朝日：住基ネット「同意なければ違憲」。じゃあ「外人カード」は？
住民基本台帳ネットワーク（住基ネット）に生年月日などの個人情報を接続されてプライバシーを侵害されたとして、大阪府内５市の住民１６人が各市を相手取り、本人確認情報の提供禁止などを求めた訴訟の控訴審判決が０６年１１月３０日、大阪高裁であった。じゃあ、２４時間常時携帯の「外人カード」（外国人登録証明書）なども違憲でしょうかね。
J Today Nov 30 06 Disabled Pakistani naturalized Japanese, barred from boarding Sendai bus, wins damages
The Sendai District Court ordered the local city government to pay 550,000 yen in compensation to a Pakistani-born physically disabled man for a city-run bus’s refusal to board him in 2003, recognizing the treatment as a form of racial and disability discrimination. (Japan Today)
人種、障害差別で乗車拒否 仙台市に５５万円賠償命令（共同）
外国人で障害者であることを理由に、市営バスに乗車拒否されたとして、パキスタン出身の男性（６０）＝仙台市太白区＝が同市に１６５万円の損害賠償を求めた訴訟の判決が３０日、仙台地裁であった。
Yamanashi English school want ad: “blonde hair blue or green eyes and brightly character” (with updates)
A school in Yamanashi is specifically advertising in the local international association jobs for “blonde blue-eyed brightly” foreigners, because the local kindergarten wants a typical foreigner for acclimatization to “eigojin”. It’s just business, you see, they explained to me. Well, the int’l association doesn’t agree, and according to sources on the ground they will be taking this issue up.
GOJ requires fingerprints and criminal history for long-term visas, yet refuses domestic means to produce them.
As of April 2006, Japan is now requiring fingerprints for long-term visas, yet now refusing to provide domestic police assistance to get them. US citizens, for example, are now told to give their fingerprints to the FBI and get a Rap Sheet–and pay for the privilege. Nice little money spinner for the USG on the behest of the GOJ, which requires compliance yet refuses to provide assistance. This is what people pay taxes for?
DEBITO.ORG NEWSLETTER NOV 27 2006
1) OTARU ONSENS CASE NOW TEACHING MATERIAL
2) GAIJIN CARD CHECKS OUTSIDE “SAKURA HOUSE”
3) UPDATE ON KITAKYUSHU EXCLUSIONARY RESTAURANT
4) J TIMES ON TOURISM PROMOTION, WITH LETTER TO THE ED
5) TBS: FUJIWARA NORIKA BUMPS ARUDOU DEBITO
6) KYODO: MOCK JURY TRIAL SPRINGS FOREIGN MANSLAUGHTERER
7) JALT PALE ROUNDTABLE ON ACADEMIC EMPLOYMENT
and finally…
8) WASH POST: GOJ CREATING SUSHI POLICE FOR OVERSEAS J FOOD
Otaru Onsens Case published as English teaching material
Hello Blog. The Otaru Onsens Case (https://www.debito.org/otarulawsuit.html) refuses to fade into obscurity, thank goodness. Still, the facts of the case are being increasingly bleached out as time goes on. Witness how in this English teaching book discussing the case for educational purposes. Thanks to Bert for sending me this. Comment at the bottom. From: Sloss, …
J Times Nov 10 06 on tourism promotion, with great Letter to the Ed Nov 19
A Japan Times article about another promotion to bring more tourists to Japan to spend money (remember Koizumi’s “Yokoso Japan” campaign?), specifically mentioning onsen as one of the places they want more foreigners to frequent. Funny they should mention onsens. Friend Hidesato Sakakibara makes a great rejoinder in a letter to the editor, questioning the effectiveness of such a campaign when there is no law to protect their rights from racial discrimination once tourists get here. For the record, the article, Hidesato’s rejoinder, and a comment from me with some links follow.
Email on Gaijin Card Checks and Racial Profiling at Sakura House (with update)
Mail from a reader regarding Gaijin Card checkpoints and racial profiling outside her apartment complex, gaijin-friendly “Sakura House” in Tokyo. Point: You do not want to get on the wrong side of the Japanese police, although riding a bicycle, walking outside, renting an apartment etc. while foreign seems more and more to incur Japanese police involvement.
Wash Post/MSNBC on GOJ moves against fake J food abroad (with update)
Fascinating post on Japanese govt policy moves against “pseudo sushi”–certifying washoku restaurants abroad as “real Japanese”. Plethora of puns to be made here.
