EarthRights International Special Commentary:POLITICAL ASYLUM IN JAPAN

http://socialsense.blogspot.com/2008/12/political-asylum-in-japan.html

One of my more enjoyable experiences while serving on active duty was the time I spent in Japan. Altogether, I served at various bases in Japan and Okinawa for a total of seven years. From an intrapersonal standpoint, I found the Japanese people warm, gracious, and always exceedingly polite. But I must also say that the Japanese people are unique in the entire world. As I began to study their history and culture, as I began to study their language, I found that they are really a closed society. My oldest friend George, who continues to live in Japan . . . who raised a family there, can probably attest to the fact that no matter how long a foreign born person lives in Japan, no matter how well one adjusts to their culture, and no matter how well one can speak the language, they are never accepted as “Japanese.” Tolerated, yes . . . accepted as an equal, never. This fact doesn’t suggest that Japanese people are racists . . . it merely illustrates that they are Japanese.


I recall one incident, years ago, in which an inebriated Marine erroneously stumbled into the wrong house in the middle of the night. This is understandable even if he wasn’t drunk because Japanese residences often look identical. In any case, the woman who lived there was quite frightened, and she ended up stabbing the Marine with a kitchen knife killing him immediately. As it turned out, this woman was a second-generation Korean who lived her entire life in Japan; for all intent and purposes, she was Japanese—as we might have regarded her as another American. The next morning, however, the news headlines read, “Korean stabs American Marine.” I cannot say whether the headline reflected Japan’s innate bias towards everyone not Japanese, or whether it was simply a matter of embarrassment because a Japanese woman could possibly be guilty of such a crime.

With the foregoing as a backdrop, I found a recent Article in the Japan Times (online) that informs us about the sharp increase in political asylum immigrants in Japan. As I began to read the article, I fully expected to read something about people from Korea, China, Vietnam, or the Philippine Islands. But according to journalist Setsuko Kamiya, the number of people requesting political asylum has nearly doubled in the past year, and many of these people are from Africa, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar (formerly known as Burma). According to this article:



“The Justice Ministry's Immigration Bureau said it won't provide official figures for applicants or approvals until next year but confirmed the trend identified by JAR. The increase in applicants from Africa has been attributed to the Tokyo International Conference on African Development in Yokohama in May and the Group of Eight summit in Hokkaido in July, said Eri Ishikawa, secretary general of JAR. ‘Through those two events, Japan's commitment to Africa was reported by the media in those countries, and people may have gained a good impression of Japan as a country that gives humanitarian aid, leading many to consider Japan as a place they can escape to,’ Ishikawa said.



This is yet another example of nations attempting to do the right thing, but Japanese officials, in failing to consider the unintended consequences of opening immigration floodgates, now find themselves in an uncomfortable position. The article continues:


“The Foreign Ministry in principle provides financial support to asylum seekers in dire need, including those having no job, money, or a place to live. According to an official at the Foreign Ministry's Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs Division who handles such support, an adult is provided ¥1,500 [roughly $16.00] and a child ¥750 [roughly $8.00] a day for living expenses. If housing is needed a family receives a maximum of ¥60,000 [roughly $645.00] a month for rent. A single person can get ¥40,000 [roughly $430.00]. In principle, the financial support is given for four months.

Through its affiliated Refugee Assistance Headquarters, the ministry provided support to 235 asylum seekers just in November. Last year, 95 people a month received support, said the government official, who declined to be named. ‘The number of people we support has been rising constantly this year,’ she said. This year, based on past needs, the budget was set at ¥78 million [roughly $839,000], but this has almost been exhausted because of the rapid rise, she admitted."



The numbers of people seeking political asylum are actually modest, as least when compared to the large numbers of immigrants we deal with here on a daily basis, but it is significant for Japan. Traditionally, the Japanese do not encourage “immigration.” In fact, I am amazed they are doing it at all. Learning to live in Japan isn’t easy, true even for those who really do enjoy the culture and who have the knack for learning a difficult language.

