May 2012
10 posts
4 tags
Desperate Kurd plays final asylum card →
May 28th
1 note
4 tags
New Job, New Life →
A report on a Filipino woman living in a tsunami-hit area who starts a new life as a care giver in an old people’s home.
May 23rd
3 tags
New JICA chief wants aid profile lift | The Japan... →
May 23rd
1 note
2 tags
May 23rd
8 tags
CDRQ Vol.3 & 4 now online →
Volumes 3 and 4 of our journal CDRQ are now available online. Vol.3 features a special report on last year’s triple disaster in Japan. Vol.3 main articles: “Addressing Gender-based Violence within Bhutanese Refugees Camps in Nepal” Simona DONINI  “Old Wine in New Bottles: The EU Common Migration Policy” Magdalena IONESCU Vol.4 main article: “Filipino...
May 23rd
2 tags
Japan looks to take in more ethnic Karen refugees... →
May 17th
3 tags
Expats Say Goodbye to Gaijin Card →
May 11th
2 tags
'Exodus' of disaster-panicked foreigners from... →
May 10th
3 tags
Advisors hold first resettlement meeting →
(Original article in Japanese)
May 10th
1 note
6 tags
Japan's resettlement programme introduced in... →
NHK reports that Japanese officials gave a presentation to Myanmar refugees in Umpiem camp in Thailand on 3 May, introducing Japan’s resettlement programme. At Umpiem camp which accommodates 26,000 refugees, some 40 people (15 families) came to listen to the presentation.
May 6th
April 2012
8 posts
5 tags
Burmese Refugees Face Tough Time in Japan →
Apr 23rd
6 tags
A Myanmar priest granted refugee status →
A Myanmar priest (of Chin origin) has been granted refugee status in Japan. The 35-year-old entered Japan with a falsified passport and was denied asylum in 2008 by the Japanese Ministry of Justice. He received a deportation order in 2010. However, he made an appeal, and this time the Court of Tokyo ruled that the man be granted refugee status as he would face persecution if returned to his...
Apr 15th
4 tags
Assisting refugee employment: report on イーミック →
“If there’s no place to work, let’s create a new business that could be everyone’s role model.” That’s how it all started for Yoshiyama, who runs a company called イーミック and helps refugees make a living out of the skills they have already. Their business is two-fold: cooking seminars and bento making. (Original article in Japanese)
Apr 15th
4 tags
New Komeito's scope on refugee resettlement:... →
(Original article in Japanese)
Apr 15th
6 tags
Asahi Shimbun: Japan's refugee resettlement... →
Japan Association for Refugees (JAR) summarises an Asahi Shimbun article which calls for redesigning of Japan’s refugee resettlement programme. (In Japanese only) Japan’s resettlement programme has been criticised for its centralised system; the initial six-month cultural and linguistic orientation programme takes place in Tokyo. Hiroaki Ishii, the head of JAR, points out that in the...
Apr 8th
5 tags
Resettlement programme amendments →
The Refugee Liaison and Coordination Committee has made amendments to the third-country resettlement programme, which was implemented in 2008. Japan Association for Refugees (JAR) lists the three changes: extension of the programme by two years establishment of a committee which administers the collaboration between the public and private sectors deployment of assistant(s) who assists refugees...
Apr 5th
1 note
5 tags
Fahamu Refugee Legal Aid Newsletter: Asylum... →
frlan: Contributed by KatsunoriKoike, formerly a Legal Officer at the JapanAssociationforRefugees, and currently a UN volunteer with UNHCR in Kenya. The 2011 statistics concerning asylum application were releasedon 24 
Apr 3rd
4 notes
March 2012
13 posts
5 tags
Japan's resettlement programme to be extended by 2... →
(Original article in Japanese)
Mar 31st
1 note
5 tags
Japan's resettlement programme to be offered to...
Japan’s refugee resettlement programme will continue to be conducted in the form of pilot project from 2013. Government officials state that the current quota of 30 refugees is unlikely to change. Japan will, however, offer the programme to two more refugee camps. The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, the National Police Agency, and other bodies hold that we should prioritise...
Mar 29th
5 tags
Detainees' families fighting for dignity — and... →
Mar 27th
1 note
3 tags
Concerns spread over new resident registration... →
A new resident registration system will be introduced in July for foreigners residing in Japan. Under the new legislation, municipalities will no longer have the authority to issue residence permits. Many asylum seekers are expected to lose forms of identification and become virtually “invisible” in Japanese society. Without any formal documents, they may face difficulty finding access...
