Multicultural coexistence of contract fishermen fron Asia Pacific countries on Japanese pelagic tuna vessels

2013 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 23520976
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Cultural anthropology/Folklore
• Research Institution: Kyoto University (2012-2013); University of Tsukuba (2011)
• Principal Investigator: KAZAMA KAZUHIRO 京都大学, 人間・環境学研究科(研究院), 教授 (70323219)
• Project Period (FY): 2011 – 2013
• Keywords: 文化人類学 / 遠洋漁業 / 出稼ぎ / キリバス

Research Abstract

Japanese pelagic fishery has been in a state of a crisis for a number of problems both at home and abroad. Fishing companies has suffered from lack of Japanese youth workers, the ratification of a 200-nautical-mile exclusive fishing zone, keen global competitions for marine resources, and so on. The ship-owners need for low cost labor force to operate their companies. In recent years, overseas fishermen has quite increased and exceeded Japanese crew in number on vessels. Fishing companies are dependent on contract fishermen from Indonesia and Kiribati. Then, multicultural circumstances have inevitably emerged on pelagic fishing vessels. It seems as if multicultural coexistence turned out well, because there are few frictions among different cultural members. But in fact, they do not mingle with each other, except under the necessary cooperative fishing work. It is noninventionalist or civil inattentive attitudes that make multicultural coexistence tranquil superficially on vessels.