Immigration Detainee Rights Manual

Transcription

1 Immigration Detainee Rights Manual Detainee Rights Manual preparation committee Immigration Research Task Force The internationalization of the world economy brings with it greater development and ease in worldwide transportation. From around the world and for various reasons, the number of friends coming to Japan has increased. These people wished to escape persecution in their homelands, and perhaps wishing for a better life than what they had, have come to Japan. We citizens hope to continue the friendships we have made with the foreigners we have met in Japan. This manual was written with the assumption that you are currently being detained in Japan according to the Immigration Office regulations. Here, based on immigration control and refugee recognition law (hereinafter immigration law, you will be detained until you are sent back to your homeland. However, although you are being detained in this place, you are not a criminal. The immigration detention center is different from a prison. You may be wondering, Why am I being detained here if I am not a criminal, but it is the law in Japan. According to Japanese law, without your being a bother to anyone, even if you are only working diligently, without the appropriate residency requirements as a general rule, you will be detained until you are deported. Nevertheless, even though you are being detained, you still have certain fundamental rights. In this manual, we have made an effort to teach you how to settle your rights on your own. We think this manual will give you a general understanding of Japanese immigration law. Thus, if you know your rights, you can exercise your rights, and you will be able to settle many problems that arise during your detention. You will not be able to solve every problem on your own. At those times, we, citizens and lawyers outside the detention center, can help you. If you have a problem that s too big for you to handle alone, don t give up; begin by consulting with someone outside of the detention center. If you do not know anyone to contact or you do not know what to do, we ve attached a list of support groups at the end of the manual. We hope you find this manual helpful. 1

2 Table of Contents 1. Returning to your country 2. Deportation procedures 3. Interpreter 4. Petition for residency 5. Application for refugee status 6. Provisional release 7. Dealing with treatment inside the detention center 8. How to file a complaint 9. Visitation with children 10. Labor problems like unpaid wages, workers compensation insurance, etc. 11. Injury or sickness 12. What to do if necessities, savings, etc. are left behind in your apartment 13. Re-entry into Japan after deportation 14. How to file an Appeal Appendix: Support Group List RETURNING TO YOUR COUNTRY ( When you have been detained, perhaps the procedures from this point may make you uneasy. For information about deportation procedures, please see the next section Deportation Procedure. You can generally return to your country for about 10 days while your entry status is determined. The exceptions to the above are the cases in which you wish to continue residing in Japan (see section 4 Petition for residency, you wish to apply for refugee status (see section 5 Application for refugee status, or you wish to not leave Japan for some other reason. However, depending on the situation of your plane ticket and your homeland, the time frame may change. If you do not have a passport or the necessary papers, the process may take a little longer than expected. If the procedures for reporting a child s birth or claiming citizenship have not been completed, returning to your country will take an especially long time. Unfortunately, according to immigration law and as a general rule, you will be responsible for the cost of returning to your country. If you are unable to bear the cost of returning home, please consult with the immigration office personnel, your roommate, friend, or employer. Your roommate, friend, or employer may be willing to bear much of the burden for you. If that option is not available to you, there is another way to request help with the cost of repatriation. If you wish to make an arrangement to have a friend look for a cheap return ticket, please consult with the immigration office personnel. 2 DEPORTATION PROCEDURES ( (1 People who qualify for deportation Now, you may be forced to leave Japan. This is called deportation. If you match any of the conditions on the following list, you will be deported. If you entered Japan without permission 2

3 If you remained in Japan after your visa expired (overstayed If you have a forged visa or documents or you smuggled yourself into the country If you have been doing something your visa does not give you permission to do (e.g., if you have an entertainment visa and you are working at a hostess club If you helped other people illegally enter Japan or you provided them with false documents If you have been convicted of using or selling illegal drugs (even if you were given a suspended sentence If you have been engaged in prostitution or solicitation or the procurement thereof If you have been found guilty of an violation of the Japanese penal code and sentenced to imprisonment with hard labor for more than a year (this does not apply if you received a suspended sentence for a criminal or immigration offense (2 Preliminary Investigation of violations The preliminary investigation follows set procedures to determine whether or not you can be deported. An immigration officer called the immigration examiner conducts the inquiry. The investigation has many different procedures (questioning public and private organizations, questioning witnesses, required searches, seizures, and raids. If it is necessary, the examiner can ask you many questions and take your testimony. During these procedures, be aware of the following points: If you do not understand Japanese well, you must be provided a translator (see section 3 Translator. When you do not understand the substance of a question, ask to have the question restated more precisely. If the examiner does not have a fact correct, explain the truth clearly. If the examiner is rude or raises his voice, ask him to please change his attitude. If the examiner does not listen to you, ask someone else to help change the examiner s treatment of you. If you have facts to your advantage, you must state them so that they will go on the official record. If the examiner is writing down your testimony, be sure to ask to read it. If the substance of what is on the record is not correct, ask for it to be corrected. If facts favorable to you have been omitted demand that they be written down. If, after reading the report, you find no mistakes to its substance, sign the report. If the examiner did not make any requested corrections, you are not 3

