| Budget Amount *help |
¥3,400,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,400,000)
Fiscal Year 2006: ¥800,000 (Direct Cost: ¥800,000)
Fiscal Year 2005: ¥1,400,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,400,000)
Fiscal Year 2004: ¥1,200,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,200,000)
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| Research Abstract |
In 1990 the Japanese government eased visa restrictions for foreign migrants of Japanese descent (Nikkeijin) and their families. This preference has enabled the migration of approximately 300,000 Nikkeijin, mostly from Brazil and Peru. 15 years later, on the verge of a prolonged decline in Japan' s population, the flow of migrants from Latin America into Japan continues. This migrant population is diverse, as prior to migrating to Japan, many Nikkeijin had married other Latin Americans. While many migrants are attempting to settle permanently in Japan, they have faced difficulty assimilating into Japanese society.
Alongside the arrival of migrants from Latin America, hundreds of thousands of workers from throughout the Pacific Rim have also recently migrated to Japan, despite legal barriers to their entry and settlement. This rise in foreign migration has prompted crackdowns on illegal immigration and changes in legal visa categories. It has also profoundly affected Japanese society, ch
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allenging Japan' s identity as ethnically and racially homogeneous. As foreign migrants have been settling in major cities, suburbs, and small towns throughout Japan, Japanese political leaders have cited foreigners as responsible for increases in crime and general insecurity, and opinion polls have reflected growing public concern over the long-term impacts of immigration. While a declining birth rate makes the rising need for foreign labor a certainty, less is known about how foreign migrant workers will integrate into Japanese society.
We conduced researches maily field work to explore the relationship between Japan's self-identification as racially and ethnically homogeneous and the experiences of foreign migrant workers who have recently settled there. Through a study of the neighborhood ofNishio, the central question we had explored was how the settlement of foreign migrant workers in the neighborhood influenced Japanese local community.
In the case of Nishio, Brazilians and Japanese live together in a good relationship, while in other cities serious conflicts between the two ethinic groups have been reported. Why? We revealed three factors:
(1) Nishio has good community leaders, both Japanese and Brazilians
(2) Networks of social movements and volunteer groups supported the community leaders.
(3)The number of Brazilians in Nishio with a population of 100.000 may be appropriate for the networks menthioned above to function well. Less
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