Kyodo Nov 23: Odd mock trial of foreigner to test new jury system (with updates)
Hello Blog. Forwarding from a reporter friend. Comment is his. Debito ////////////////////////////////////////// Not sure what to make of this. Should I be dissapointed that they chose a foreigner as the defendant in their mock trial or pleased that the jury didn’t necessarily lock him up and throw away the key just because he wasn’t Japanese….. …
Update to Kitakyushu Exclusionary Restaurant: Calls from City Int’l Affairs Desk and Bureau of Human Rights
Re Kitakyushu exclusionary restaurant: City called me to tell me they the manager, and got assurances that this sort of thing will not happen again. So did the local Bureau of Human Rights. Good. Thanks. This is shaping up into a classic case of how to deal with this problem through administrative channels.
JALT PALE Roundtable of Nov 3 06 Report re Japan’s future academic work
Continuing the Roundtable forum that packed the hall at JALT 2005, five PALE members paneled a meeting to discuss a variety of issues relevant to the conference’s theme of “Community, Identity, and Motivation”. All presentations touched in some way upon employment issues, including issues of job security, union representation, the relationship of nationality to job description and employment terms, and the growing role of dispatch teaching arrangements in Japanese universities. They dealt explicitly or implicitly with the proper roles and responsibilities of PALE and JALT in managing these issues.
Quick Update to Kitakyushu Exclusionary Restaurant Issue
Kitakyushu Branch of the MOJ’s Bureau of Human Rights (Jinken Yougobu) phoned me today in response to my letter about the “No foreigners allowed inside because they make the manager feel linguistically inadequate” Restaurant “Jungle”, to say they are looking into it. Well, good.
Potential Yarase on TV’s Tokudane next Weds Nov 22 re “Comedy About Japan” (with update)
In filming a Tokyo Comedy Store event, TV Wide Show “Tokudane” seems to be fishing too much to find “Japanese vs. Western Humor” dichotomy, especially the type where Westerners making any joke about Japan is shown as a criticism about all of Japan. This according to one of the comedians interviewed, Dave MG, who writes this blog entry. Fascinating background information behind show to be aired next Weds Nov 22.
DEBITO.ORG NEWSLETTER NOV 15 2006
1) TBS INTERVIEW RE 2-CHANNEL BBS, THIS THURSDAY LUNCHTIME
2) NOOSE TIGHTENS: ZAKZAK AND MUTANTFROG ON NISHIMURA & WASEDA SPEECH
3) ASAHI: NORIGUCHI PONTIFICATING ON LANGUAGE TEACHING AGAIN
4) LETTER TO KITAKYUSHU AUTHORITIES RE EXCLUSIONARY RESTAURANT
5) EYEWITNESS ACCOUNT OF JAPANESE PRISON VISIT
6) FOREIGN MARRIAGES NOT ALLOWED FOR POLICE AND JSDF?
and finally
7) CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN TO HOKKAIDO NIPPON HAM FIGHTERS!
Interview Thurs on Thurs Nov 18 lunchtime on TBS show “Pinpon”, re 2-Channel (with updates)
Was going to be on TV briefly Thursday Nov 16 on a lunchtime talkshow, talking briefly about 2-Channel libel lawsuits as a thwarted plaintiff, but it got bumped by news on Fujiwara Norika, then put on hold because Defendant Nishimura didn’t respond to requests for a reply (of course he didn’t!). Ah well. Anyhoo, links to three more articles on 2-Channel, one courtesy Dave Spector.
TBSテレビ番組「ピンポン」で２ちゃんねるについてインタビュー（木１６放送）及びZAKZAK記事連載
今朝、テレビ局TBSは私を２ちゃんねるについてインタビューしました。番組「ピンポン」１１月１６日（木）番組表によると、午前１１時スタートですが、今朝会ったスタフによると１２時と１２時５０分の間に放送されるだろうと。そしてZAKZAKの記事もここで掲載します。
NIPPON HAM FIGHTERS WIN ASIAN SERIES!
Our home team, the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters, after reaching the top in Japan last month, just won the Asian Series, 1-0, vs Taiwan.
Eyewitness account of a visit to a Japanese prison (with comment)
Forwarding an excerpt from a friend who paid a visit to a Japanese prison to offer moral support to someone incarcerated. The tribulations he went through just to get a short audience are worth recording somewhere for the record. Is all this rigmarole necessary, and if so, what purpose could it possibly serve?