I again recall one of the major news issues of the day in 1982. In 1976, the Japanese granted political asylum to a Vietnamese family. In the space of six years, the family’s daughter had mastered the Japanese language well enough to complete her secondary schooling and gain admission to the prestigious Sophia University in Tokyo. This was a major event because no one quite expected a foreigner to speak Japanese as well as . . . well, the Japanese themselves. And, once again, no matter how long these Africans, Sri Lankans, and Burmese live in Japan, no matter how well they learn the language and customs, no matter how well they succeed financially, they will always be outsiders. In Japanese, the word is “Gaikokujin (外国人),” which means a person from a foreign land. It can also mean “long nose barbarian,” so it is not a word many people use today . . . but they surely did when I lived there. Maybe they were trying to tell me something.

Posted by Mustang at 06:00
Comments (16) | Trackback (0)


Social Sense

Ugh. The rest of the post got cut off! he best was the part after I took the client home

Was it too long? Can you recover it?
rocket | 12.17.08 - 5:39 am | #

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Hi Mustang

Nice post about the Japanese. As you know I work very closely with them and have been to Japan. As far as never feeling Japanese well, I have lived in France since 1977 but have never acquired nationality and I can say that many immigrants and sons/daughters of immigrants who have acquired French nationality are never accepted as French either especially if they originate from any country in Africa be it north or south. (see Paris riots 2005)

America is unique as everyone comes or family has come from elsewhere and so nationality is not associated subtly with the underlining question of bloodline as it is in older countries with extremely old cultures.

One of the interesting insular aspects of Japanese life is how they consider their rice. (It seems as if American rice farmers are always fighting to get American rice into Japan.) Serve rice to a Japanese and the first question is

Is it Japanese rice?

Basically meaning that no other rice measures up to Japanese rice.

Many of the Japanese that I work with in Paris are on three year expat stints and are happy to return to Japan as they tell me often because they miss Japanese food. Although available in different specialty stores in Paris it is expensive.

As per the matter of Japanese politeness, it can often be overwhelming (the whole business card thing which I have to tell them functions differently in Europe than Japan)for someone living in Paris where things have a hard time getting done and the notion of time is completely different from that perception of time and respect for promptness by Asians. Lest I speak about the grouchiness of the French. For the Japanese living in France this gray zone of time perception can be particularly destabilizing.

I don't think we can fully understand the relation among classes in Japan or age differences unless we speak the Japanese language but many aspects are apparent for the non Japanese.

As my Japanese language studies are reduced to one word a week now because I am extremely busy, I am getting no closer to speaking "decent" Japanese than I was 6 months ago.

I can tell a funny story about a Japanese client I had many years ago in Paris. We went into a private club in the Opera area of Paris a part of it on the Rue St Anne which is a small Japanese area with lots of restaurants and some clubs reserved for Japanese. Women serving the men and intimate conversation with the women working there etc and lots of salarymen and Karokee. You get the gist. Well I being the only westerner found no problem drinking with my client and several of his friends but at one moment he informed me that I would have to leave because now was discussion time between Japanese men. Of course I understood and it had absolutely no effect on future relations which often ended up in drunken stupors. Me scraping the client off the ground and then taking him home. One time after a drinking binge I took him (he was married)home
rocket | 12.17.08 - 5:32 am | #

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Mustang, I envy your time there. I find hem to be a fascinating people as I do with most Asians.
Chuck | Homepage | 12.16.08 - 11:15 pm | #

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I remember an old advertisement for some condos in Florida that said they were just like France only better. Why were they better? Because they were just like living in Paris without having to put up with the French.
Shoprat | Homepage | 12.16.08 - 7:38 pm | #

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Ducky,

Have you been to France? Where and for how long? Defending the French is more than difficult. Think the Milice and who actually rounded up French and other nationality Jews..in France.

Who, indeed, did collaborate with the Nazis?

