Ethnic issues in Japan This Wikipedia article provides an overview of the main ethnic groups in Japan, including foreigners and 'Japanese minorities' (groups with Japanese identity such as Ainu people and Zainichi Koreans )Koreans in Japan). It also looks at the history of attitudes to foreigners and post-war policy on foreign residents, plus discussions of discrimination against foreigners and the level of crime by foreigners. Includes data from 2012 for numbers of foreign residents of different nationalities in Japan.
Demographics of Japan Another Wikipedia article that includes information on both minority groups of Japanese nationality and foreign residents as well as issues such as the finger printing of foreigners, treatment of undocumented ('illegal') migrants, and (in the section on language) nationality and foreigners taking Japanese citizenship.
Japan Overview A short discussion of Japan and its minority groups, including the size of minority populations, their history from the Meiji period, issues of governance and human rights in relation to minorities, and the current state of minorities and indigenous groups. Minority Rights Group, June 2008.
Number of foreign residents in Japan hit record 2.56 million at end of 2017 Japan Times, Mar 28, 2018. See also Number of foreign residents in Japan hits new high NHK World, 20 Mar 2018.
平成２９年末現在における在留外国人数について（確定値）Latest data - for 2017 - on foreign residents in Japan (by nationality, visa type, and place of residence in Japan, etc). And a pdf file here with more information in charts and graphs that shows 10 year trends 2008-2017. Ministry of Justice.
Immigration to Japan This article summarises recent trends in numbers of both foreign workers (foreigners on work and similar visas) and foreign residents (which includes people with permanent residence and family visas). It has interactive charts showing immigration back to 1950 and you can choose to see immigrantion buy different nationalities and also different types of visas including technician internship trainees and students.
Foreigners Are Shoring Up Japan’s Shrinking Population There are a record 2.3 million foreigners living in Japan There are now 2.3 million foreigners resident in Japan. And their numbers grew by almost 150,000 last year, halving the decline in number of people living in the nation. Bloomberg, 10 July, 2017.
Japan’s Foreign Population Climbs to All-Time High Total Reaches 2.23 Million in 2015 The population of non-Japanese living in Japan grew to a new high of over 2.23 million in 2015, boosted by a 15% increase in both foreign students and participants in a government technical trainee program. Nippon.com, 23 Mar 2016.
第５次出入国管理基本計画（本文) / Basic Plan for Immigration Control (5th Edition) in Japanese and English. This report has useful data on foreign residents, 'illegal'/undocumented foreigners, asylum seekers and refugees and technical interns, as well as explanation of the Japanese Government's polices in these areas. Ministry of Justice, Sep, 2015.
Migrant Integration Policy Index for Japan 2014 includes information on labour market mobility, family reunion, education, health, political participation, permanent residence, access to nationality, and anti-discrimination - scroll to the Policies-Summary section and click on the icons there.
Japan: Migrants in Agriculture, IT, Health An overview of the situation. Migration News, April 2012, Volume 19, Number 2
The Ainu People Basic information about the beliefs, origins, history and numbers of the Ainu people. The Ainu Museum.
Recognition at last for Japan's Ainu Japan's parliament is to adopt a resolution that, for the first time, formally recognises the Ainu as "an indigenous people with a distinct language, religion and culture". BBC News, 2008/06/06. >>> More on Ainu people >>>
The Burakumin, Japan's Invisible Outcasts - Brief Article A short overview by Richard Werly from 2001 of the history, current situation, and discrimination against Burakumin. BNET. >>> More on Burakumin >>>
Inevitably, newcomers play growing role This article looks at the situation and role played by several foreign communities in Japan, including Indians, Filipinos and people in mixed marriages. Japan Times, 1 Jan, 2008.
Labour Dynamics: Foreign permanent residents on rise, filling gaps Japan's population started declining in 2005, but in contrast, registered foreigners soared to a record high 2.01 million, a leap from 1.36 million a decade ago and accounting for 1.57 percent of the nation's total population. This article looks in particular at the situation of Chinese permanent residents - the biggest group pf people applying for permanent residency recently - and focuses on Eika Ma, a Chinese woman with permanent residency who is president of a small company in Tokyo, also works as a lawyer, and who is married to Swedish man. Japan Times, Jan. 3, 2007.
New link added 09 May 2018 Abe walks a tightrope on Japan’s foreign worker policy by Hifumi Okunuki This article looks at the views on immigration of three different sections of the Japanese population: the nationalists (who oppose immigration); the multi nationalists (who support it); and the apprehensive, the biggest group who are worried about what more immigration might bring but who are also concerned about the aging of Japanese society and labour shortages. It argues that Abe's government tries to please both the first and second groups by using foreign workers to fill labour shortages but not letting them settle in Japan, bring their families or become part of Japanese society. Japan Times, Apr 29, 2018.
