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Activist sees holes in bills to snare illegals

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CONTROLS ON FOREIGNERS

Activist Akira Hatate opposes the bills to tighten control of foreign residents, arguing they will not serve the government’s goal of clarifying who is in the country illegally because transgressors will see little benefit in turning themselves in.

“What (the bills will) achieve is to tighten control of law-abiding foreigners, who have no need to be under tight control,” Hatate, director of the nongovernmental organization Japan Civil Liberties Union.

“The bills are very unbalanced because the government will not be able to control the intended target: undocumented foreigners,” Hatate said. “Instead they will greatly tighten the leash on properly registered foreigners, who do not need monitoring.

“To me, this is the government’s reinforcement of infrastructure to control foreigners. Fingerprinting at airports is to control entrants and the bills are to control residents. The government probably thinks it needs to do this because the number of foreigners will inevitably increase,” he said.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20090630f1.html

Tent village residents still out of work

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A tent village [known as Haken Mura] for laid-off temporary workers set up in Tokyo’s Hibiya Park over the New Year’s holidays was officially declared closed Sunday at a symposium to discuss unemployment issues, but many of those who stayed in the village remain jobless.

The group that organized the village, consisting of labor unions [including NUGW Tokyo Nambu] and citizens’ groups, reported at the symposium the results of a questionnaire it recently conducted on around 260 of the 630 unemployed people who stayed in the tent village or attended advisory meetings in the spring.

According to the survey, which received responses from 108 of the 260 people, only 13 had been able to find jobs while seven had been hired as temporary workers, mostly earning ¥200,000 or less per month. Fifty-five respondents were still searching for jobs and 48 said they had not been feeling well.

“The people who ended up coming to the tent village have disadvantages from the start, considering their educational and professional backgrounds, and many of them are suffering from depression triggered by the fact that they cannot find jobs,” a member of the group, which will disband Tuesday, said.

Eighty-one respondents are receiving welfare benefits from local governments and nine others are receiving unemployment insurance payments, and at least 46 were in debt.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20090630a3.html

Drawing a bead on illegal residents

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New law would tighten up oversight of foreigners

Human rights groups complain that because the justice minister can access foreign residents’ personal information with residence (“zairyu”) card numbers, which are to be given to every documented foreigner, it is an infringement of privacy. [Immigration Bureau General Affairs Division official Kazuyuki] Motohari defended the bureau by saying, “It is not unusual for us to hold information that helps us confirm the identify of foreign residents.”

The bills stipulate that the justice minister must not use residents’ personal information for purposes other than “managing” foreign residents and must handle the information in a way that does not violate privacy.

He also said it is essential to let foreigners know the rule changes, including advantages such as extending visa duration from three to five years and ending the requirement to obtain a re-entry permit if one returns to Japan within a year.

“It will undoubtedly be more convenient for legal residents,” he said.

The bureau’s statistics show 1.41 million foreign residents re-entered Japan within a year in 2007, accounting for 98.7 percent of the 1.43 million who left Japan after obtaining a re-entry permit.

The Immigration Bureau is considering enabling foreign residents to report changes in workplace and apply for renewal of residence cards via mail or the Internet instead of requiring them to go to local immigration offices, he said.

Currently, renewing alien registration cards, which are to be replaced by zairyu cards, and reporting changes in personal information can be done at municipal offices, more of which exist than immigration offices.

For address changes, residents can go to municipal offices even under the new system. For changes in name, gender and nationality, they will have to go to immigration offices instead of municipal offices, but such changes rarely occur.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20090627f1.html

Group organizing tent village for unemployed to be disbanded

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The group that set up a tent village for laid-off temporary workers in Tokyo’s Hibiya Park over the New Year holidays will disband at the end of this month, the chief of the group said Wednesday.

Makoto Yuasa said his group has decided to end its activities after helping to change peoples’ perceptions of the situation surrounding temporary workers but will continue to support the unemployed through consultation services.