4 required to give your signature. (3 Detention If an immigration official thinks there may be a reason to deport you, the official can issue a written order for your forced detention. The place where you are detained is generally called a detention center or an immigration detention center. The period of your detainment at first will be less than 30 days. If there is some reason not to release you, your detention can be extended for only another 30 days. If you do not agree with your detention, if at all possible, quickly tell the examiner and the immigration office personnel. At the same time, request to meet with or call your family, friends, or lawyer. After you have been detained, the preliminary investigation mentioned above will be carried out. Within 60 days of your detention, the immigration office will make a decision on whether or not to deport you. If you are going to be deported, a written deportation order (mentioned below will be issued. If you are not going to be deported, you must be released immediately. Generally, once the deportation order has bee issued, the deportation procedures will begin immediately. If you want to appeal your deportation or you cannot get a return ticket, or for some other reason you cannot be immediately repatriated, you will remain in detention at the immigration center. There is no time limit for this stay. For information about your rights and living conditions during detention, please see section 7 Dealing with treatment inside the detention center. (4 Examiner s investigation If you have been detained, within 48 hours of your detention, you will be handed over to an immigration examiner who will begin the investigation of your possible immigration violations. This is basically the same kind of investigation as mentioned above. Keep the same points listed in the preliminary investigation section in mind during this investigation. When the investigation is over, if the examiner rules to deport you and you choose to obey the ruling (you do not request a special hearing for oral arguments, a written order for deportation will be issued immediately. The order is a written document requiring you to leave Japan and be repatriated to your home country. The document allows the immigration officials to take you to an airport or port, put you on a plane or boat, and force you to leave Japan. Detention to deportation can take as little as one 4

5 week. During this time, you may request a return ticket be acquired for you. If you do not agree with the judgement against you, you have 3 days from learning of the judgment to request a special trial for oral proceedings. When you make a request for oral proceedings, the immigration examiner must allow this. If the immigration examiner does not rule for deportation, you will be released immediately. (5 Oral Hearing If you are not satisfied with the immigration examiner s judgment, you may request a special trial be held to discuss your situation. At the oral hearing, one person (a family member, friend, or lawyer is permitted to accompany you. Also, you may request witnesses favorable to you to testify on your behalf. At the oral hearing, you can explain why you do not agree with the examiner s judgement, you can submit documents, and you can assert claims that support your position. Because doing all the work for the trial yourself is very difficult, you should ask someone outside the detention center like your lawyer, family, or friends to gather enough data to support your claim in preparation for the hearing. You will be asked questions during the oral hearing, and your answers will be recorded. Therefore, the same points from the preliminary hearing apply here as well. If the result of these procedures is that the examiner did not make any mistakes in his ruling, a written order for deportation will be issued. However, if you are not satisfied with the result of the oral hearing, you have three days from when you were informed of the ruling to file an objection with the Minister of Justice. In your objection, you must explain why the judgment from the oral hearing is wrong. If the result is that there was an error in the order to deport you, you will be released at once. (6 Decision by the Minister of Justice If you choose to file an objection with the Minister of Justice, the Minister will review your petition to determine the grounds for his decision. If there is no reason to reverse the judgment, a written order for deportation will be issued. If there are grounds to reverse the judgment, you will be released at once. Because the Minister of Justice s review is based solely on written documents, when you submit an objection, include documents that you submitted to immigration covering 5

6 your reasons for why you can or why you wish to remain in Japan and any other data you may not have submitted before now. Even if the Minister of Justice finds no reason to overturn the ruling against you, if there are circumstances meriting special permission to remain in Japan, you will be given permission to remain (see section 4 Petition for residency. In this case, you will be released at once, and you can continue staying in Japan. (7 Objecting to deportation Without agreeing by any means with the deportation order issued based on the Minister of Justice s ruling above, from now on, if you think you would like to come stay in Japan, you can make an appeal to have the deportation order canceled. You must make your appeal within 3 months from the day you learn about the deportation order. You can still bring an appeal after the 3 months have passed to have the order declared void, but it is very difficult to get your claim approved, so be careful. For information about bringing an appeal, see section 14 How to file an appeal. Also, you can request that immigration reconsider your case (retrial. Generally, the legal system does not allow this, but immigration has the duty to do so when faced with a petition. Therefore, you can have your case against deportation reconsidered. If you decide to follow these procedures, if at all possible discuss your decision with your family, friends, or lawyer quickly. 3 INTERPRETER ( During the deportation procedures, you will be interviewed many times. Generally, interviews will be conducted in Japanese. If you do not understand Japanese or you cannot speak Japanese, you can request an interpreter be present (tsuuyaku. Also, if one of the immigration employees understands your native language, that person will conduct the interview if it is feasible. Usually, the arrangement for the interpreter takes time, so if you do not wish to make any requests or petitions, not asking for an interpreter will smooth the process of returning you to your country. However, if you wish to apply for refugee status, provisional release, or continued residency based on your particular circumstances, or if having the interview without an interpreter makes you uneasy, please make a request for an interpreter. Also, if at the detention center your living conditions or your physical condition is bad (see section 11 Sickness or injury or if you wish to talk to the detention center 6

