改正入管法 成立

前回のポストで触れたが、27日に衆議院本会議で可決された改正入管法について、各紙次のように報じている。朝日新聞と他紙の報じ方の違いに注目。
朝日新聞
毎日新聞
読売新聞

Associated Press poll on immigration attitudes

An article in International Herald Tribune Online: Japanese evenly divided on immigrants reports about the poll conducted on the influence of immigrats in Japan;

"Forty-four percent of respondents said immigrants were a good influence on their country, but the same percentage called immigrants a bad influence,.....Seventy-four percent of respondents said they believed foreigners take the jobs that Japanese nationals do not want. Fifty-eight percent said it was better for the country to have a variety of people with different religions, while 37 percent said a population that shared the same customs and traditions was better."

"Authorities and media reports suggest that illegal aliens are behind a recent crime surge, but statistics show that foreigners commit crimes at about the same rate as Japanese."

Same kind of polls on immigration attitudes were conducted in the other world's leading industrial countries and they found that the citizens tend to have negative views of the influence of immigrant. --Immigrants worry leading nations(Columbia Daily Tribune)

Japan raises penalties for illegal immigrants

According to International Herald Tribune, the parliament approved a bill on Thursday to tighten immigration rules, as concern increased over Japan's vulnerability to international terrorism.

"The legislation raises the penalty for illegally staying in Japan to ¥3 million, about $27,000, from ¥300,000. It also prohibits foreigners who have been deported from re-entering the country in the next 10 years, twice as long as before. The measure is to be phased in over a year."

Development of Immigration Policy in Japan: by Atsushi Kondo

Discussion paper(PDF) by Atsushi Kondo(Kyushu Sangyo University, Japan), published in Asia and Pacific Migration Journal, Vol.11, No.4, 2002 (pp.415-436).

This paper gives a historical outline of immigration flow in Japan since W.W.Ⅱ and analyzes the development of integration policy in Japan. He examines Japan's recent admission and control policy and gives a sharp criticism on it.

"Acceptance of so-called 'simple labor' was to be carefully examined.....What is simple labor? The image of this term unskilled workers in contrast with skilled workers. However, its reality is determined by resident-status in Immigration Control and Refugee Recognision Act."

"...it seems appropriate to remark that if we consider the future globalization of aging society in Japan, we need to discuss the reform of the admission system from the 'positive list' to the 'labor market test' such as in European states and 'point system' such as in Canada. The so-called 'sectionalism' in the government will be solved and a new comprehensive administration office for integration policy will be established directly under the Cabinet Office"

日本経団連：Interim Recommendations on Accepting Non-Japanese Workers

Here, the summary of important pervasive issues for well-organized acceptance of non-Japanese workers by Japan Business Federation(日本経団連).

They argue how important it is for Japan's future economic prosperity to accept non-Japanese workers, and suggest following 9 points;
1. Coordinating Central Government Policy
2. Governmental and Corporate Roles in Employment Control
3. Reforming Employment Contracts and Personnel Systems at Japanese Companies
4. Resolving Issues Associated with Foreign Nationals of Japanese Descent Entering and Working in Japan
5. Improving Living Standards of Non-Japanese
6. Strengthening Measures on Illegal Residents and Public Security
7. Facilitating Acceptance in Specialist and Technology Sectors
8. Expansion of Acceptance of Non-Japanese Students and Promoting Their Employment in Japan
9. Improvement in Worker Training Programs

日本経団連 Vision Paper: "Japan 2025: Envisioning a Vibrant, Attractive Nation in the 21st Century"(PDF)

Global Migration and Japan

明治大学商学部教授、山脇啓造氏のwebsite。日本政府の外国人政策、外国人労働者問題、在日中国・朝鮮人問題など幅広い分野を網羅し、様々な角度から「多文化共生社会の構想」を提言している。彼のアプローチは非常に興味深く、学ぶところが多い。日本語版も。

School searched for illegals

According to Yomiuri Shimbun,
the Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau searched a vocational school in Musashino, western Tokyo, on Friday after learning that 140 of its overseas students overstayed their visas last year. They suspects the students worked illegally while they were registered as vocational students and still maybe doing so.
The Tokyo bureau conducted a trial investigation last month on 10 schools in the metropolitan area. The student body of one was entirely Chinese, while another had only four Japanese students out of 74. Eight of the schools padded attendance records or did not hold classes.

文部科学省は、職業学校では全学生の半数以上が日本人でなければならないというガイドラインを設けているが、なぜそこまで外国人学生の数を規制する必要があるのか？日本でさまざまな職業技術を学びたいとやってくる学生が、なぜその可能性を制限されなければならないのか？条件が厳しく、就労ビザが得られないことが、彼らがこういった学校に籍を置いてこっそり働かざるを得ない状況を生み出しているのではないのか？