“People began to recognize that the lack of social safety nets is an underlying problem behind the layoffs and firings of temporary workers,” Yuasa said of the significance of his group’s activities. “It had earlier been said that such workers themselves were responsible (for their situations).”

Yuasa, a social activist who has tackled poverty issues in Japan since the mid-1990s, served as “mayor” of the Hibiya tent village [known as Hakenmura] that drew attention as a social problem after an increasing number of business corporations cut jobs amid the deepening economic crisis.

His group’s members, who include members of labor unions [including the National Union of General Workers Tokyo Nambu] and civic groups, were originally scheduled to disband early this year, but they have been providing follow-up employment and other support for the people who lived in emergency shelters in the tent village.

The village “shed light on the need to promote collaboration between people engaged in social welfare and labor rights movements,” Yuasa said.

http://www.pddnet.com/news-ap-group-organizing-tent-village-for-unemployed-to-be-062409/

Japan To Introduce ‘Point System’ To Attract Foreigners

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The Japanese government plans to introduce a ”point system” to give preferential treatment such as residency permit extensions to foreigners with advanced expertise, Kyodo news reported quoting government sources as saying on Sunday.

The government plans to evaluate foreigners by awarding points for their qualifications, working careers, research achievements and other qualities and to give preferential treatment when their points exceed a certain level, the sources said.

The new system will form part of a reform of the residency permit system amid intensified international competition for engineers and other experts with advanced expertise.

A Justice Ministry panel will discuss the plan soon to begin mapping out the new system.

The government is expected to study simplifying procedures for residency permits and reentry, extending the maximum duration of residency permits from three years at present and shortening the period of residency required before securing the right to permanent residency from 10 years in principle.

The ministry will decide on the jobs to be included under the new system in consultation with the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and other ministries and agencies.

A government panel compiled a report last month that included a study on the introduction of the new system.

Similar point systems have been introduced in Britain and Canada. In Britain, the system is applied to scientists, entrepreneurs, engineers and teachers, who can obtain the right of permanent residence in five years if they are recognised as experts with advanced expertise.

http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsworld.php?id=419721

34 foreign trainees in Japan died in FY 2008 of suspected overwork

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Thirty-four foreign trainees died in Japan in fiscal 2008 through March this year, up 13 from the previous year to hit a record high, a survey by a government-linked body promoting a training program showed Monday.

The leading causes of their deaths were brain and heart diseases, which claimed the lives of 16, while five were killed in accidents at work and four in traffic accidents. Supporters of foreign trainees said they suspect those who died from brain and heart disorders actually died from overwork. As of late 2007, about 177,000 foreigners have been staying in Japan under the government’s industrial training and technical internship program.

Shoichi Ibusuki, a lawyer supporting foreign trainees and interns, pointed out that many trainees have been forced to work long hours for lower wages and said he suspects they had died from overwork.

Ibusuki and other supporters submitted a written inquiry to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry on Monday, asking it to investigate the causes of the trainees’ deaths and to state how the ministry will deal with the issue.

A labor ministry official said it is not clear why those trainees had developed brain and heart diseases, but expressed willingness to examine their working hours and living conditions.

Following the submission of the inquiry, three Chinese trainees complained about their working conditions at a press conference held in Tokyo.

Ding Jianhui, 35, who came to Japan in September 2006 on the training program, said he had to work overtime for 100 to 130 hours a month at his job selling scrap metal and only received 110,000 yen per month after tax.

‘‘I lived in a container that was not equipped with a bathroom and was treated as cheap labor. My back is still numb,’’ said Ding, who claims he was suddenly dismissed from work late last year.

Jiang Xiangyi, 34, said although he had been told he would be engaging in a carpentry job before he came to Japan, his actual work was dismantling and removing asbestos, which can cause lung cancer.

