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A New Epoch of Immigration for Japan: Directional Shift in Civic Organizational Support for Newcomer Settlement

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Notes

  1. 1.

    For example, before the Second World War, the eastern part of Ikebukuro, in Toshima Ward, was characterized as a vulgar fringe-land where streets were inhabited by indigents in the vicinity of the Tokyo prison. Immediately after the war, this city was revived by the black markets in a wide stretch of burnt ruins and the image of vulgarity still remains to some extent (Okuda and Tajima 1991).

  2. 2.

    As for the situation of the early 1990s in Japan, see Kiyono (1992) and Takayama (1992).

  3. 3.

    Transnational migrants indicates that “persons who, having migrated from one nation-state to another, live their lives across borders, participating simultaneously in social relations that embed them in more than one nation state” (Glick-Schiller 2003:105).

  4. 4.

    Castles and Miller (1994: 3-4) indicated, “international migration has grown in volume and significance since 1945 and most particularly since the mid-1980s.”

  5. 5.

    According to Brubaker (1992: 81), “as throughout Continental Europe, citizenship is ascribed to children of citizens. In Britain and the Americans, by contrast, citizenship is ascribed to all persons born in the territory, following the principle of jus soli.”

  6. 6.

    The meaning of Karabaw is a water buffalo in the Tagalog language.

  7. 7.

    “In 1993 there were 161 workplace accident consultations, which number includes both in-person office visits and telephone consultation (APFS 1994a). Many consultees were from Bangladesh, Iran, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Ghana, and India. Consultations regarding unpaid salaries and dismissals totalled 135 and 110 respectively in 1993 (APFS 1994a). In the case of unpaid salaries, the workers generally belonged to small businesses with less than 10 employees. In dismissal problems, more than half were sudden dismissals and thus the office started negotiating with proprietors, in accordance with the consultees’ appeal. In nearly 30% of those cases, they succeeded in getting the dismissal retracted” (Mizukami 1998: 362-363).

  8. 8.

    Classification of these 85 visitors by nationality was as follows: Pakistan (29), Bangladesh (18), Iran (9), Philippines (8), Thailand (5), Nigeria (3), Korea (2), China (2), one each for Malaysia, Togo, Ghana, Nepal, Brazil, Burma (Myanmar) and Mali, and two unknown (APFS 1994a: 17). In 1994, the number of marriages between Japanese men and women from Philippines, Thailand, and Korea increased remarkably and the consultees’ nationalities extended to over 30 countries (Tsukuba and APFS, 1995: 107).

  9. 9.

    The Society conducted research from November 1992 to February 1993 and the outcome of 163 samples was provided in 1993 (APFS 1993a). For instance, the research disclosed that informants (foreign residents mainly in Itabashi Ward) clustered around a particular age group, with more than 90 per cent in the 20s to mid-30s age range (Ibid., 8). Their educational backgrounds were quite high, with over 95% being senior high school graduates and more than 30% university graduates or postgraduates (ibid., 10).

  10. 10.

    This document was translated from Japanese into English by the author.

  11. 11.

    In the interview with Mr. Yoshinari on 16 June 2008, he estimates roughly two-thirds of members have already gone back.

  12. 12.

    Mr. Yamaguchi’s interview was conducted on 1 September 2008.

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Acknowledgement

Special thanks and appreciation is due to Mr. Katsuo Yoshinari, a former representative and advisor for the APFS, and Mr. Tomoyuki Yamaguchi, an APFS representative, for their support in offering invaluable information for this article.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Sociology, Rikkyo University, Tokyo, Japan

    Tetsuo Mizukami

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  1. Tetsuo Mizukami
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Correspondence to Tetsuo Mizukami .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. National Museum of Ethnology (Minpaku), Senri Expo Park 10-1, Suita, Osaka, 565-8511, Japan

    Henk Vinken

  2. Komazawa University, Komazawa 1-23-1, Setagaya, Tokyo, 154-8525, Japan

    Yuko Nishimura

  3. Doshisha University, Kyotanabe, Kyoto, 610-0394, Japan

    Bruce L. J. White

  4. National Museum of Ethnology (Minpaku), Senri Expo Park 10-1, Suita, Osaka, 565-8511, Japan

    Masayuki Deguchi

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Mizukami, T. (2010). A New Epoch of Immigration for Japan: Directional Shift in Civic Organizational Support for Newcomer Settlement. In: Vinken, H., Nishimura, Y., White, B., Deguchi, M. (eds) Civic Engagement in Contemporary Japan. Nonprofit and Civil Society Studies. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1504-7_6

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