Blog entry: J police cannot marry non-Japanese? (with update)
Hello Blog. Something interesting here. Friend passed on a link to a blog post as follows: =================================== Hello. I am really down so I hope to get some help here. My boyfriend is japanese and I am german. We met in Japan ( working holiday…)and want to merry next year, because we are really sure …
Letter to Kitakyushu authorities re exclusionary restaurant, Nov 9 06
Letter I sent to Kitakyushu authorities and JALT Nov 9 regarding exclusionary restaurant in their area, asking for administrative guidance to the matter.
北九州市の「外国人拒否」するレストランについて市長、人権擁護部と西日本新聞に送った手紙
ブログの皆様こんがんは。有道 出人です。いつもお読みいただいてありがとうございます。 さて、夕べこの手紙を書いて郵送しました。念のためにアーカイブに入れます。 宜しくお願い致します。 ＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝ 〒803-8501 北九州市小倉北区城内1番1号 電話：093-582-2127 FAX：093-562-0710 hisho@mail2.city.kitakyushu.jp 北九州市長 末吉興一秘書室 御中 市長 末吉 興一 殿 〒803-8513北九州市小倉北区城内５番３号（小倉地方合同庁舎）093(561)3542 法務省人権擁護部北九州支部 御中 （西日本新聞社及びJALT管理者にも送信） 市内「外国人お断り」のレストランの件、啓蒙のお願い 拝啓 晩秋の候、ますますご清栄のこととお喜び申し上げます。 突然で失礼ですが、自己紹介させていただきたいと思います。私は北海道情報大学助教授の有道 出人（あるどう でびと）と申します。本年１１月３日から３日間に渡り全国語学教育学会（JALT）の総会がきっかけで北九州市に訪れ、市民のホスピタリティを厚く御礼を申し上げます。 しかし、標記の件ですが、１１月３日の夜、JALTの外国出身メンバーがレストランに行きましたが、空席があったものの、支配人に「満席だから入らないで」と言われたようで、そのレストラン名は「ジャングル」（経営者は（有）ピー・ケイ・ティー）との事です。 北九州市小倉北区鍛冶町1-7-4 かじまち会館３F Ph: 093-512-7123, FAX 093-512-7124 断られた者が私に報告し４日の夜に再び、私と友人５名で「ジャングル」を尋ね、支配人の松原達也氏と話し合いました。彼は私にも（私は白人で帰化した日本人ですが）「満席です、入らないで」と言ったが、殆ど空席の状態が目立っていたので交渉し始めました。日本語で交渉してから入店できたが、松原氏が認めたことは： ①前日、その外国出身のJALTメンバーの入店お断りした ②その理由は「英語が苦手、外国人が怖い」 ③以前、当店では外国人との問題が一切なかったので、個人的には外国人に対してトラウマは特にない ④「入店されたくない」のみで、ここまでの「外国人アレルギー」の原因は不明 しかし、これに対して私たちは松原支配人の意識高揚を行ってみました： ア）こうやって「ガイジンダメ」を言うのはお客に傷つけ、明らかに差別 イ）言語の障壁があっても関わらず、メニューの注文はどうにかはなる ウ）出身を問わず、客商売とは全てのお客を持て成すことではないか よって店の対応の改善を求めてから、松原支配人が謝って下さいまして、これから改善しますとのことだったが、正直に言ってこれから門前払いが取り止められるかどうかは、私は若干自信がありません。なぜかは、飲み物を飲んでから勘定を支払った際、別のウェーターと話した際英語が達者だと分かりました。言語の障壁について心配した支配人は何故そのウェーターに応対させなかったのかは疑問です。 お願いしたいのは、当店及びその付近の店舗にも差別撤廃のために啓蒙を行っていただければ幸いです。ある者にとってこの待遇は北九州市全体のイメージダウンとなります。私は既に「排斥する店舗のギャラリー」のウェブサイトに載せさせていただきました。 https://www.debito.org/roguesgallery.html#Kokura 意識高揚の結果、ぜひ、ご連絡いただければと存じます。宜しくお願い致します。 書中をもってご挨拶申し上げます。敬具 平成１８年１１月７日 有道 出人（連絡先を省く） ＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝ ENDS
Zakzak and Sankei on 2-Channel libel (thanks Adamu)
Translations of articles regarding libelous BBS 2-Channel and administrator Nishimura Hiroyuki, from Zakzak Nov 7 and Sankei Sports Nov 5. Shows how carefree Hiroyuki is towards ignoring court orders and the damage caused people’s lives by unfettered Internet libel.