Jiang said he sometimes worked 26 days a month but was only paid 60,000 yen after tax. ‘‘The type of work was different from what I heard and I didn’t know about the danger of asbestos. I was cheated,’’ he said.

http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/
34-foreign-trainees-in-japan-died-in-fy-2008-of-suspected-overwork

Power harassment plaguing Japanese workplaces more than ever before

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Power harassment, in which someone in a superior position takes advantage of their power to cause distress to others, is now rampant in the workplace in the form of bullying, pestering and persistent reprimands, amongst other behavior. It has even become a way for failing companies to drive employees to quit.

One out of every three people who consulted the Labor Standards Bureau in fiscal 2008 about being pressed to resign complained of emotional problems, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government has found. Those citing harassment in the workplace as the cause of their emotional problems exceeded 30 percent, which was significantly higher than those who were affected emotionally by bankruptcy and other challenges. The statistics confirm that the large numbers of lay-offs that have resulted from the current economic slump have had major emotional impact on workers.

According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, of the consultations made by workers with prefectural labor bureaus in fiscal 2008, 22,433 cases were regarding “encouragement to resign,” while 32,242 cases were concerning “bullying and harassment.” Both figures were the highest they have ever been.

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/
20090622p2a00m0na021000c.html

Lower House passes bill revising foreign residency rules

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The Lower House passed bills Friday making it easier for the Justice Ministry’s Immigration Bureau to keep tabs on foreigners who have overstayed their visas as well as others residing legally in the country.

A new form of identification, called a “zairyu” (residence) card, will replace alien registration cards, with the information on them kept by the Justice Ministry.

Foreign residents will be listed on the Juki Net resident registry network, a computer network linking municipalities that contains demographic information of Japanese residents.

Visas, typically good for three years, will be extended to five. Also, foreign residents will no longer be required to obtain re-entry permits if they return to Japan within a year.

On the other hand, the punishments for failing to report one’s address and other personal information will become harsher. In order to curb fake marriages, the bills give the justice minister the authority to revoke the spousal visas of those who fail to conduct “activities spouses normally do” for six months. Special consideration would be given to spouses who live separately because of mitigating circumstances, including abuse.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20090620a3.html

Immigration revision set to be passed

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Compromise paves way for state-issued foreigner cards

 The ruling and opposition camps have revised a contentious set of immigration bills in a way that increases government scrutiny of both legal and illegal foreign residents while extending additional conveniences, according to a draft obtained Thursday by The Japan Times.

Legislators from the Liberal Democratic Party-New Komeito ruling bloc and the Democratic Party of Japan hammered out the bills to reach a balance on how the estimated 110,000 undocumented foreigners living in Japan should be tracked. Currently, municipalities issue alien registration cards and provide public services to foreigners, even if they know they are overstaying their visas.

The revised bills, expected to be passed Friday by the Lower House, will abolish the Alien Registration Act and revise the immigration control and resident registration laws with sweeping changes that put information on foreign residents completely in the hands of the central government.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20090619a1.html

Foreigners stage a sit-in outside Diet to protest immigration bills

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About 20 foreign workers [including members of NUGW Tokyo Nambu] and their supporters staged a sit-in Tuesday in front of the Diet to demand that bills to revise the immigration law be scrapped.

The bills, now before the Lower House Judicial Affairs Committee, would put a greater burden on foreign workers and violate their rights, participants at the sit-in argued.

“The government says the immigration law revision would make administrative procedures more convenient for foreigners living in Japan legally, but the realities would be vice versa,” Catherine Campbell said in Japanese.

The revision would impose a fine of up to ¥200,000 on people who fail to notify the government of a change in address within 14 days, and their residency status could be revoked if they fail to report the change within 90 days.

Kunio Ozwaldo Hiramoto, 46, a second-generation Japanese-Brazilian from Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture, said the purpose of the revision is to increase control over foreign workers. “I want the Japanese government to stop xenophobia and treat foreigners warmly,” he said.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20090603a4.html