Job Discussion Forums

[therock]

Now everytime you gaijin leave and re-enter the country you will need to have your fingerprints taken.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071026/wl_nm/japan_fingerprints_dc;_ylt=AmmVdf7EPMyKdDrqrLXk18MUewgF


Japan to take fingerprints, photos of foreigners

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan is to fingerprint and photograph foreigners entering the country from next month in an anti-terrorism policy that is stirring anger among foreign residents and human rights activists.

Anyone considered to be a terrorist -- or refusing to cooperate -- will be denied entry and deported.

"This will greatly contribute to preventing international terrorist activities on our soil," Immigration Bureau official Naoto Nikai said in a briefing on the system, which starts on November 20.

The checks are similar to the "U.S. Visit" system introduced in the United States after the attacks on September 11, 2001.

But Japan, unlike the United States, will require resident foreigners as well as visitors to be fingerprinted and photographed every time they re-enter the country.

"It certainly doesn't make people who've been here for 30 or 40 years feel like they're even human beings basically," said businessman Terrie Lloyd, who has dual Australian and New Zealand citizenship and has been based in Japan for 24 years.

"There has not been a single incident of foreign terrorism in Japan, and there have been plenty of Japanese terrorists," he said.

There are more than two million foreigners registered as resident in Japan, of whom 40 percent are classed as permanent residents.

CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS

The pictures and fingerprints obtained by immigration officials will be made available to police and may be shared with foreign immigration authorities and governments.

Diplomats and children under 16 are excluded from the new requirement, as are "special" permanent residents of Korean and Chinese origin, many of whom are descended from those brought to Japan as forced labor before and during World War Two.

Local government fingerprinting of foreign residents when issuing registration cards, long a source of friction, was abolished in 2000.

Amnesty International is calling for the immigration plan to be abandoned.

"Making only foreigners provide this data is discriminatory," said Sonoko Kawakami of Amnesty's Japan office. "They are saying 'terrorist equals foreigner'. It's an exclusionary policy that could encourage xenophobia."

The new system is being introduced as Japan campaigns to attract more tourists. More than 6.7 million foreign visitors came to Japan in 2006, government statistics show. Immigration officials say they are unsure how long tourists can expect to wait in line for the checks to be made.

Britain is set to require non-European foreign nationals to register biometric details when applying for visas from next year.

[easyasabc]

So what's the big deal with that?

I'll be popping back into Japan again next year, probably once for work and then again for pleasure, and I couldn't care less if they take my finger prints. Didn't mind getting finger printed when I went to the US last year either. I don't get why people freak out so much about this. If you are honest and haven't done anything wrong why would you care about being fingerprinted?

Or as the Pet Shop Boys so perfectly put it ......
If you've done nothing wrong, you've got nothing to fear.
If you've something to hide, you shouldn't even be here!

[Glenski]

therock,
Did you just find this out? It's been all over the news and Internet for months.

easyasabc,
The "big deal" is for us who have residency here or spouse visas. It's discriminatory for one thing, because resident Koreans and Chinese are exempt. Refuse to go through with this, and you will not be permitted to enter even though you live here, and should not be considered a visitor (which is what they call us now).

The "big deal" is that they are going to share fingerprint and photo records with other parts of the government, which is totally not in line with their reasons (anti-terrorism) for doing this in the first place.

The "big deal" is that the anti-terrorism claims are totally crazy because they are going to print and photograph only (most) foreigners, yet no foreigner has ever been found to commit terrorist acts in Japan. Only Japanese citizens have.

The "big deal" is that those of us with families will have to go through separate lines, but that can be a hardship with some family situations.

The "big deal" is that they eliminated fingerprinting in 1999, yet now they are bringing it back.

The "big deal" is that fingerprinting is not always an accurate means of identification.

[therock]

[J.]

Well, said, Glenski! I agree 100 per cent.

After all the processing we have already had to get work visas and resident's cards, this is just a slap in the face. Why are the same people who have been gong in and out of Japan for years suddenly suspected to be terrorists?

It's a waste of money, offensive, and will slow up the lines at Immigration, which many of us on long, long, trips don't want to face.

And stop calling us "gaijin". That is also offensive.

[Hoser]

[gonzarelli]

Here's a handy dandy video from the government that explains things a bit.

http://nettv.gov-online.go.jp/common/moviechk.php?p=1203&d=0&t=110&b=0&m=1&r=2

[Glenski]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That video was the first one issued. Pretty silly with the foreigners hamming it up. But at least it makes an attempt to excuse... I mean, explain why they want to do this.

However, here is a later version, with the comments about terrorism cut out, the Japanese speaker eliminated/replaced with a more soothing British narrator, and some descriptions of what you have to do.
http://nettv.gov-online.go.jp/prg/prg1431.html

[Rooster_2006]

If they want to fingerprint me, they can go ahead. I hate to side with the annoying "you're just a guest, it's not your country" people who try to take that statement to extremes, but fingerprinting isn't some major human rights violation. People should save their outcries for more blatant expressions of racism. My Korean friend tells me that she has to have a 30,000,000 won bank balance before being issued a student visa for Japan (a special restriction that may not be levied on other countries). On the other hand, with the way Korea treats workers from other countries, I can't blame Japan (or any other country) too much for being hard on Koreans -- what goes around comes around.

In the end though, these are the things I care about:
1. Being able to get a work visa to work in a sector OTHER than English teaching.
2. If I'm a regular, the ability to get PR.
3. Being safe from racist attacks on the street.

These are things I do not give a rat's arse about:
1. Being fingerprinted.
2. Not being able to get credit, because I completely, 100% understand why that is.
3. Things not being in English -- other countries have the right to speak their own languages, too!

[Glenski]

Rooster,
There are some facts that may enlighten or broaden your view of this whole thing.

Fingerprints are not entirely 100% accurate, and the government just finished abolishing their use on foreigners. So, the question arises, why use them again?

Also, if the prints were to be used only for immigration purposes, that might justify things a bit, but they likely will be shared by other organizations for the intent of following us as potential criminals. Like to have Big Brother looking over your shoulder every time some punk holds up a 7-11 now?

As for your Korean friend and student visa, I believe many other have to show certain funds in hand before they can be accepted.

[therock]

[Rooster_2006]

[Glenski]

Rooster,
Sounds like just more reasons I won't ever be going to Korea. Sorry you had such a bad time there.

[Mothy]

Whether someone thinks being fingerprinted in and of itself is offensive or not, I think that the implementation of this should be disturbing since it represents a step backwards in the treatment of foreigners in Japan. And certainly there is enough problems with treatment of non Japanese in Japan that we should all be able to agree that progress is what should be taking place, not regression.