Japan Institute for National Fundamentals

　　　　　On December 3, the Japan Institute for National Fundamentals made an urgent policy proposal calling on the National Diet, or parliament, to add a resolution stopping a fast increase in permanent foreign residents in Japan to a bill for revising the Immigration Control Act to expand the acceptance of foreign workers. In the proposal, JINF made the following points:
　　　　　“In 1998, the Ministry of Justice revised its interpretation of Article 22 of the Immigration Control Act to shorten the minimum stay from 20 years to 10 years for the ordinary permanent foreign resident status. As a result, the number of ordinary permanent foreign residents in Japan, effective immigrants from abroad, increased from 90,000 to 750,000 including 250,000 Chinese.
　　　　　The National Diet, while considering an Immigration Control Act revision bill at present, has not taken up the problem of the rapid increase in permanent foreign residents that would exert great influence on Japan’s national security and interests. In considering the Immigration Control Act revision bill, the House of Councilors should take up the danger of the rapid increase in the number of permanent foreign residents and adopt a supplementary resolution for the stricter application of the act’s Article 22 to suppress any rapid rise in the number of permanent foreign residents.”
　　　　　The Justice Committee of the House of Councilors, which considered the Immigration Control Act revision bill, adopted the supplementary resolution on December 8, when the bill was enacted. The resolution urges the government to give special consideration to 10 items in implementing the act. The 10th item did what the JINF proposed, requiring the government to “pay attention to the recently growing number of foreigners staying in Japan and more strictly screen foreigners’ applications for the permanent resident status in reference to the requirements for the status in Paragraph 2 of Article 22 of the Immigration Control Act.” I would like to pay my respect for the efforts of lawmakers to understand the seriousness of the problem and adopt the resolution.

De facto immigrants are increasing rapidly in Japan
　　　　　Since calling for toughening the permanent foreign resident status qualification requirements in its revised policy proposal on local voting rights for foreigners in 2010, JINF has warned that the number of permanent foreign residents or effective immigrants in Japan has been increasing rapidly since a minimum stay in Japan as a requirement for the ordinary permanent foreign resident status was suddenly shortened to 10 years from 20 years under the Hashimoto government in February 1998.
　　　　　The Ministry of Justice shortened the minimum stay without debate at the ruling party or the Diet. No mass media reported this change, which might have been designed to keep up with the trend of deregulation led by some business leaders. The change represented a grave policy revision to effectively undercut the 1992 basic immigration control plan refusing to accept unskilled foreign laborers.

Lengthen the minimum stay requirement back to 20 years
　　　　　Eight years after the original JINF proposal on permanent foreign residents, the Diet at last adopted the resolution expressing concerns about the rapidly growing number of permanent residents in Japan. This is a significant step. Reportedly, the recognition of the danger of the rapid rise in the number of permanent residents has spread within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party through discussion on the resolution.
　　　　　Next April, the Immigration Bureau of the Ministry of Justice will be upgraded to an Immigration and Foreign Residents Agency. I would like to strongly request the agency to fully consider the viewpoint of protecting and enhancing Japan’s national interests, including security, and its traditions and cultures in conducting comprehensive control on foreigners. I also hope that Japan’s naturalization policy under the jurisdiction of the Civil Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Justice would be revisited from the same viewpoint.
　　　　　The government should first urgently revise the substantial relaxation of the requirements for the ordinary permanent foreign resident status in 1998 to lengthen the minimum stay back to 20 years. We would like to promote vivid debate to this end.

Tsutomu Nishioka is a senior fellow and a Planning Committee member at the Japan Institute for National Fundamentals and Visiting Professor at Reitaku University. He covers South and North Koreas.