How riven with communists were elements of the French government and military?

Comparing the French - as a nation/nationality - with Texans?

Who pays taxes in France? Who attempts to avoid it?

Would you trust a French promise?
Tad | 12.16.08 - 7:26 pm | #

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Anyone that has been to France knows that most of the French hate most of the other French.

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Sort of like New Englanders and the far less refined Texans?
Ducky's here | 12.16.08 - 5:33 pm | #

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Their socialism and morals are so awful as to be beyond belief. We have scandals. They conduct themselves scandalously as a matter of routine.

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Well the socialism is no problem. Conservatives aren't an adequate judge of morals and the rest is great.

I don't see the downside.
Ducky's here | 12.16.08 - 5:31 pm | #

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Oh, "Ducky's here".

Where?

Why not in France?
Tad | 12.16.08 - 5:02 pm | #

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Ducky's Away,

NOTE: What does "Ducky's Away" mean?

I've been to France more times than most Englishmen, most Germans, most Belgians, most Italians, most Spaniards, and most Luxembourgundians...all countries that border France...oh, yes, do not forget the Swiss.

I would hate to be French. Anyone that has been to France knows that most of the French hate most of the other French. Parisians think they are the cats' ass, and they're right. The folks in the provinces hate the Parisians and the government and those from other provinces. Really odd country. It IS quite beautiful and the food is mostly very good. Their socialism and morals are so awful as to be beyond belief. We have scandals. They conduct themselves scandalously as a matter of routinue.

One man's opinion.
Tad | 12.16.08 - 4:46 pm | #

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You're from away, eh Jungle Mom?
Ducky's here | 12.16.08 - 4:36 pm | #

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A friend who did business in Japan and was interested in the country told me that there is a culture there that a Westerner will never be shown.

I don't know about Japanese, but I sure wouldn't mind being French.
Ducky's here | 12.16.08 - 4:35 pm | #

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Sir,

They called you a Long-Nosed Barbarian because, ah,

you're a Long-Nosed Barbarian?

Bye the Bye: As you know, the Japanese are very class oriented amongst themselves also.

Meanwhile, their own actions in Korea, Manchuria, China, Philippines, Burma, Singapore, the Dutch East Indies...all in WW II...were more than awful.

I served with a Marine Sergeant in the very early 60s who'd been a kid on Guam when the Japanese seized it. The stories related were not too good, to say the least.

BTW, don't most Japanese history books play down WW II?

Just asking.

Further, just why are we (USA) doing very much of the heavy lifting in the defense of Japan?
Tad | 12.16.08 - 11:59 am | #

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excellent observation. I would still call it racist. Maybe not in the sense that we use racial,being not a good thing, but it is in terms of we and they.....stay well....
tapline | Homepage | 12.16.08 - 10:48 am | #

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You NEVER feel FRENCH when you live there, either.
of course, most Americans don't WANT to feel FRENCH!!!
Z | Homepage | 12.16.08 - 10:27 am | #

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This is much like New Englanders. I met a man in Maine and asked if he was from that town. He said ,"Yes." but his wife said,"NO.".
The man began to laugh and said,"Well, my grandfather moved here before I was born, but they still don't consider me a local."
Jungle mom | Homepage | 12.16.08 - 7:13 am | #

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//As I began to study their history and culture, as I began to study their language, I found that they are really a closed society.//

Not surprising considering the Japanese people lived in almost complete isolation during the Edo period, which lasted over 250 years. That's a long time for a nation to be cut off from the world, especially at a time when European exploration and trade was beginning to flourish. That same spirit and attitude is hard to eliminate, despite the fact that many years have past.

Another example of this is Italy. As many already know, between the last remnants of the Roman Empire and the 19th century, the Italian peninsula was divided into several states controlled by wealthy ruling families. How similar is that mentality today, with the Italian mafia.

Old habits and customs die hard.
LASunsett | Homepage | 12.16.08 - 6:37 am | #

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