7 personnel but cannot make yourself understood regardless of your Japanese ability, if one of your fellow detainees can understand you, please ask that person to translate for you. If there is no one able to translate for you, please make a request for a translator. Furthermore, if you think that your translator s nature or attitude might be a problem, please make a request to change translators. 4 PETITION FOR RESIDENCY ( This is an explanation about what to do if you wish to stay in Japan when you have been detained under immigration law for deportation, the deportation proceedings have already been completed and the order for deportation has already been issued, In this case, why you wish to stay in Japan becomes problematic. For example, if you are already married to a Japanese person or you are not yet married, if you were living with a Japanese person and you decided to get married before you were detained by immigration, the probability that you receive special permission for residency during deportation procedures is high. In this respect, a foreigner who has some kind of relationship with a Japanese person and meets certain residency requirements can be approved for residency. Also, if you have gotten a divorce from a Japanese person whom you had a child with and you have custody of that child, you have a right to visit the child, and you can acquire residency requirements. Furthermore, if you and your family (husband and wife, child do not all meet the residency requirements but you have lived in Japan for many years and your child has studying in Japanese schools for a long time, your entire family can be approved for residency. Because of this, do not give up requesting special residency from immigration. Also, from a humane perspective and a treaty perspective, there are times when it can be authorized that you may not be deported to your country and you can be approved for residency requirements. For example, you were not given approval for refugee status, but for humanitarian reasons returning you to your country cannot be permitted because you will be persecuted. Furthermore, for example, if you are still receiving medical treatment for a traffic accident or work-related injury or you must receive ongoing medical care for an illness, depending on your case, you can be approved for residency requirements. Therefore, in these cases, be sure to request special residency status. In order to receive special residency status, you must request a ruling from the Minister of Justice (see the explanation at Section 2 (6. In order to do this, even if the reason for deportation itself is authorized (e.g., you do not plan to deny overstaying your 7

8 visa, you must not plead no objection during the proceedings. It is necessary to request an oral hearing and then file an objection to the hearing s decision with the Minister of Justice (Section 2 (5. If the Minister of Justice does not grant you special residency permission, please see Section 2 (7. If the order for deportation as already been issued, you can file a petition (petition for review to have the deportation order reviewed, or you can appeal to have the order quashed. 5 APPLICATION FOR REFUGEE STATUS ( (1 Refugee recognition procedures If, in your home country, because you belong to a political, religious, social or racial group that you have reason to fear will be persecuted, you can apply for refugee status in Japan. In 1981 Japan became a member of a refugee treaty. Under domestic law, the immigration law sets forth the requirements and procedures for becoming a refugee ( nanmin under the treaty mention above. If your application is approved, you will not be deported. You will be awarded the qualifications to remain in Japan. In order to certify refugee status, the person seeking refugee status must meet 4 criteria: The person must be outside his country of birth; There must be adequate reasons to fear persecution; The reason for fearing persecution comes from belonging to a political, religious, social or racial group; If the applicant returns home, the country will be unable to protect the applicant from fear of persecution. You must meet all four of the above conditions. If you do not meet even one of the conditions, you will not be granted refugee status. The Ministry of Justice Immigration Department handles the procedures for refuge application. See the figure Refugee Application Procedures for a chart of this process. (2 Application According to Japanese law, you have 60 days to file for refugee status upon arriving in Japan or when circumstances develop that would prevent you from returning to your 8

