Burmese people in Japan

There is a small population of Burmese people in Japan (在日ミャンマー人, 在日ビルマ人, Zainichi Myanmājin, Zainichi Birumajin). Statistics from Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs show 8,366 Burmese nationals residing in Japan, while community organisations estimate they may number as many as 10,000 people.^[1][2]

Migration history

Prior to World War II, some Burmese students studied in Japan; these nationalist-oriented students became the core of the Burmese Independence Army set up by the Japanese prior to their invasion of Burma.^[3] During the Japanese occupation of Burma, Japan continued to provide scholarships for Burmese students to study in Japan.^[4] Since the 1990s, a new wave of Burmese migrants have come to Japan. Many are residing in the country illegally. Among their numbers are hundreds of activists who had been active in Burmese democracy movements. Initially, the Japanese government refused to recognise any of them as refugees; however, their policy softened after 1998. By August 2006, the government had recognised 116 Burmese in Japan as refugees, and given special stay permission to another 139. These comprised almost all of the official refugees in Japan, with the exception of a few Afghans and Kurds.^[5] In August 2010, the Japanese government agreed to accept for resettlement in Japan five families of Karen refugees from Myanmar, numbering 27 people; an additional family of five people chose to decline resettlement in Japan due to the country's high cost of living. The refugees had formerly been living at the Mera refugee camp in Thailand, and had been taking resettlement classes held by the International Organization for Migration.^[6]

Burmese migrants in Japan are required to pay a monthly tax of ¥10,000 to the Burmese embassy for a single person, or ¥18,000 for a married couple. The embassy refuses to issue travel documents to those who do not pay this tax; illegal immigrants or overstayers cannot be deported back to Burma, and are stuck in immigration detention centres in Japan. Furthermore, 15 elderly or terminally ill Burmese died in Japan in 2002 due to the lack of funds to pay the back taxes and return home.^[2]

Community organisations

The first Burmese political organisation founded in Japan was the Burma Association in Japan, established in 1988. Others quickly followed in the 1990s, including the Burma Youth Volunteer Association, 8888 Association (a reference to the 8888 Uprising), Democratic Burmese Students Organization, Students Organization for Liberation of Burma, Burma Women's Union, Burma Rohingya Association in Japan, and a branch of the National League for Democracy-Liberated Areas.^[5] In 2000, a number of Burmese dissident groups in Japan, including the Burmese Association in Japan, the Burma Youth Volunteer Association, the Students Organization for Liberation of Burma, merged to form a single organisation, the League for Democracy in Burma.^[7]

Due to the Japanese government's limited assistance to refugees, Japanese voluntary civil society organisations have played a large role in providing aid to Burmese migrants, especially in the field of health care.^[8] Organisations established by Burmese migrants or providing aid to them include the People's Forum on Burma, the Lawyers Group for Burmese Refugees in Japan, and the Federation of Workers' Union of Burmese Citizens in Japan.^[2][9][10] Burmese associations have a strong base of support among mainstream Japanese; the umbrella organisation Burma Office in Japan is especially close to RENGO (the Japanese Confederation of Trade Unions), which provides them with financial support.^[11]

Burmese in Japan are also organised in non-political associations and activities. Ahhara, the first Burmese library in Japan, was established in Itabashi, Tokyo in 2000, with the aim of collecting hard-to-obtain books and historical writings. Its name means "Food for Thought" in Burmese. In 2004, the library was moved to Shinjuku to be more conveniently accessible to the Burmese community; its name was also changed to Moe Thauk Kye, which means "Morning Star".^[12] The library is staffed by 14 volunteers.^[13] Burmese living in Tokyo organise a Thingyan (Burmese New Year Water Festival) celebration, which draws about 5,000 participants annually.^[11]

Notes

Sources

• Banki, Susan (2006), "Burmese Refugees in Tokyo: Livelihoods in the Urban Environment", Journal of Refugee Studies 19 (3): 328–344, doi:10.1093/jrs/fel015 
• Soe Win Shein (June 2006), "'Moe Thauk Kye', the First Burmese Library in Japan", Library Services to Multicultural Populations, World Library and Information Congress, retrieved 2010-05-18 
• Nemoto, Kei (2007), "Between Democracy and Economic Development: Japan's Policy towards Burma/Myanmar Then and Now", in Narayanan Ganesan; Kyaw Yin Hlaing, Myanmar: state, society, and ethnicity, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Hiroshima City University, ISBN 978-981-230-434-6 

Further reading

• Kingston, Keff (May 2008), "Political Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Japan", Paper presented at the annual meeting of The Law and Society Association, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, retrieved 2010-05-18 ; a conference paper based on a series of interviews with Burmese asylum-seekers in Japan
• ミャミャウィン (1997), 『カンチャマ「運命」―在日ビルマ人難民認定の3000日』, ダイヤモンド社, ISBN 978-4-478-94135-5 
• 原 千亜 (2008), 『在日ミャンマー人の接触場面における社会文化管理－言語の社会化の事例－』, M.A. thesis, Obirin University, retrieved 2009-06-09 
• 田辺 寿夫 (2008), 『負けるな!在日ビルマ(ミャンマー)人』, 梨の木舎, ISBN 978-4-8166-0806-3 

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