After my last post I realized that while I complained about a situation I didn't offer any possible actions that I or others could take to try to change that situation. I would like to remedy that in this post.
An on-line petition has been started by Thomas in Kyoto that you can put your name on. I think it is really important that we, foreigners in Japan, do not sit quietly and take the wait and see attitude towards these new changes in Japanese immigration law. Look what has happened in the U.S. and other first world industrialized countries! In the U.S. there has been this, this too and this.
For some examples of events in the U.K. have a look at this and this.
If such horrible instances of injustice can be carried out in the U.S. and the U.K., why should we sit by and watch the road paved for further violations of personal liberties and basic human rights here in Japan? And it doesn't always happen to high profile academics and artists. It happens to us normal people too. We just don't get as much press space.
To sign the petition, check out the Online Petition (created by Thomas in Kyoto--(http://lariviereauxcanards.typepad.com/)) which is available at:http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/fingerprints-japan/
And if you are personally coming in and out of Japan, Arudou Debito has also supplied a link to a Bilingual protest letter you can print up and hand in as you clear Customs.http://www.debito.org/index.php/?p=652
There. I didn't want to just get other people pissed off as well. Hopefully if we all work together we can effect some positive changes.
And I promise, unless I am unfairly arrested, detained, questioned or otherwise personally dragged into the political realm I will not be posting on politics again! I am so not political. Really.
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8 comments:
Wow, thanks for posting those links. I'm aware that my US citizenship gives me privileges in my country, but I had no idea how bad it had gotten for foreigners. I was reading your other entry feeling outraged and thinking how awful, and here my country is already doing the same thing.
Thanks for the push in the right direction! I finally got myself into some sort of gear and signed the online petition, and am going to rejoin Amnesty. These things CAN be changed, but only if enough people decide to do something about it.
Thanks, I've signed and i will put the link on my blog for others to also sign.
:)
Thanks for providing the links!
I feel exactly the same way -- pissed off and kicked in the stomach (like you I'm a p.r. with two kids). WTF does it mean to be a p.r.??? My husband said today there was some kind of wide show on t.v. about this issue and quite a bit of outrage (and that they pointed out that it's not just 'visitors' who have to go through this, but also permanent residents (some of us anyhow -- I also like how this has made it clear that all p.r.s all not created equal...)) Anyhow, great to come across your blog by complete chance tonight and I will be sure to check out your links and sign whatever petitions I can.
Since 2001, American tourism from overseas has dropped by 17%. The chance of being given a hard time by some jackbooted thug at airport security, getting a false positive on your fingerprint or a name mismatch on the US-VISIT database is just too scary for some people. So the US has been losing tourists too. The US Govt has approached Disney for a campaign to attract them. Well, isn't going to work. If you make people feel unwelcome, they'll go somewhere else.
It'll be worse for Japan. The perceived high prices and language barrier already keeps people away. Acting like border guard thugs, plus all the bad press and publicity this has generated, will keep plenty of people away. Sayonara Japan indeed!
Thanks for writing this.
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