9 country. Please file your request as quickly as you can during this 60-day period. Do not wait until the last minute! If the 60 days has already passed, please explain in clear writing why you were unable to file for refugee status during the 60 days. If you have a reason, your application must be accepted. There are people who submitted their applications after the 60 days and still received refugee status. When you want to submit an application, you must file one with the refugee approval office at the immigration center. You can request a form from the immigration staff or from someone outside the detention center. After you have submitted your application, you can still make additions to it. Generally, in addition to the application, you can submit more detailed explanations in writing of why you cannot return to your country. (3 Interview An immigration examiner will investigate to see if your words match what you said on paper for why you must not return to your country. You may have an interpreter at the investigation. The time of your application to the time of the investigation can be anywhere from a few days to several weeks. Depending on the circumstances, you may have to wait a long time. If the interpreter is hostile towards your political views or your religion (for example, and you think the interpreter may be related to the government prejudiced against you, you can ask the immigration examiner to provide you with a new interpreter (see section 3, Interpreter. From September 2002 onwards, you may not have a lawyer or acquaintance in the room during your interview. After the interview, you will be informed of the results in writing. If you receive approval, you can qualify for residency. Unfortunately, if you do not receive approval, at this time, the reasons for the denial will not be very informative. Though from January 2003 onwards, the Ministry of Justice must announce definite reasons for its decision, you still may not receive a detailed explanation of why your application was refused. Example: You have applied for refugee status based on persecution of your religious group. However, (1 according to the relevant laws of your country, the country guarantees freedom of religious belief. (2 According to the documents of the appropriate agencies, the time when you would be persecuted is over. The government issues people of your religious beliefs passports in the normal manner, and you can now legally leave the your country. (3 In your testimony, there are inconsistencies in the situation 9

10 you described. Also, there is not enough evidence to connect you to the sect that has been subject to large numbers of arrests of its believers. Similarly, the threat of your persecution cannot be determined from the discrepancies in your testimony. Because the credibility of your appeal cannot be determined from this, there is not enough evidence to support your application. Your application cannot be approved under refugee status treaty Art. I:A(2 and refugee status protocol Art. I:2. (4 Filing an objection If you are notified that you will not receive refugee status, you may file an objection. Within 7 days of receipt of the notice denying recognition of refugee status, you must state your reasons for your dissatisfaction with the ruling and your reasons for filing an objection, and present them to the Minister of Justice. You need to hand over the notice of denial of refugee status along with the objection application. (5 Objection interview After filing an objection, you will have an interview with the senior refugee examiner from the objection petition department of the immigration center. It is possible to have a lawyer present during this interview. You will be notified of the result of your objection by letter. (6 Appeal If you do not receive approval of refugee status and you wish to file a complaint, you have three months to raise an appeal in order to change the ruling against you. Please consult with a lawyer about your appeal. Depending on the circumstances, an appeal can take anywhere from half a year to several years. Also, if you are worried about being deported during your refugee application process, you must go to the courthouse and request a stay from deportation. Again, be sure to consult with a lawyer about this. However, the procedures for refugee application will probably last for several months, and you will probably be detained during this time. (7 UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees AS of September 2002, there is an office of UNHCR in Japan. The UNHCR group provides support to people seeking refugee status. If you wish to receive assistance from UNHCR, after you have submitted your application to the government, contact UNHCR and register with them. Based on UNHCR s own standards and review for 10

11 refugee status, if they determine that you meet their refugee qualifications, UNHCR will give you assistance. 6 PROVISIONAL RELEASE ( During detention, you can leave the detention center if you want. This is called (kari-houmen, or provisional release. You cannot apply yourself, but your legal representative, legal guardian, your husband or wife, your immediate family (your parents, grandparents, or children, or your siblings can file an application on your behalf. In order for the application to be approved, (1 you must require outside medical treatment, (2 or you must show that you are not trying to run away. There is no limit to the number of times you may submit an application for provisional release, so if it is urgent, explain the circumstances in your appeal often and continuously. (1 Necessities When you make an appeal, explain your reasons for why you must go out in concrete sentences in your presentation. Also, gather as much evidence as possible to support your request. For example, please arrange your appeal using the points mentioned below in part one and the evidence recommend in part two. Gathering all the evidence while you are detained may be very difficult, so ask a friend or an acquaintance to help you. However, if it is an emergency, even if you have not gathered all the evidence you need, thoroughly explain your circumstances in writing and submit this straight away. If you are not being treated in a humanitarian way, you really must make an appeal. A If you are sick, pregnant, or injured and cannot endure detention: Write about how you cannot endure your detention because of medical treatment, required rest, your symptoms or injury. Hospital-issued medical certificate (from a hospital visit before your detention B If you are detained with your child or infant: Put in your application that detention has a negative influence on your child, missing school will put your child at a disadvantage, etc. Written petition from a your child s teacher (have the teacher explain the circumstances of the your child s schooling before detention, how detention 11

