August of the same year, and has remained under review ever since. When the city council was reorganized in February 2025, the petition was automatically dismissed, and it was never adopted by the council.
In February, Kitakyushu City implemented a one-time "Nikoniko Meal" that excluded 28 allergenic ingredients such as soy and milk so that children and students with allergies could safely eat. Pork was among the excluded items, so as a result, Muslims could also eat the meal. However, this one-time event was misrepresented as if the petition had been adopted and special meals for Muslims were being provided. During this process, xenophobic messages such as "If you don't like the meals, go back to your country" also spread along with the misinformation.
Between September 19 and 22, the city received approximately 1,000 protest calls and emails, apparently based on this misinformation. Additionally, the city's friendship and cooperation agreement signed with Telangana State, India, in June 2025 was confused with the government's "over 500,000 people exchange in five years" policy, leading to further protests claiming this was an immigration policy. As a result, the city's work was disrupted by having to respond to these complaints.
The Board of Education posted a notice on the city website on the night of September 22, stating, "There are posts suggesting that 'a decision was made to accommodate Muslims in school meals,' but this is not true." A city official said, "We are struggling because misinformation is spreading rapidly." There are an estimated 300,000 Muslims in Japan, and as the number of children from multicultural families increases, schools at all levels-including kindergartens, elementary, middle, and high schools-are providing meals for Muslims on specific dates.
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