Kitakyudai’s Noriguchi again in Asahi on English teaching (Nov 4, 2006, with updates)
Professor Noriguchi is becoming a regular pundit on English language education in Japan. After saying not two months ago that one problem with non-Japanese teachers is that they stay in Japan too long, he’s now positing theories about how English is traumatizing and bilking Japanese, especially given the natural disadvantages that the homogeneous Japanese have towards learning English compared to other Asians… Not to mention the inferiority complex which Japanese have towards the West, thus making them unneighborly… Oh go on, read it yourself, and email him if you like.
Japan Times column Nov 7 2006 on Japan’s half-truth claims to the UN
Hello Blog. I have just put up my most recent column (my 33rd) for the Japan Times Community Page on my regular website. Published today, November 7, 2006, this is the “Director’s Cut”, with sentences excised from the print version for space concerns, and links to sources for claims within the article. Rather than having …
２ちゃんねるの西村ひろゆき：早稲田にて「強制的に（賠償金を）払わせる法律がない」（追加：ZAKZAK 記事）
名誉毀損で敗訴した２ちゃんねるの管理者西村ひろゆきは１１月４日、早稲田にて講演をして、「強制的に（裁判の賠償金を）払わせる法律がない」と言ったが、賠償金逃れは不可能であると日大大学院教授が指摘しました。されに、「問題の部分は（掲示板から）削除した」とも言ったが、そうじゃありません。ブログに現場からレポートを載せました。
DEBITO.ORG NEWSLETTER NOVEMBER 7, 2006
1) NEW JAPAN TIMES COLUMN TODAY (NOV 7) ON JAPAN’S BROKEN UN PROMISES
2) EXCLUSIONARY KITAKYUSHU RESTAURANT ADDED TO ROGUES’ GALLERY
3) ECONOMIST SOFTBALL OBIT: “TOKYO ROSE” DIES
4) PODCAST ON GOV. ISHIHARA
Economist Oct 5 Obit: “Tokyo Rose” dies (with replies)
Hi Blog. Been reading back issues of The Economist left fallow during my recent trips, and stumbled across this. Comment at the very bottom follows: Iva Toguri, a victim of mistaken identity, died on September 26th, aged 90 Oct 5th 2006 From The Economist (London) print edition Courtesy http://www.economist.com/obituary/displaystory.cfm?story_id=E1_SJJSDST MANY years after the end of …
DEBITO.ORG NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 31, 2006
1) IVAN HALL ET AL SPEAKING AT JALT KITAKYUSHU
2) BERN MULVEY ON MORE MINISTERIAL MOVES AGAINST ACADEMIC TENURE
3) U HODEN LAWSUIT RE SCHOOL BULLYING DUE TO CHINESE ETHNICITY
4) “AMERICANS FOR EQUAL TREATMENT” UNION FORMING
5) RES.PUBLICA JOB ADVERT FOR FULL-TIME JAPAN-BASED ACTIVIST
IJIME LAWSUIT: THE U HODEN CASE, 2000-present
Hi Blog. Just got finished translating the following for a friend. Debito in Sapporo THE U HODEN CASE HEISEI 16 (WA) DAI 247-GO SONGAI BAISHOU SEIKYUU JIKEN YOKOHAMA DISTRICT COURT KAWASAKI BRANCH, CIVIL COURT B SEEKING DAMAGES FOR POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER Writeup based on Japanese original dated July 20, 2006, available at https://www.debito.org/kawasakiminzokusabetsu.htm Translation by …
Ninkisei: Bern Mulvey on new ways to kill permanent tenure in J academia
Position titles in Japanese universites will now change from kyouju, jokyouju, koushi, joshu to four new official ranks: Kyouju, Junkyouju, Jokyou and Joshu. In other words, “Sennin Koushi”–used by almost
all Japanese universities and often translated as “assistant professor”–still will not be an “official” rank. However, the bottom three positions (anything lower than Kyouju, or Full Professor) will no longer have tenure. The Ministry of Education thus keeps chipping away at secure employment in Japanese teritary education.
