Mainichi: Shizuoka bureaucrats force Brazilian woman to take “Repatriation Bribe”

mytest

Handbook for Newcomers, Migrants, and Immigrants to Japan\Foreign Residents and Naturalized Citizens Association forming NGO\「ジャパニーズ・オンリー 小樽入浴拒否問題と人種差別」(明石書店)JAPANESE ONLY:  The Otaru Hot Springs Case and Racial Discrimination in Japansourstrawberriesavatartwitter: arudoudebito
Hi Blog. Case number #4534 of why one does not allow untrained bureaucrats to make Immigration decisions: The potential for misunderstanding and abuse.

Last April, the GOJ decided to offer unemployed Nikkei workers (only — this did not apply to Chinese etc. “Trainees and Researchers” because they did not have the correct blood) a 300,000 yen Repatriation Bribe for airplane tickets “back home”, not only asking them to void their visas and give up their paid-in pensions, but also to go elsewhere and just be somebody else’s problem.

Now, according to the Mainichi of Sept 14, 2009, a local government tried to make any possible welfare benefits to a NJ contingent upon promising to take the Bribe and go home — a Catch-22 if ever there was one.

Not too surprising. This is the same prefecture which around up to ten years ago restricted or denied NJ the right to sign up for the National Health Insurance (kokumin kenkou hoken) because they weren’t “kokumin” (citizens) .

Fortunately, this case came out in the press. How many others have been duped here and elsewhere and forced to go home without it being reported?

Shame on the GOJ for creating this policy avenue for abuse in the first place. Arudou Debito back in Sapporo

////////////////////////////////////////////////

National News
Local gov’t makes foreign welfare applicant sign up for cash to return to Brazil

(Mainichi Japan) September 14, 2009, Courtesy of David P

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/national/news/20090914p2a00m0na010000c.html?inb=rs

FUKUROI, Shizuoka — The Fukuroi Municipal Government has promised to apologize to a Brazilian woman of Japanese descent after forcing her to sign a pledge to use government assistance to return to her country when she applied for a welfare payment.

The assistance program provides government funds enabling jobless people of Japanese descent and their families to return to their countries when they decide to give up working in Japan.

When questioned by the Mainichi, a municipal government representative admitted the city’s error, saying, “The payment of welfare benefits and the support to return to one’s country are separate things. Our behavior disregarded the person’s wish to live in Japan.” The city has promised to annul the pledge and apologize to the woman.

The woman, a third-generation Japanese-Brazilian in her 20s, lives with her 5-year-old son. She came to Japan about 10 years ago. In mid-July, she was dismissed by the cell-phone parts manufacturer she had worked for, and she applied for livelihood protection payments on Aug. 31.

The woman and city officials said that when she applied, a worker told her, “Unless you promise to undergo procedures to apply for financial support to return to your country, we will not accept the application for livelihood protection.”

When the woman said that she wanted to continue to work in Japan, the worker reportedly told her, “You have no driver’s license and you can’t speak Japanese, so you can be 100 percent sure you won’t find work. It would be better for you to take the 300,000 yen (payment to return to Brazil), and go home.”

Along with the application for welfare payments, the woman was handed a blank A4-sized sheet of paper. On it she wrote a message in Portuguese saying that she would apply for assistance to return home. She reportedly signed it and marked it with a fingerprint.

Commenting on the incident, a city official initially said that the city had received a notice from the government saying that when livelihood protection benefits were provided, if there were other payments that could be made, such as pension payments or allowances, then those payments should take precedence. Accordingly, the city judged that assistance to return home fell into that category, the official said.

Later, however, a city representative said, “Livelihood protection is for people facing adversity while living in Japan, and making the support money to return home apply to the utilization of other laws and policies constituted a mistaken interpretation of the government notice.”

Commenting on the incident, the woman said, “In Brazil I have ageing parents and a sick younger sister. Even if I go back home I don’t have the freedom to work, and I can only work in Japan. To think that they went as far as to make me write a pledge …”

Original Japanese story:
http://mainichi.jp/select/seiji/archive/news/2009/09/14/20090914ddm041010047000c.html

