Recently I visited a friend who lives in an upscale apartment building, a part of one of Tokyo's massive redevelopment projects. When I saw there was a taxi parked in one of the spaces assigned to her floor, I asked if a neighbor were now commuting by taxi instead of company car. My assumption was incorrect. Her neighbor is a taxi driver.

Previously the area had many small businesses and timeworn independent houses. A few of the people held onto their land, refusing to sell. Progress, however, is irreversible, and in time the holdout tenants were made to see the futility of their resistance, but only after they were offered an exceptionally strong incentive: apartments in the new complex at very acceptable terms. Her neighbor is not unique. She has heard that there are also a small vegetable-store owner and a "soroban" (abacus) teacher happily in residence.

A lot of people write about problems in finding an apartment under any conditions. They are foreigners. Perhaps they make preliminary queries by phone in perfect Japanese. When they arrive at the office, one look and suddenly the apartment is no longer available. They may be Koreans, Arabs, other Asians, Americans, black, white; it doesn't matter when the owner or agent has that mind set. They aren't Japanese.

Today we have a letter from a gentleman who by background and ability has outstanding attributes that would qualify him to teach English. In fact, he is overqualified. He has a master's degree in public administration from his country and one in urban planning from the United States. He is well qualified in computer science, has scored 100 percent in English capability tests and in addition to his native language, also speaks Afghanistani and Japanese. He has worked at a university in the U.S. as an adviser to foreign students and has taught a course in urban and environmental issues at university level.

He is a Pakistani, and he can't get a job as an English teacher in Japan. While telephone conversations go well, personal interviews end abruptly. Employers will not even look at his resume. His not being a native speaker is usually the excuse, but he has been told that since students expect their English teachers to be Western, and preferably white Americans, Canadians or British, others will not be considered. Qualifications are not as important as appearance.

He asks for advice about where he can go for help or what he can do about this situation, which he feels is a violation of his human rights and an example of discrimination on the basis of color and/or nationality.

He can't hope for much. I have not yet heard of a court decision that would lead to legislation in support of nondiscrimination in such cases. There probably isn't a foreigner in Japan who has not suffered from discrimination, although he/she may not be aware of it if there is not an accompanying knowledge of Japanese etiquette. During the Occupation, waitresses in traditional restaurants were praised lavishly for their polite service. However, they were actually insulting their foreign guests by walking into the room instead of kneeling as they slid open the door, standing to enter, and then kneeling again to slide it shut. I was told it was their response to insensitive foreigners who knew they should take off their shoes when entering, but then carried them into the tatami room and placed them carefully in the "tokanoma," the small space reserved for an artistic arrangement of flowers and scroll. Cultural misunderstandings! They are everywhere.

I wish I had some good advice or even encouragement for this gentleman. He needs more than sympathy, which is all I can offer. It would be hard to prove in court that the apartment hadn't been rented, that the job was no longer available, when perhaps even his own lawyer might better understand the viewpoint of the rental agent or the language school. It is a difficult situation made worse by the tacit support of many Japanese. There may, however, be someone out there with a position open for a man with his qualifications; please write if you do. You never know. I am assuming he has a visa that allows him to work. A person cannot expect legal protection if he himself does not follow the regulations.