Here's JBC's fourth annual roundup of the top 10 human rights events that affected Japan's non-Japanese (NJ) residents last year. Ranked in ascending order of impact:
This might rank higher with the benefit of hindsight, but right now it's unclear how things will settle after the succession. Still, potential regime change in Asia's most wild-card country might improve things for NJ in Japan. The biggest counterargument to granting NJ more rights has been, "If resident Chinese or North Koreans get any power over Japanese, Japan will be lost."
Kim's demise may not silence the alarmists (China will still be seen as a threat, especially now; more below), but even a tamping down of the standard foaming-at-the-mouth invective was impossible while "Dear Leader" was still around.