生活保護:申請の日系人に帰国支援手続き強制 誤り認め謝罪へ‐‐静岡・袋井市

不景気で失業して生活保護費の支給を申請した静岡県袋井市の日系ブラジル人に対し、市が、国の帰国支援制度を利用するとの誓約書を書かせていたことが分かった。制度は、日系人失業者が国内での再就職を断念して帰国する場合、国が家族分も含め帰国支援金を支給しており、今回の市の対応は帰国を促す措置だ。毎日新聞の取材を受けた市は「生活保護の支給と帰国支援は別もの。日本で生活したいという本人の意思を踏みにじる行為」と誤りを認め、誓約書の撤回と本人への謝罪を約束した。【小玉沙織】

誓約書を書かされたのは、息子(5)と2人で暮らす日系ブラジル人3世の20代の女性。約10年前に来日し、7月中旬に携帯電話の組み立て工場を解雇され、8月31日に同市へ生活保護の支給を申請した。

女性や市によると、申請の際、女性は職員から「(日系人離職者に対する)帰国支援事業の手続きも行うと約束しなければ、生活保護の申請は受け付けられない」と言われた。女性は「まだ日本で仕事がしたい」と訴えたが、職員は「あなたは運転免許もないし、日本語も話せないので、100%仕事は見つからない。(帰国支援金の)30万円をもらって帰ったほうがいい」と主張した。女性は生活保護を申請するとともに、職員から渡されたA4判の白い紙に「帰国支援の手続きをする」などとポルトガル語で書いてサインしたうえ、右人さし指で指印を押したという。

取材に対し、市しあわせ推進課は当初、「生活保護の支給については、年金や諸手当など他の方法で受給できるものがあれば優先するという国からの通達(生活保護の「他法他施策の活用」)があり、帰国支援事業の利用はそれに該当する」と説明。その後、「生活保護は日本で困窮しながら暮らす人が対象で、帰国支援金を他法他施策の活用に当たるとするのは、通達の誤った解釈だった」と回答した。

女性は「ブラジルにいるのは、年老いた両親と病気の妹。帰っても働く余裕はなく、日本で働くしかないのに、誓約書まで書かされるとは」と話した。

==============

■ことば
◇日系人離職者に対する帰国支援事業

南米諸国に国籍がある日系人失業者のうち、日本での再就職をあきらめ、母国へ帰国する本人に30万円、扶養家族に1人20万円を国が支給する。不況を受けた緊急支援で4月から受け付けを始めた。当初、国は支援金の目的外使用を防ぐため、支援金受給者は「当分の間」再入国を認めないとしていたが、日系人らから「もう来るなということか」との批判を受け、政府は5月に「3年をめどとする」ことを明らかにした。

ENDS

7 comments on “Mainichi: Shizuoka bureaucrats force Brazilian woman to take “Repatriation Bribe”

  • REPOSTING HERE ON BEHALF OF OKIMARCIO, WHO POSTED UNDER A DIFFERENT BLOG ENTRY. DEBITO

    Many Brazilians who live in the city of Fukuroi and were going through requirements, were in the desk in an awkward position: having to write a letter giving up to stay in Japan in order to be able to take advantage of livelihood assistance for one to three months . The clerk through a translator dictated the words that the needy person was required to write, even if the person declared that he was intending to continue in Japan

    One of the reporters of the newspaper Mainichi Shimbun was in our meetings where we discussed the matter and she was the mayor of Fukuroi to know the reality. He spoke with Brazilians who had come under pressure to be able to argue at the desk of Social Welfare (Shakai Fukushi Jimusho).

    After 2 days the reporter received the news that the city would be apologizing for the treatment and that this does not happen again.

    We were reports of similar cases in the cities of Kakegawa, Iwata, Ichinomiya, Komaki and other cities in Aichi.

    The city of Hamamatsu had no complaint of such will, despite the large number of Brazilians in need.

    Today several newspapers and TV channels in the Japanese media and Brazilian went to the headquarters of Brazil Fureai order to know more details. The Brazilian Vanessa Sato was giving interviews to reporters.
    ————————————————– —————-

    Monday 20:30 pm ………… We just got a call from Vanessa Sato. She was visited by representatives of the Municipality of Fukuroi who apologized that they made, saying it was a big mistake and that it would never again be repeated. The livelihood assistance, should be headed tomorrow the 10 hours to finish fulfilling the requirements of the subsidy was approved.

    With that she can breathe relieved and return to seek employment in Japan Vanessa told the reporters who loves Japan and wants to stay here, she reached 19 years and now has 29.
    from http://www.Brasilfureai.com 09/15/2009
    ends

    Reply
  • Of course this is the same Fukuroi where, two years ago, residents teamed up to stop a Nikkei Brazilian from buying land in their area (as reported on this site: http://www.debito.org/?p=465). I’m reminded of that story every time I drive past the place on the Tomei Expressway. The saddest thing is that attitudes have clearly not changed in the area.

