Refugees Living Situation in Japan and Social Support November 12, 2011 Akiko OGAWA Senior Social Assistance Officer Japan Association for Refugees (JAR)
Number of Refugee Application and Recognition in Japan 1800 1600 1400 1200 1000 800 Applications Recognized Humanitarian Status Year 2009 # of Applicants 1388 (47 countries) Myanmar 568(40%) Sri Lanka 234(16%) Turkey 94 (7%) Pakistan 92 (7%) Refugee Status 30 1 st Instance 22 Appeal 8 Humanitarian Status 501 954 816 1,5 9 9 1,3 8 8 600 501 400 200 0 32 42 68 50 73 52 2 1 3 6 1 2 147 242 133 260 216 353 250 336 426 1 1 16 16 22 26 14 10 15 384 46 34 41 57 30 1990 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 2000 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09
Limited Public Assistance for Refugee Applicants RSD Process Pre - application stage 1st stage of application Appeal stage Judicial review Some Days to 1 month 4 months About 2 years 1 to several years Accommo - dation No public assitance Public assistance No public assistance Medical treatment No public assistance Public assitance No public assistance Financial Assistance No public assistance Public assitance No public assistance Work No valid visa Valid visa Not Permitted Not legally permitted Legally Permitted Not Permitted The Public Assistance for Refugee Applicants equals 2/3 of the Public Assistance for Japanese Citizens
Challenges faced by Refugees in Japan Language Barrier No Place to Stay No Jobs/ Not able to Work No Food Limited Access to Medical Treatment/ Health Insurance No Friends or Family Fear for Detention etc. They are forced to live with fear in stressful condition for 1.5 to 9 years without a vision for the future Copyright 2010 Japan Association for Refugees All Rights Reserved. 4
Why Japanese Government bully us? I don t always want to get help Voices from Refugees JAR should be responsible! I am not allowed to work. How can I survive? 5
Japan Association for Refugees (JAR) Mission: Make Japan a safe and hospitable place for refugees and asylum seekers Empower refugees to become self-sufficient residents of Japan Copyright 2010 Japan Association for Refugees All Rights Reserved. 6
Organogram of JAR Office Protection and Assistance Unit External Relations Unit Social Assistance Legal Assistance Secretary General Settlement Assistance Unit Public Relations Unit Community-Based Assistance Administration Unit 7 Copyright 2010 Japan Association for Refugees All Rights Reserved.
Support for Individual Refugees 8
Services by JAR s Social Team 1 Counseling for Daily Living-Related Issues Advocacy Medical: Referral to Hospitals & Accompanying Clients etc. Housing: Referral to Private Shelters & Providing Housing Info. etc. Job Hunting: Counseling, Organizing Work Shops & 9 Accompanying Clients to interviews etc. Copyright 2010 Japan Association for Refugees All Rights Reserved.
Services by JAR s Social Team 2 Education: Providing Info on Volunteer Japanese Language Classes & Assistance for Enrolling in Public Schools etc. Emergency Financial Assistance Others: Organizing Group Activities, In-kind Assistance (Food &Clothes) Cooperation with Other Actors & Employment of Available Social Resources are Essential 10
Improvements 1. Deeper Cooperation with Medical Institutions Free/ Low-Cost Medical Treatment Program By Tokyo Council of Social Welfare (TCSW) Free Dental Treatment for Refugee Applicants By Tsurumi Univ. Free Health Check Up Program 2. Support to Enroll in National Health Insurance *mostly for refugee applicants with Legal Status Better Access to Medical Treatment 11
Good Practice 3. Group Work Open Talk Targeted Clients: Isolated Refugee Applicants Once Every Two Weeks Objectives: 1. Opportunity for Going Out 2. Exchanging Information 3. Development of Self-Affirmation/ Self-Efficacy Topics: Refugee Application, Visa, Detention, Health, Housing, Work, Education, Marriage etc. 12
Remained Challenges Lack of Trauma and Torture Care Gap between those with Visa and those without it Limited Case Work Regional differences 13
Refugees are Members of Our Society Judicial Legislative Government UNHCR Asylum Seekers, Refugee Applicants, Refugees NGOs Private Companies Civil Society Private Foundations The Media Local Governments Individual Citizens Intellectuals & Experts Copyright 2010 Japan Association for Refugees All Rights Reserved. 14
Thank you!