HOKKAIDO NIPPON HAM FIGHTERS WIN!!!
Just in case any of you are hiding under any rocks…
Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters poised for national victory tonight
Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters are poised to take the national championship tonight. This is a quick essay on what this season’s outstanding performance in baseball has meant to Hokkaido.
2-Channel’s Nishimura speaking at Waseda Nov 4 ２ちゃんねる管理者「ひろゆき」講演
Nishimura Hiroyuki, the administrator and owner of internet BBS 2-Channel, currently on the lam after not paying several court losses, will actually be making a public appearance on Saturday November 4 at Waseda University, Tokyo. Details send me by a friend available here if you want to attend.
DEBITO.ORG NEWSLETTER OCT 24 2006
1) ERIC JOHNSTON ON MCGOWAN LAWSUIT APPEAL VICTORY
2) AERA/MAINICHI ON 2-CHANNEL’S NISHIMURA
3) SHUUKAN PUREIBOI/JAPAN TIMES ON GAIJINIZING THE PUBLIC:
POLICE CHECKPOINTS NOW HAPPENING TO JAPANESE
4) WORLD TOUR II: TOKYO, CANADA, AND SEATTLE,
AND THE MURRAY WOOD CHILD ABDUCTION CASE DOCUMENTARY
Reporter Eric Johnston on McGowan victorious appeal
From: japantimes Osaka Subject: Re: Breaking News: McGowan wins High Court appeal Date: October 19, 2006 12:29:18 PM JST To: debito@debito.org Debito, If you wish, you’re free to post this on your site: By ERIC JOHNSTON Special to Debito.org On Oct. 18th, the Steve McGowan case ended with a partial victory, when the Osaka High …
McGowan Case: Steve wins case on appeal at Osaka High Court
OSAKA — The Osaka High Court ordered an Osaka optical shop owner to pay 350,000 yen in damages to an African-American living in Kyoto Prefecture for denying him entry to the shop in 2004, altering a lower court ruling in January which rejected the plaintiff’s damages claim. Presiding Judge Sota Tanaka recognized the owner told Steve McGowan, 42, a designer living in the town of Seika, to go away when he was in front of the shop, and acknowledged damages for McGowan’s emotional pain, saying the entry denial “is a one-sided and outrageous act beyond common sense.”
MHLW site on international marriage and divorce for 2005
While doing other research, here’s a site on international marriage and divorce in Japan for 2005, courtesy of the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare:
MOJ 2005 statistics on foreign population: May 2006
Most recent stats on foreign population in Japan, acccording to the Ministry of Justice: http://www.moj.go.jp/PRESS/060530-1/060530-1.html These depict movements for 2005. Not able to interpret the figures at the moment–writing from British Columbia, Canada, and found this page while doing some research on Permanent Residents for a talk. Debito in Kamloops, CA.
Mainichi Oct 10 06: BBS 2-Channel’s Nishimura still on the lam
2-Channel’s Defendant Nishimura: “I’ve been sued in the north as far as Hokkaido and the south as far as Okinawa. It’s simply not possible to attend every court case where I’ve been named as a defendant. I figure if I can defend myself in every case, it’s exactly the same as not turning up in my defense,” he tells the weekly indirectly. Nishimura also strongly denies suggestions that he’s gone bankrupt, which many have speculated may be the main reason nobody seems able to find him
now.
J Times Oct 8 06: Police “instant checkpoints” on rise
This article to me represents a continuing trend of “gaijinizing” the general population. “Police Random street searches and seizures” (which are illegal) are now being forced on Japanese. This has been up to now generally the domain of the “gaijin” targeting of “anti-terrorism and disease control” racial profiling running rampant around Japan these past years. Japan (always in my view a dormant benign police state, given the police’s far-reaching powers of search, detention, interrogation, and prosecution enabled by the law), is once again stretching their police’s powers, which we ignore at our peril.
Abe Cabinet: MOE Minister possible reverse course on J Primary School English education?
(Submitted to the Life in Japan yahoogroups list, which kicked off some debate. Subscribe to LIJ via http://groups.yahoo.com/group/life_in_japan/) Hi LIJ. Thought I’d throw another bale of info onto the bonfire of debate on English education in Japan: Wide Show Toku Da Ne this morning had a long segment (about 15 minutes, between 8:25 and 8:40 …
DEBITO.ORG NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 3, 2006
1) J TIMES: DEVELOPMENTS IN FOREIGNER TRACKING AND QUALIFICATION
2) SPORT: BASEBALL “ANTI-GAIJIN” COMMENTS RE FOREIGN COACHES
3) J TIMES: ENFORCED “KIMIGAYO” PATRIOTISM RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL
4) ROGUES’ GALLERY: “JAPANESE ONLY” SIGN IN OHTA-SHI, GUNMA PREF.