    Reply
  • ●世界の現状

    雇用に保護主義台頭
    http://job.yomiuri.co.jp/news/ne_09032310.htm
    >英国東部のイミンガム近郊にあるリンゼー石油精製所。雪が舞う1月末に、従業員が
    >「英国の仕事は英国人労働者のものだ」と書かれたプラカードを手にデモ行進を繰り広げ、
    >英紙フィナンシャル・タイムズが欧米6か国で3月上旬にかけて行った調査では、英国やイタリア、
    >スペインなどで8割近い人が「失業した外国人は出て行ってほしい」と答え、「仕事を奪う外国人」
    >への警戒感が強まっている。

    >マレーシアも1月、電機・電子産業などの急激な業績悪化を踏まえ、サービス、電機・電子、繊維の
    >3業種でビザの発給や更新に応じないことを決めた。同国のサイドハミド内相は本紙に対し、
    >「外国人労働者は汚い(dirty)、危険(dangerous)、困難(difficult)
    >の3Dに限定する」と言ってはばからなかった。

    >インドでは、オバマ米大統領の発言に波紋が広がっている。「看護師を輸入しなければならないという
    >考えは理解に苦しむ」――。大統領は5日、医療問題を巡る議員らとの会談でこう述べ、50万人以上
    >が見込まれる看護師不足の問題は、米国内で解消すべきだとの考えを示した。

    >「外国人労働者はバッファー(雇用の調整弁)に過ぎないと認識している」
    >シンガポールのリー・シェンロン首相は昨年12月、外国人特派員との会合で言い切った。

    http://www.kantei.go.jp/jp/singi/jinzai/jitsumu/dai2/siryou2_3.pdf
    >シンガポールでは、外国人の家事労働者や介護労働者等に対する人権侵害や
    >暴力などが深刻な社会問題となっており、外国人家事労働者の自殺者も多い
    >と言われている。また、妊娠検査を義務づけ、妊娠した労働者の強制退去、
    >シンガポール人との結婚を認めない

    http://www.recordchina.co.jp/group.php?groupid=34771
    >2009年8月26日、香港誌「亜洲週刊」によると、ロシアが自国民の就労優先権を保護
    >するため、経済危機以降、800万人以上の外国人を国外へ退去させていることが
    >ロシア連邦移民庁の報告からわかった。

    ドバイの街から消える外国人労働者
    http://www.afpbb.com/article/economy/2554825/3653674
    >今や、人口の大半を占める外国人労働者たちの多くは解雇通告を受け、国外に退去するための
    >準備に追われている。
    >ドバイや湾岸諸国の外国人労働者は、解雇を通告された場合、1か月以内に荷物をまとめて国外に
    >退去しなければならない。
    >雇用主は、外国人労働者の雇用契約解除について、銀行に報告することになっている。
    >銀行がローンの返済義務がある外国人労働者に対し、国を去る前に完済を要求できるようにするためだ。

    ●ポイント
    約10年前に来日。
    運転免許もない、日本語も話せない。
    =100%仕事は見つからない。よって帰国支援金30万円支給。

    そんなにカリカリしないでください。
    日本は外国人労働者にとても優しいですよ。

    Reply
  • How will they say sorry?
    Will they be contacting those Brazilians who were effectively forced back to Brazil to inform them that they can return? There is no point in saying sorry(if they did something wrong) if you are not going to fix this problem.
    Will they give a list of all people who were forced into returning to Brazil to the Brazilian embassy and are they involved in this?

    How many were forced to return?

    Reply
  • @日本国民

    Are having a Japanese Driver’s License and speaking Japanese requirements for being treated fairly in Japan or finding work in Japan? I know many people who don’t speak Japanese and don’t have any need for a Driver’s License, but they have been able to find legal employment. The question here is just one of fairness and following laws. Bureaucrats making up their own policy is unacceptable.

    Not to mention, comparing how other countries treat their foreign workers doesn’t make it OK to treat foreign workers here unfairly or take advantage of them, even if Japan treats those workers better than other countries.

    Reply
  • 日本国民、

    日本と世界の現状の比較だけでは良くありません。
    「この国はこうしているから日本はまだましだ」と言う考え方もよくありません。
    国籍問わず人権を大事にしながら行動するべきです。

    Reply

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