A Chinese youth who has fought a deportation order even after his family was expelled from Japan was enrolled Saturday at a university here.
But the 18-year-old Zhou Pengyu said he will soon depart for China and then try to re-enter Japan by acquiring a student visa.
"I am grateful to everybody who has supported me so far. I will come back to Japan to study so that I can engage in work that will contribute to both Japan and China," Zhou said after he was formally enrolled at the Osaka University of Economics and Law in Yao, Osaka Prefecture.
Zhou arrived in Japan eight years ago with his mother, who falsely claimed to be a daughter of a "war orphan," or Japanese separated from their parents and left behind in China in the chaos at the end of World War II.
After learning that Zhou's mother is not a relative of war-displaced Japanese, the Osaka Regional Immigration Bureau issued a deportation order for the family in 2000.
The family took the case to court, but the order was finalized when the Supreme Court turned down their appeal to have the decision reversed. Zhou's parents and his Japanese-born younger sister were deported to China in 2002.
However, Zhou continued to stay in Japan alone by continually having his provisional release from detention renewed.
He attended a local high school while supporting himself with revenue from part-time jobs as well as assistance from school officials, citizens' groups and people in the local community. In December, he successfully passed an entrance exam for the university.
Zhou's supporters pointed out he has managed to enter a university under tough circumstances, and expressed hope for humanitarian consideration by immigration authorities on his bid for re-entry.