New link added 09 May 2018 Japan quietly accepting foreign workers — just don’t call it immigration This article discusses Japan's shrinking workforce and need for unskilled foreign labour, and looks at the approach of the Liberal Democratic Party led government to avoid official or permanent immigration of unskilled workers and instead use the Technical Internship Training Programme to provide this labour. Japan Times, 3 Nov 2016.
New link added 09 May 2018 Will Japan be a country that welcomes all? An article that reviews a debate in the magazine Sapio about immigration policy with contributions from various perspectives. Japan Times, 24 May 2014.
'Only immigrants can save Japan' Hidenori Sakanaka, former head of the ministry's Tokyo Immigration Bureau and current executive director of the Japan Immigration Policy Institute, argues that Japan "must welcome 10 million immigrants between now and 2050." This article looks at Sakanaka's position and compares it with the views of Goro Ono, an economist who published a book titled "Accepting Foreign Workers Spoils Japan." Japan Times, 21 Oct, 2012.
Japan PM says nation should open up to migrants Japan's Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said Saturday that his country, which is battling low birth rates and an ageing population, should make itself more attractive to migrants. Japan has some of the world's strictest controls on immigration, and Hatoyama admitted that he was broaching a "sensitive issue". ABS CBN News/Agence France-Presse, Nov 15th 2009.
Opening the door to foreigners: Expert warns Japan shuns the very immigrants it needs to thrive An interview with Susumu Ishihara, 57, president of the Japan Immigrant Information Agency, who believes Japan needs immigrants if it is to stay the second biggest economy in the world, and should have proper laws and regulations in place to accept immigrants. He has recently started a new magazine called Immigrants with his own money to provide more informaton about immigration issues and foreigners living in Japan. In the interview, he says Japan already has many foreign workers and must look after them better, and talks about the situation of Brazilian Nikkeijin and immigration policies aimed at them. Japan Times, April 30, 2009.
'A battle for Japan's future' by David O'Neill. An article on the views of liberals supporters and right-wing opponents of Noriko Calderon, the 13 year old girl born in Japan whose Filipino parents have been sent back to the Philipines, and about the background to her case. Japan Times, April 14, 2009. >>> More on Filipino people in Japan and children's issues in multicultural Japan >>>
Let 10% of Japan be foreigners: Nakagawa Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers made an ambitious proposal Thursday to raise the ratio of immigrants in Japan to about 10 percent over the next 50 years. Japan Times, June 13, 2008. >>> More on immigration issues >>>
Mixed results with foreign influx: Japan is changing, but system, attitudes need to keep pace This article looks at the economic need for increased immigration in Japan, and the policy response to this to. Focusing on the example of the Indian community in Nishi Kasai, it argues that Japan has not done enough to support foreign migrants in the communities wherre they live and encourage them to stay long-term. Japan Times, Jan. 16, 2007.
Japan mulls multicultural dawn A report on how the ageing population in Japan is forcing people to reconsider attitudes to immigration. BBC News, October 5, 2004.
Fortress Japan fears immigrant surge An article that looks at the debates in Japan about solving Japan's labour shortages with large-scale immigration. BBC News, 18 May, 2005.
'Multicultural Japan' remains a pipe dream: Ideology, policies, people not ready for major influx of foreigners, says Chris Burgess This article criticizes the idea that japaan is a multicultural society, arguing that ideas about immigrants in Japan, policies on multiculturalism, and the numbers of foreigners in Japan all mean Japan is not multicultural. A longer, more academic version of this article is: 'Multicultural Japan? Discourse and the ‘Myth’ of Homogeneity'
"Japan and the immigration issue: Barry Brophy and Debito Arudou offer two views on the immigration question" This is a 2004 Japan Times article that looks at different sides to the immigration debate in Japan.
>>> More on immigration issues >>>
Treatment of Japan's International Residents: Problems and Solutions for a 21st-Century Japan By Arudou Debito. Looks at societal, legal, and economic and political barriers towards Japan's international residents (including representations of them as criminals) and makes some proposals for improving the treatment of foreign residents. Fromdebito.org, 2006.
Racial issues in Japan In 2005, a United Nations special rapporteur on racism and xenophobia expressed concerns about "deep and profound" racism in Japan and insufficient government recognition of the problem. This article gives an overview of ethnic minority groups in Japan and looks at examples of discrimination against these groups and at legal actions being taken against discrimination in Japan. Wikipedia. >>> More on discrimination >>>
Racism rapporteur repeats criticism The U.N. rapporteur on racism repeated Wednesday his strong criticism of the Japanese government's attitude toward combating the problem, saying the country needs an antidiscrimination law. Japan Times, May 18, 2006.
