A Japanese View on the Diaoyu / Senkaku Islands Dispute

Does Japan have territorial rights over the Diaoyu / Senaku Islands? Here's what two Japanese guys think.




Or, if you read Japanese, check out the links below:

釣魚台／尖閣をめぐる日本の国ぐるみの排外主義に抗議します・前編（歴史編）
釣魚台／尖閣をめぐる日本の国ぐるみの排外主義に抗議します・後編（現状編）

Oh, and No to Hate Speech Action has published a statement in English.
Handout of Press Conference

Pro-Immigrant Organization to Hold a Festival near the Shinagawa Immigration

This is such a short notice, but SYI, a pro-immigrant organization based in Tokyo, will hold a festival at Shinagawa Kita Futo Koen (品川北ふ頭公園), which is located near the infamous detention center, starting 6 p.m. on Monday, August 23. They will protest against the inhumane treatment of the detainees and Japan's unjust immigration policies in general, while singing, dancing, and drinking, in addition to trying to send a message of solidarity to the detainees by creating letters with candles. 

To get there, you can take a bus (品99) at the East Exit terminal of the Shinagawa Station.

World Refugee Day March to be Held in Tokyo, June 20

I'm in the United States for some family emergency, where I've met some amazing people who choose to offer help to a complete stranger. They will be examples I aspire to be in the rest of my life.

Here I'm pretty much tied up with solving family problems and haven't got much time to keep up with the current events, but I did learn about the death of a young boy at the Mexican border, which I guess implies that at least the news is given enough coverage by the mainstream media to inform the public.

Which has not been the case with the death of a Ghanaian in the hands of the immigration officers at Narita Airport, Japan, in March of this year. There were several tiny articles, and that's it. His Japanese wife was offered neither an apology nor a proper explanation from the authorities; in April, some Ghanaians and others, with APFS, marched in protest from Roppongi to Hibiya, shouting "We want justice," which they are yet to receive. Even his body has not been returned to her. A relatively minor journal reports this week that she will file an official complaint later in the month.

So what does this all mean? We have borders and Guantanamoes in Japan, and yet we don't even talk about it. The first step of a solution to a problem is an acknowledgement. We need to remember his death and insist on justice in public.

Which you can do by joining a demonstration to be held by SYI in Tokyo on June 20, the World Refugee Day. The Ghanaian's death and what has (not) happened since then are representative of what goes on inside detention centers and of this country's immigration policies in general. We need to change them if the word justice means anything at all. For the event's details, visit SYI's blog . I'm not sure I will make it as I have family issues, but if I do, see you then.

p.s.
APFS and SYI are different organizations. Neither SYI nor I represent the Ghanaian's wife.

Economist Article

Last week The Economist published an article on the death of a Ghanaian at Narita in March. According to the article, not only has his wife yet to receive information regarding his death from the authority, but she lost her job because her name was found on the Internet. I myself mentioned her name in one of my earlier posts although I erased it several weeks ago. I don't know if her employer saw my blog, but I apologize for my carelessness. What was done to her is unjust and unlawful, but I should have known better about this society.

The Ghanaian's Wife Holds a Press Conference

Regarding the death of Abubakar Awudu Suraj in the hands of the Japanese immigration officers, his Japanese wife along with her lawyer and a representative from APFS held a press conference yesterday at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan. You can read a Japan Times article by Minoru Matsutani here.

Earlier, I wrote a letter to the Editor at Japan Times, which can be found here.

APFS on its blog encourages the readers to send a message of protest to the Ministry of Justice.

The Ghana Association to Hold a Demonstration in Tokyo on April 12

It has been announced that the Ghana Association, in conjunction with Asian People's Friendship Society (APFS), will organize a demonstration in protest regarding the death of ABUBAKAR AWUDU SURAJ, a Ghanaian who had lived in Japan since 1988. According to this site, it will start at Mikawadai Koen, a three-minute walk from the Roppongi Station, at 10:30 in the morning on April 12; his wife will be present.



大きな地図で見る

Protest against the Immigration Bureau of Japan and the Ministry of Justice

I participated in a protest, organized by Pinkydragon, in front of a detention facility in Shinagawa, Tokyo, and later the Ministry of Justice yesterday. As Minoru Matsutani of The Japan Times reports, various nationals were present, calling against prolonged detention, poor health conditions inside (one doctor for as many as 700 detainees), and suppression of the hunger strike participants at the West Japan Immigration Control Center, among other things. We also demanded thorough investigation on the cause of the death of a Ghanaian aboard flight MS965 at Narita during forced deportation on March 22. I heard there was a Ghanaian present at the protest in Shinagawa, although I missed a chance to talk with him as I arrived late.

I'd like to thank everyone who posted comments about the Ghanaian death. I translated them into Japanese here.