Establishing an Agency on Foreigners Issue

Shigeru Ishiba administration established a new organization which deal with issues related to foreigners in Japan in the Cabinet Secretariat on July 15th. The organization oversees immigration, application of social insurance for foreigners or controlling real property trade by foreigners. It is likely that the administration had to manage this issue, because treatment of foreigners in Japan emerged as one of the main issues in the Upper House election. 

In the election campaign, a new populist party, Sanseito, upholds policies for stricter regulation against foreigners in Japan, arguing that the government has excessively accepted foreign workers, they do not appropriately pay for social insurance, they commit crimes, or they are buying real properties located in places with security importance. Major parties, namely the Liberal Democratic Party, are threatened by Sanseito with significant surge in approval rate in polls.

 

The new organization was named “Office for Promotion of Well-ordered Co-existence Society with Foreigners.” Headed by an Assistant Chief Cabinet Secretary, Wataru Sakata, and 78 staffs from Immigration Services Agency, Ministry of Finance or Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. “I hope you to check and revise the system for foreigners in Japan beyond the border of ministries,” said Ishiba to the staffs in the first meeting.

 

Japan has been relying on the foreigners to cover labor shortage in Japan, repairing system for status of foreign workers. It is undeniable that commerce in Japan is increasingly relying on foreign travelers. On the other hand, increasing foreigners in Japanese society cause certain xenophobic concern among Japanese citizens. The Democratic Party for the People includes stricter regulation for foreigners’ trade of real property in its campaign platforms.

 

It is likely that Ishiba hoped to show his willingness to deal with the issue of foreigners for the Upper House election. There is a skepticism on foreigners’ application to health insurance among voters. Chief Cabinet Secretary, Yoshimasa Hayashi, raised some examples of problem, including car accidents who converted their drivers’ license from their home country to Japan or a result of survey which showed lower rate of foreigners who paid premium of social insurance than the Japanese citizens.

 

Although Hayashi dismissed a criticism on benefiting from the measure in the last week of election campaign, the leader of Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Yoshihiko Noda, regarded the move as affected by “The Japanese First” slogan of Sanseito. LDP’s coalition partner, Komeito, released additional campaign platform for building “well-ordered co-existence society.”

 

It is reported that some information about foreigners in Japan is wrong. Sanseito argues that crimes of foreigners are increasing, the number of their crimes in 2023 was declined by two-thirds of those in 2005. Although the government of Japan has been welcoming foreign workers and travelers to boost its economy, it made the Japanese people feel uneasy, causing growing support for xenophobic speeches in the election.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Struggle over a Hearing on Accounting Manager

Without a simple majority in the House of Representatives, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) struggles against the opposition parties on inviting former accounting manager of Abe faction to the Committee on Budget. While the oppositions hope to keep the issue alive until the Upper House election this summer, the LDP wants to terminate the prolonged discussion over the slush fund scandal. The committee still cannot determine the date to begin discussion on FY 2025 budget.   The public prosecutors indicted former accounting manager of Abe faction, Jun-ichiro Matsumoto, with charge of wrong reporting about kickback fund of the faction. Tokyo District Court  sentenced  Matsumoto last September three years of imprisonment with suspension of five years. Matsumoto requested the LDP not to invite him to the Diet, because he had already told about the scandal in the court and had no further information to reveal.   The opposition parties have been demanding a hearing ...
Read more

Dilemma between Alliance and Constitution

  In the new year ministerial online meeting, Japan and United States resolved to work together to deal with various challenges by China. In the Joint Statement of the Security Consultative Committee, or “2+2,” the ministers of both government, US Secretaries of State and Defense and Japanese Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense, expressed their concerns on Beijing’s efforts, which were recognized as undermining the rule-based order in Indo-Pacific region and the world. On possible countermeasures, however, there still is a possibility of constitutional dispute in Japan over the principle of exclusively defensive security policy. The ministers referred to their concern about China’s activities in the East and the West China Sea. They reaffirmed to apply Article V of US-Japan Treaty of mutual Cooperation and Security to the Senkaku Islands, and strongly objected to China’s unlawful maritime claims, militarization and coercive activities in the South China Sea. They did not forge...
Read more

Defense Minister Admits Problem of Civilian Control

Concerning a series of scandals coming out from the Ministry of Defense (MOD), both Houses of the Diet held a recess discussion on the issue on July 30. To the questions of the opposition parties on why the Minister of Defense, Minoru Kihara, did not know about the scandal for months, Kihara   admitted   the problem was about civilian control. Kihara refused his stepping down as the minister, abiding by a request from the Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, to take leadership for rebuilding up the ministry. The discussion was focused on fraudulent record of allowance for divers in Maritime Self-defense Force (MSDF). Although the criminal investigation unit of MSDF arrested four members over the fraudulence last November, Kihara insisted that he did not know about it until it was disclosed in July 12. An officer of MOD explained that the staffs did not report it to the minister, because the incident would not affect other organizations outside the Self-defense Force.   The oppo...
Read more