12 is an obstacle to your child s study, and how detention will be a bad influence on your child mentally and physically. Also, ask the teacher to strongly request that your child be released so he or she may go to school. C If you have appealed for refugee status or special residency permission and your detention has lasted a long time If there is a good possibility that your petition for special residency or refugee status will be approved, in your application talk about how you emotionally cannot endure the long detention and how your family life and work has been interrupted. Explain that if your application is not approved in the near future, your return to your regular life will not be smooth. Petition from your family or work colleague (2 Fear of escape Next, it is important to strongly persuade the immigration authorities that you will not try to escape from the detention center. In order to do this, explain that you absolutely do not plan to run away, that you will be under supervision by your family, your guarantor, or someone related to them after your release, and that you do not plan to escape from supervision. It is necessary to state this concretely. Have the family member or guarantor who agrees to be responsible for you make a written statement to that effect. (3 Bond payment If there is a reason that your request for provisional release should be granted, you must make a bond payment of no more than 3 million yen. The immigration officer in charge will determine this amount of money based on your financial means. The 3 million yen payment is the most the bond can be; it can also be thousands or even zero yen. If you have no money or cannot pay the amount required, you may be able to negotiate for a reduction of the sum. You can also have someone else beside yourself guarantee the money. In this case, the guarantee will state that the Immigration personnel can collect the money at any time. 7 DEALING WITH TREATMENT INSIDE THE DETENTION CENTER ( (1 Detention center rules 12

13 There are rules governing life in the detention center. A summary of these rules will be posted in the living rooms on each floor in a few different languages. If you do not understand any of the posted languages or the rules, ask an immigration staff member to explain them to you. If you cannot understand the immigration officer, ask for an interpreter. (2 Meals If there are certain foods you cannot eat for health or religious reasons, you will receive consideration for this. Explain your dietary needs to one of the staff members. (3 Access to the outside If you wish to get in touch with a friend or lawyer, supporter, or your embassy (or consulate on the outside of the detention center, make a request to one of the immigration staff members. The staff member will deliver your request by phone. The immigration staff cannot prevent you from meeting with a lawyer or a consular officer. You have the right to make phone calls and write letters. However, your letters will be read by the immigration staff. You also have the right to meet with friends from outside. Even someone with a very strong will may find start to give up hope after a long time in detention. Do not forget that there are people out side the detention center who understand the burden you are under. Do not lose hope, and do not give up making an effort to appeal to people outside. (4 Exercise According to the law, the detention center must allow the detainees to exercise outside everyday. Unfortunately, because not ever detention center has an exercise ground, this may not be able to happen. If the center does have an exercise ground, but you are not allowed to use it you can file a complaint against the detention center (see section 8 How to file a complaint. The Detainee Treatment Regulations (hereinafter treatment regulations sets forth the rules for a detainee s treatment in the detention center. Treatment regulation article 28 is stated below. The detention center must give the detainees a chance to exercise in an appropriate location outdoors everyday. However, when the weather is bad or the detention 13

14 center determines there is a health or security risk, the exercise can be limited. (5 Health The detention center is a place where many people are going in and out all the time. Maintain satisfactory sanitary conditions and maintain your health. Treatment regulation article 29 states The staff of the immigration center must maintain for the sake of the detainees adequate bathing facilities, strict cleaning and disinfecting, and adequately clean tableware and bedding. (6 Hunger strike You may decide to try and resolve some of your problems by going on a hunger strike. If you do, keep the following points in mind. Before you go on a hunger strike, first off, think long and hard about whether or not a hunger strike will resolve your problems. It is very important to consult with a lawyer or other supporter about your complaint first. We do not recommend using a hunger strike as a means to resolve your problems. A hunger strike will not change your legal status for the better. Furthermore, a hunger strike will do serious damage to your health. If you still decide you want to hold a hunger strike, abide by the following points: Make a meeting with an outside supporter to clearly explain your position. Your health is the most important thing. If there is a change for the worse in your health, interrupt your strike and inform a supporter or lawyer about it. Whatever restrictions and limits have been placed on you, your right to meet with a lawyer or get in contact with a friend cannot be taken away from you. (7 Restraint If you break a one of the rules, the immigration staff cannot hit or kick you. This is strictly prohibited by law. Japan has signed a treaty banning torture, so under no circumstances will the immigration staff be allowed to torture you. However, if you are violent towards the immigration staff or you are making a fuss that annoys the other detainees, the immigration staff has the authority to physically restrain you with handcuffs or rope. You can also be put in a Special Room for solitary confinement. However, in any circumstance, the immigration staff can only use the methods allowed by law. 14

