The Justice Ministry announced two weeks ago that a record 501 foreigners were granted residence permits on humanitarian grounds in Japan in 2009. This is a step in the right direction from the 1990s, when the number of permits could often be counted on one hand. However, the number granted official refugee status in Japan was only 30, down by half from 2008. With a total of 1,388 people seeking refugee status in Japan in 2009, the number of permits needs to be increased and the application process streamlined.
The government has gradually improved the application procedures, but the results still remain limited. Most of the work is still handled by local volunteer nongovernment organizations (NGOs) such as the Japan Association for Refugees. The largest problem is finding means of subsistence because waiting applicants do not have permission to work. While they wait, sometimes for years, access to medical care, education and social services can be a struggle, not to mention the difficulties of adapting to Japanese culture.
Many applicants arrive here directly from refugee camps or unimaginably difficult situations. Without help from NGOs and the U.N. representatives here, they could not even begin to consider remaining in Japan, or anywhere else.