J-lawyer attacks detainment policy

[Mulboyne]

Asahi Opinion: Foreign detainees need relief, not confinement

According to statistics compiled by the Justice Ministry, more than 1,430 foreigners, including children, old people and pregnant women, were detained per day across Japan last year. Foreigners who overstayed their visas, entered illegally and worked without a permit are deported. However, foreigners who are not able to return home because they could face persecution in their native country or because they have family in Japan are forced to be detained instead of being deported.
...Countries such as the United States, France, Italy, South Korea and Taiwan grant amnesty to irregular aliens under certain conditions. Japan should also do the same or flexibly grant special permission to allow such foreigners to remain in Japan according to international human rights standard.
...Authorities' intention of deporting or detaining more than 220,000 foreigners just because they do not have proper visas must not be tolerated from humanitarian and constitutional standpoints. It is also inexcusable from the viewpoint of international conventions and treaties.
Japan may be materially affluent. But the way it treats asylum seekers reveals its "paucity of hospitality."
According to a survey by the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, in 2001, the United States and Germany accepted more than 20,000 asylum seekers. Britain and Canada took in more than 10,000, while Japan accepted only 26. The number dropped to just 10 in 2003....Not all Japanese are cold to foreigners. It's just that there is a gap between the Justice Ministry's policy and the will of the people. I still believe that....I wish to believe that many Japanese want Japan to become an internationally minded country that respects human rights.