15 If restraint is used against you, ask why the staff they used it. If you do not agree with the reason, please file a complaint. The following treatment regulations deal with restraint. Article 19: 1 If the staff of the immigration center is concerned that the detainee may do any of the following actions and there is no other way to prevent such action the detainee can be restrained by the immigration center using the minimum restraint necessary. However, if there is no time to receive orders from the chief of the immigration center, personal restraint can be used. 1. Escaping 2. Harming oneself or others 3. Destroying detention center property 2 If restraint is used under the provisions of the proceeding paragraph, the immigration center must file a report as soon as possible with the chief. Article 20: There are 3 types of restraints that may be used 1. Leather handcuffs 2. Metal handcuffs 3. Policeman s rope (8 Solitary confinement The special room for solitary confinement (a room for protection or isolation is under 24 hour TV camera surveillance and is as small as practicable. Law dictates the use of this room. If you are put in this room, ask for the reason. If you do not agree with why you were put in the room, please file a complaint. Solitary confinement is governed by article 18 of the treatment regulations set out below. Article 18: If a detainee does any one of the following actions or plots, conspires, influences or instigates others to take any of these actions, that person can be separated from the other detainees for a designated time. If the detainee is held in solitary confinement past the time when the staff determines it is no longer necessary to confine the detainee, the confinement must be terminated immediately. 1. Escape, violence, destruction of property, or violation of some other criminal law 2. Resisting a staff member s orders or obstructing the staff s duties 3. Suicide or self-inflicted harm 8 HOW TO FILE A COMPLAINT ( 15

16 If you are dissatisfied with your treatment at the detention center, you can utilize the complaint system. The treatment regulation article 2, section 2, is stated below. Article 2 section 2: the staff of the facility should maintain reasonable treatment for the detainees. The staff should listen to the opinions of detainees regarding their treatment, check up on the facility, or take other measures where necessary. If you are dissatisfied with your treatment inside the detention center, you can express your opinions directly to the head of the facility. Article 41 section 2 is stated below. Article 41 section 2: if a detainee wishes to complain about the measures taken by the immigration center and his treatment, within 7 days from the day of the concerned measures, he may submit a complaint stating his reasons in writing to a staff member of the facility. If you file a complaint, the staff of the detention center has 14 days to make a decision on the merits of your request. You must receive notice of the decision in writing. If you do not agree with the ruling mentioned above, you can file an objection with the Minister of Justice. In order to do this, file your objection within 3 days of receiving notice of the decision. List your reasons for your objection in writing (Article 41 section 3. If your treatment does not improve, consult with a lawyer or other supporter. 9 VISITATION WITH CHILDREN ( If you have a child, one of three things may happen. 1 Your child will be detained with you. 2 Your child will be put under the temporary care of a child consultation center. 3 If you have relatives that meet the legal requirements for residency, your child will put under their care. If your child is put into temporary care at a child consultation center and the like, you will probably be very worried. However, the Japanese facilities are safe, so you need not be worried. Depending on the circumstances of the facility caring for your child and the judgements of that staff, you can meet with your child. If you are worried about your child and wish to meet with him or her, discuss this with an immigration staff member. Also, if you have a baby and the procedures for acquiring nationality are taking an unusually long time, you can make a request for provisional release from detention (se section 6 Provisional Release. 10 LABOR PROBLEMS LIKE UNPAID WAGES, WORKERS COMPENSATION INSURANCE, ETC. ( 16

17 If during your stay in Japan you did not receive the wages for your actual work, an accident on the job or during your commute caused you injury, or the labor you did for your job was the cause of an illness that affected your work and gave rise to problems, even if you did not have legal qualification for your stay, you have a right to receive payment and compensation for work-related injury or sickness. If can assert your rights after you have returned to your country, but because the procedures you must complete are extraordinarily difficult once you have returned home, we recommend that you consult with immigration, a support group, or a lawyer before you return home. Ask an immigration staff member or call your employer to have them bring you the necessary documents in order to receive compensation for injury or illness. If your employer will not cooperate, ask an immigration officer to contact the Labor Standards Regulatory Office for you. ( Also, if you think the detention center will have a negative effect on your recovery from illness or injury or it is necessary for you to be under long term medical care in Japan, you can make a request for a provisional release from detention (see section 6 Provisional release. 11 SICKNESS OR INJURY ( If you become sick or injured, you can have a doctor examine you. You can also receive medicine. You can receive medical treatment or have surgery at a medical facility outside the designated immigration detention area. At any rate, you will need to file a request. Even if you do not have any money, you can request medical treatment. Because your health is of the utmost importance, please make a request to the immigration staff member if your physical condition is bad, you need medical treatment, etc., regardless of money issues. If you are anxious about problems with words, ask your roommate or an immigration staff member to translate for you. The treatment regulation article 8, stipulates the following: Regarding a newly detained individual, when it is necessary to receive a doctor s diagnosis of the detainee s health, and the doctor establishes that the detainee is ill, the immigration center must take adequate measures for the patent s condition. 17