Mar 27th
5 tags
Backlash against democratisation: refugees... →
A Burmese refugee who resides in Japan visits Mae La Oon refugee camp in Thailand to shoot footages for his documentary which he began two years ago. Many refugees remain sceptical of the Myanmar government who has betrayed after promising reconciliation. With the lifting of US and EU economic sanctions in foresight, European NGOs are beginning to shift their focus on aid within Burma, and the...
Mar 27th
5 tags
Japan to continue with refugee resettlement next... →
Japan is to extend their refugee resettlement programme next year. Faced with a lack of refugee applicants, it has decided to accept applications from Umpiem and Nu Po camps in addition to Mae La camp. (Original article in Japanese)
Mar 27th
6 tags
Resettled refugees move to Misato →
On 18 March, eighteen Karen refugees who were resettled from Thailand moved to their new residence in Misato, Saitama. The four families live in a housing complex and are expected to receive support from a local organisation. Misato is a home to 2,700 registered foreigners. The fathers will commute to Tokyo, while the mothers will work in the local area. Their children will join local state...
Mar 22nd
3 tags
Number of visa overstayers plunges 14% to all-time... →
Mar 19th
2 notes
5 tags
Myanmar refugees set for new life Myanmar refugees... →
Mar 8th
1 note
5 tags
Toyama and Yamauchi at House of Representatives:... →
In Japanese only
Mar 6th
7 tags
Visa problem makes separation from kids even worse →
Mar 3rd
1 note
4 tags
Japanese woman fearing Fukushima radiation denied... →
Mar 3rd
February 2012
11 posts
4 tags
Immigration cuts lengthy detention for foreigners →
Feb 29th
4 tags
Immigration inmates live life of limbo, at... →
Feb 29th
4 tags
Record high no. of refugee applications filed with... →
Feb 25th
5 tags
MOJ releases 2011 asylum application statistics →
Report in Japanese
Feb 25th
5 tags
New Komeito MPs visit RHQ →
New Komeito’s (a Japanese centre-right party) Refugee Policy Project Team visited Refugee Assistance Headquarters (RHQ) Settlement Support Centre in Tokyo where resettled refugees undergo a linguistic and cultural orientation programme. The team included MPs Kiyohiko Toyama (a PhD holder in Peace Studies), Masaaki Taniai (a former AMDA staff), and Hirotaka Ishikawa (a former MOFA official). ...
Feb 23rd
5 tags
Feb 15th
4 tags
Human security starts at home →
Feb 15th
5 tags
Japan receives fewer resettlement applications
The media reports that Japan has only received resettlement applications from two families this year - a total of 10 persons, of which 9 were interviewed by Japanese government officials on 15 February. Japan had set a quota of 90 refugees to be resettled from Thai refugee camps for 2010-2012. This means that even if all the applicants this year are accepted, Japan will only use about 60% of of...
Feb 15th
4 tags
Myanmar refugees receives info on Japan's... →
Feb 15th
5 tags
Sukiya operator aids famine relief in East Africa →
Feb 14th
3 tags
Government exchanges opinions with NPOs on...
In December 2011 and January 2012, Japanese government and some related NPOs exchanged opinions on refugee resettlement programme which is currently in place as a three-year pilot project. The discussions held in those sessions are not publicly released. However, the content of the presentation (in Japanese) made by the deputy director of Forum for Refugees Japan (FRJ), Hiroaki Ishii, is available...
Feb 13th
6 tags
Memorandum on tripartite collaboration in... →
In Japanese only
Feb 11th
2 notes
5 tags
Japan signs memo to shorten detention for asylum... →
Feb 10th
3 notes
January 2012
8 posts
3 tags
Public Relations Office calls for public's support... →
In Japanese
Jan 30th
1 note
2 tags
Acts of crime during RSD process - bogus asylum... →
Article in Japanese
Jan 22nd
3 tags
2011: Number of foreign nationals entering Japan...
The Japanese Ministry of Justice announced that the number of foreign nationals entering Japan in 2011 was 7.14 million, a decrease of 2.31 million from the previous year. The number of those leaving the country was 16.99 million, an increase of 0.36 million.
Jan 19th
3 tags
Japanese clothing retail giant helps refugees in... →
Jan 19th
3 tags
Japan mulls steps to protect N. Korean refugees in... →
Article in English
Jan 11th
1 note
3 tags
Refugees deprived of "human dignity" →
Original article in Japanese
Jan 9th
3 notes
4 tags
Three 'North Koreans' found off Japan →
Jan 5th
4 tags
Municipalities to help protect North Korean... →
Original article in Japanese
Jan 1st
1 note