5) ADDITIONS TO UNIV BLACKLIST: RITSUMEIKAN, KYOTO SANGYO, KITAKYUSHU
6) ADDITIONS TO UNIV GREENLIST: UNIVERSITY OF AIZU
7) J TIMES ON LINGUAPAX ASIA CONFERENCE THIS WEEKEND AT TOKYO UNIV
Temple U Prof: “Japan’s Criminal Libel Laws vital for police intervention and arrest” (???)
A Temple University professor is publishing a paper in the University of Colorado Law Review asserting that, quote, “In Japan, however, criminal libel laws have become vital tools in policing injurious speech on the Internet. Defamatory posts lead to police intervention and even arrest.” Not according the 2-Channel Lawsuit, which I think proves Dr Mehra’s assertions quite inaccurate.
Sport again: HS Coach refuses to meet Lotte foreign coach due to “language barrier”
“He won’t comprehend our words or feelings.” (「言葉も気持ちも通じない」)
–Yaeyama Shoukou High School coach Ishimine Yoshimori, regarding Lotte baseball coach Bobby Valentine, after Valentine’s high school draft pick coup disrupted the process of letting star player Ohmine Yuuta go to his preferred team, the Softbank Hawks. On these grounds, Coach Ishimine refused to meet Valentine September 26, on the grounds of his foreignness, thus citing a language barrier as an excuse. Courtesy Sports Houchi (September 27, 2006)
Racist remarks against foreign baseball coach result in suspension, fine
However, that was vastly overshadowed by the actions of Fighters starter Satoru Kanemura, who threw a major hissy fit due to being pulled by manager Trey Hillman in the fifth inning needing just one out to become the first Nippon Ham hurler to rack up five straight ten win seasons since Yukihiro Nishimura. After the game, he told the press that. yanking him was “absolutely unforgivable” and then took a racial shot at Hillman, grumbling that, “because he’s a foreigner, he doesn’t care about players’ individual goals.” He then challeneged reporters to print his remarks. “I don’t even want to look at him,” Kanemura said of Hillman. In addition, he accused the former Rangers farm director of being more indulgent with Iranian-Japanese righthander Yu Darvish than him. In the context of this little explosion, that also has a racial tinge to it. Kanemura also beefed that he didn’t think Hillman trusted him.
J Times Sept 23 06: MOJ panel making more concrete immig proposals
A Justice Ministry panel discussing long-term policies for accepting overseas workers said Friday the government should seek out those with special skills and expertise to cope with the shrinking labor force in Japan….
The proposal by the panel headed by Kono also claimed that reducing the number of illegal foreign residents will help the country regain its reputation as “the safest country in the world,” ultimately creating an environment where legal foreign workers can become a part of society.
As suggested in the panel’s interim report released in May, the panel said foreigners who want to work in Japan, including those of Japanese descent, must have a certain degree of proficiency in the Japanese language to be granted legal status.
Yomiuri Sept 23 06: Govt to have employers report info on foreign employees
By making it obligatory for companies to report foreign workers’ details, the government hopes to keep track of people on an individual basis, and to enhance measures for clamping down on those working illegally. In addition, it is hoped the measures will encourage foreign workers to take out social insurance, and allow central and local governments to offer better support to workers who have to change jobs frequently due to unstable contracts.
The government’s three-year deregulation program, finalized in March, discusses making it mandatory for firms to submit reports on their foreign employees and whether reports should include detailed information such as workers’ names and residence status. The policy is likely to prove controversial in light of the protection of foreign workers’ privacy and the impact of the new system on the economy.
J Times Sept 23 2006: Tokyo Court rules against “forced patriotism” in schools
COMMENT: A blow against the tendency (especially in Tokyo, as you can see in Ishihara’s comments below) towards (re-)enforced patriotism in schools. Tokyo District Court, which is usually quite conservative, actually ruled against the enforced (with noncompliers punished) standing and singing the Japanese national anthem etc., calling it “a violation of the freedom of thought …