Human chain draws attention to plight of detained foreigners Hundreds of people formed a human chain in front of the Justice Ministry on Wednesday, seeking to draw attention to the plight of more than 1,000 foreigners held at detention centers across the country in connection with immigration procedures. Human rights lawyers and campaigners in Japan have protested over what they describe as undue, lengthy detention periods faced by these foreigners and called on the Justice Ministry to create a more open and multicultural society, with particular regard to the interests of asylum-seekers. Japan Times, Oct. 14, 2004. >>> More on immigration issues and refugee issues >>>
U.N. rights rapporteur says end foreign trainee program ‘slavery’ Jorge Bustamante, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights of migrants urged the government Wednesday to terminate its industrial trainee and technical intern program for workers from overseas, saying it may amount to “slavery” in some cases, fueling demand for exploitative cheap labor in possible violation of human rights....“Racism and discrimination based on nationality are still too common in Japan, including in the workplace, in schools, in health care establishments and housing,” he said. Japan Times, April 1, 2010.
Center for Multicultural Information and Assistance (in English)/多文化共生せセンター （ 日本語）"We are a group which supports foreigners living in Japan. Founded shortly after the Great Hanshin Earthquake, we have been offering help and advice to the foreign community mainly around Osaka....our activities include: telephone counseling, medical assistance, support to the foreign media, support for migrant children as well as seminars and fieldwork."
United for a Multicultural Japan An organization working to promote the welfare and legal rights of non-Japanese with Japanese spouses, and other long-term or permanent residents of Japan.
An NGO reaches out to bullied foreign kids Non-Japanese kids and their parents who are also harassed can have a particularly hard time finding either sympathy or practical advice in their native language.The Gunma Prefecture-based nongovernmental organization Multilingual Education Research Institute is reaching out to non-Japanese parents and students throughout Japan, as well as to concerned Japanese who want to stop the bullying of foreign children. The article includes some general inofmration about foreing children in Japanese education. Japan Times, Nov. 28, 2008. See the 's website and Ijime Zero campaign here.
>>> More on NGOs working for a multicultural Japan >>>
Wide disparities found in local support for foreign residents Large gaps exist in how well local governments provide useful information and linguistic and other assistance to non-Japanese residents, according to a recent study by a nongovernmental organization. The study also considered whether foreign residents' children can get a proper education and whether non-Japanese are allowed to work in public professions like police officer and fire fighter. Japan Times, Feb. 15, 2007.
City strives to school foreign youth: Toyota, Brazilians offer their own types of user-friendly education Toyota, home of the nation's top automaker, Toyota Motor Corp., had one of the largest concentrations of Brazilians, totaling 4,972 as of the end of 1998. Many came to the city in the early 1990s to work for the carmaker, the firm's affiliates and its parts suppliers. Japan Times, May 9, 2000.
Newly-elected Tsukuba City Assemblyman Jon Heese on the hows and whys of getting elected in Japan An essay by Jon Heese, newly-elected naturalized Tsukuba City Assemblyperson, who encourages others to join him as elected local officials in Japan. He shows in this essay how he did it (he even looks a lot like Bill Clinton), with an important point: As long as you do your homework and figure out how your local system works, it should be possible for any number of people with international backgrounds....to get in office and start making a difference. Debito.org, Feb 2, 2009.
Country kids need language support: Growing educational diversity not limited to urban areas This article focuses on Yamagata Prefecture which was the first prefecture to encourage international marriages and where 1 in 17 of all marriages are international. It looks at the need for better Japanese language support for 'newcomer' children - children born outside of Japan whose parents bring them to Japan - especially in the Japanese countryside. Japan Times, March 14, 2006.
The Education of Foreign Children in Japan by Yukari Himeno. The aim of this paper is to describe how Japan’s education system treats children from other countries, especially in regard to junior high schools and the high school entrance examinations. I use statistical data from documents of the Japanese government, published material explaining the state of “newcomer children,” and interviews with teachers of junior high schools and high schools in Kanagawa prefecture. David Ewick's homepage, Chuo University Faculty of Policy Studies, 2004.
Hundreds of Koreans, foreign residents rally to demand vote Nearly 600 residents of Korean descent and some of other foreign nationalities gathered Wednesday in Tokyo to demand that the government grant permanent foreign residents the right to vote in elections for local government heads and assembly members. Japan Times, April 18, 2008.
"Multinationalism remains far from acceptance in Japan": This is a 2009 Japan Times article that looks at questions of dual nationality in Japan.
Multicultural Japan? Discourse and the ‘Myth’ of Homogeneity by Chris Burgess. This is a longer version of Burgess's Japan Times article above. He critically reviews academic work since the 1980s that claims Japan is a multicultural society. And looking at discourses about multiculturalism in Japan, policies on multiculturalism, and the numbers of foreign immigrants in Japan, he argues that Japan is not a multicultural society. Japan Focus, 24 March, 2007.