Since 1990, when Japan started allowing factories to easily import foreign labor, the number of registered non-Japanese (NJ) residents has nearly doubled to more than 2 million.
Many migrant workers have become immigrants: staying on, marrying, and having children.
Some have faced illegal work conditions, according to the domestic press: incarceration, physical and emotional duress, even child labor and virtual slavery. Policymakers at the highest levels are currently debating solutions.