Most Japanese people care about the environment. After all, Japan is the birthplace of the Kyoto Protocol.

But love for the environment can boomerang on one in countries like Indonesia, where most people are not particularly concerned about the state of the planet.

T. Kamamara (not his real name), an ambitious young executive who loves the environment, decided not to use plastic as it was not environmentally friendly.

He was sent to Jakarta from Tokyo on a one-year training course.

One day, he visited a supermarket in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, to buy a T-shirt. He bought the T-shirt and paid the money to the cashier. However, he politely refused the plastic bag he was offered.

As he was leaving the supermarket with the T-shirt in his hand, a security guard stopped him at the exit and asked him why he was leaving with a T-shirt. It is normal practice to put purchased goods in plastic bags in supermarkets in Indonesia.

There was not enough time for our Japanese friend to explain the situation to the security guard. All of a sudden, onlookers attacked him and started beating him mercilessly for stealing the T-shirt.

Luckily, the cashier recognized his face from a distance and came to his assistance.

Kamamara is still very angry with those who attacked him, but not with the security guard.

"I could accept it if the security guard hit me. Because it is his duty to protect the store. But I cannot accept what those others did. What on earth reason did they have to beat me up?" he asked bitterly.