18 Therefore, if your request to receive medical treatment, go to the hospital, etc., is denied, you can take steps about this by filing a complaint with the head of the detention center (see section 8 How t file a complaint. 12 WHAT TO DO IF NECESSITIES, SAVINGS, ETC. ARE LEFT BEHIND IN YOUR APARTMENT ( You will probably be worried about your belongings are left in your apartment. Ask a friend to dispose your things for you. If you have left something very important behind, like your bank or savings things, have a friend come to meet with you at the immigration center so that you can thoroughly discuss the above with your friend. Ask your friend to act as your agent and go to your home to collect your things. Afterwards, have your friend send your things to home country for you. If you cannot get in touch with a friend or you do not have any friends that are reliable, discuss your situation with one of the immigration staff members. Under certain conditions, you can go with an immigration staff member to your apartment or bank. 13 RE-ENTRY INTO JAPAN AFTER DEPORTATION ( If you want to enter Japan again after you have been deported, you must wait at least five years. Moreover, if you have been sentenced to over a year in jail (including violations of immigration law like over-staying and suspended sentences or you were guilty of a drug-related crime, you cannot return to Japan. Furthermore, you must be careful because even if your situation is different from the ones listed above (you were deported for over-staying and the like, not because of a criminal conviction, you may not be able to enter Japan even after the required 5 years have passed. Because Immigration has a great deal of discretion, it is possible that you will not be readmitted under any means. Therefore, please see section 4 Petition for Residency in any of the following cases: you do not agree with your reason for deportation, you have reasons why you must remain in Japan, you do not think you will be able to return to Japan after a temporary return to your country, or you wish to file an objection to deportation or a request for special permission to remain in Japan. Under the law, you will not be able to return to Japan in any of the following cases: 1. If you have been sentenced in another country to over a year in jail (including the declaration of a suspended sentence. For example you received a suspended sentence of over a year for overstaying your visa 2. If you were convicted of selling or using illegal narcotic drugs (including a 18

19 suspended sentence 3. If you were involved in prostitution 4. If you have not waited 5 years since your deportation (provided 1-3 do not apply However, even in the above cases, you may be able to return to Japan, so do not give up hope. For example, if you are married to a Japanese person, there is a possibility that you can return to Japan without waiting for 5 years to go by. The same may be true if you were sentenced to over a year in jail. If you are married to a Japanese person and you wish to return to Japan in order to live a married life, keep the following points in mind. The most important thing is that you truly love one another and that you demonstrate this desire to live a married life with concrete proof. Examples of proof are exchanging letters or , records of international phone calls (you can get this from your telephone company. The company may not want to issue a record to you, so you should find out about this before you make your calls, and proof of your spouse coming to visit you. A copy of your spouse s passport and photos of the visit are very good evidence. If your spouse has a child after you have left Japan, a copy for the birth certificate and photos are extremely important proof. Have your Japanese spouse go to the nearest immigration office to get the required residency confirmation certificate and mail it to you. Take the certificate and any necessary documents to the Japanese Embassy or consulate and apply for a visa. You do have more than one opportunity to submit the residency certificate. If the first time you submit it you are not approved, do not give up. Keep submitting the form as many times as it takes. If you seem unable to get approval, you may wish to consult with a lawyer. 14 HOW TO FILE AN APPEAL ( In Japan there are three different kinds of appeals: administrative, civil, and criminal appeals. All appeals go through a three-court system of district court (summary court for simple civil and criminal cases, High Court, and then the Supreme Court. To start with, if you wish to have the actions of an immigration official that violates immigration law repealed or declared void, you file an administrative appeal. For example, if you are illegally detained by immigration or you wish to have an illegally issued order for deportation revoked (or declared void, you would request an administrative appeal in these cases. You must be careful, for if you wish to appeal to have such an action repealed, you must file your appeal within 3 months of the time you 19

20 learn of the decision. Please hire a lawyer for your appeal, and given the amount of time you have for preparation, please consult with a lawyer as quickly as you can if at all possible. There is no time limit for an appeal seeking to have an act or order declared void. However, because suits to declare an act or order void are seldom accepted, you should file an appeal to have the act repealed as soon as the chance arises. Depending on the injury you receive from the immigration official s illegal act, you can also add a claim for payment of damages to the appeal for repealing the act (declaring it void mentioned above. In addition, if you were injured at the detention center by a violent act of an immigration official or you were sexually harassed, you can also bring a civil appeal for damages. You can also bring a civil case in a number of other situations such as if you were working before you were detained and you did not receive a large portion of your wages, you loaned money to an acquaintance, or you seek to collect damages owed to you because of a traffic or work-related injury. Filing an appeal on your own while detained is extraordinarily difficult. Because all the documents must be submitted in Japanese, making all your points in an appeal you file on your own will probably be very difficult. You must choose someone to be your representative, but because only a lawyer can be your agent for an appeal, you will have to get a lawyer in the end. Please ask a friend or an acquaintance to find a lawyer for you. Even though you have filed an appeal, there is no guarantee that you will not be deported before the end of the appeal. Usually, if you make a request to immigration, you will probably be able to stay in Japan during the length of the appeal. However, because you will continue to be detained in this case, endeavor to receive provisional release based on the reason that your appeal is taking a long time. Furthermore, if you think you may be deported before the end of your appeal, you must gather as much evidence as possible for your appeal before it begins or at the very beginning of the appeal. Once you have returned to your country, it will be extraordinarily difficult to gather evidence in Japan for your appeal. If you are forced to repatriate to your home country before the end of the appeal, only your lawyer will be able to promote your appeal. Therefore, before you return to your country you need to be sure to consult enough with the lawyer about the contents of your appeal. Once you have returned to your country, in order to keep in touch with your lawyer you must give an accurate telephone number and address to your lawyer. 20

21 Deportation Procedures Foreigner suspected of meeting deportation criteria Immigration Security Preliminary Investigation No charges Charges Detention Immigration Examiner s Investigation Delivery to Immigration examiner No authorization for deportation Authorization for Deportation Request for Oral Hearing No Objection Special Oral Hearing Error in judgement No error in judgement Appeal No Objection Appeal to Minister of Justice Grounds No Grounds Reasons for No Reasons Special for Special Residency Residency Continuation of Acquittal (Continuation Special Permission Written Order for Residency of Residency for Residency Deportation 21

22 Refugee Application Procedures Procedures for a foreigner seeking refugee status Refugee investigation by Examiner Investigation Investigation Instructions Report Ruling by the Ministry of Justice Interview Inquiry Inquiry Applicant and authorized persons Related Agency Department of Foreign Affairs, UNHCR Agency Approval No Approval Notice and reasons for no authorization Complaint No Complaint Appeal to Ministry of Justice Grounds No Grounds Rejection of application Appeal to the Court Delivery of certificate of refugee status Re-submit refugee application Issuance of deportation order 22

23 APPENDIX: SUPPORT GROUP LIST ( Group name, address, telephone number, languages spoken If no language is listed, the group only speaks Japanese Tokyo ASIAN PEOPLE'S FRIENDSHIP SOCIETY (A.P.F.S. Itabashi-ku, Ooyama Higashi-chou TEL English Bengal written: Burmese, Tagalog, Chinese Citizen's Network for Japanese-Filipino Children Chiyoda-ku Kudan Minami HK Haimu 303 TEL Tagalog Amnesty International Japan Chiyoda-ku, Kanda Tsukasa-chou 2-7 Ogasawara Building 7F TEL English National Network in Solidarity with Migrant Workers Bunkyou-ku, Koishigawa Tomisaka Christ Faith Center 203 TEL Lawyers for Foreign Criminal Cases: LAFOCC Minato-ku, Shimbashi Ishida Building 4F TEL English KAPATIRAN Minato-ku Shibakoen c/o Japan Episcopal Church Tokyo Office TEL English Tagalog Labor Union of Migrant Worker Toshima-ku, Minami Otsuka Tokyo Labor Hall 6F TEL HELP Asian Women's Shelter (address is unlisted TEL English Thai Tagalog Zentouitsu Workers Union Taitou-ku, Ueno Shinhirokouji Building 5F TEL English written Urdu Hindi French Korean Bengali H. K. Himawari Clinic Koutou-ku, Kameido TEL

24 written: English EDOGAWA Labor Union Edogawa-ku Chuo TEL Saitama Prefecture OPEN HOUSE (SAITAMA Catholic International Center Saitama-shi, Urawa-ku Tokiwa TEL English Tagalog Spanish Portugese 119 Network for Foreigners Saitama-shi, Urawa-ku Tokiwa Saitama YMCA TEL English Spanish Portuguese Thai Bengali Kanagawa Prefecture Kanagawa Prefecture Workers Cooperative, Jujo-Dori-Clinic Yamato-shi, Minami Rinkan TEL FAX English German KALABAW-no-Kai Yokohama-shi, Naka-ku, Matsukage-chou Sanwabussan Building 701 TEL English Tai The House for Women Saalaa Aoba Yubinkyoku Shishobako Number 13 TEL English Thai Spanish Tagalog Ibaraki Prefecture Ushiku Mondai wo Kangaeru Kai Stop Detaining in Ushiku Immigration Center Tsukuba-shi, Kouya TEL English written: English Korean Chinese Persian Chiba Prefecture Foreign Workers Hand-in-Hand Chiba Chiba-shi, Chuo-ku, Chuo Chiba Central Heights 505 TEL FAX Nagano Prefecture 24