NYTimes: Japan offers to pay foreign workers to go home
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One step back for Japan, according to this NY Times article titled “Japan Pays Foreign Workers to Go Home.”
Are there any JETs out there who have run into this process or have friends who have been affected? Feel free to post a comment.
In my case, I lived in Kariya-shi on JET in the early 90s, right next to Toyota-shi. My area was the heart of the auto manufacturing industry in Japan–I was told my town had the largest Brazilian population in Japan (though I’ve since heard other people say the same thing about their towns). So this article definitely hits close to (JET) home.
That said, Jiro Kawasaki, a senior LDP lawmaker and former health minister, comes across as a bit of a reactionary nut job who may simply be representing a minority opinion. He unfortunately is in a position to make something happen. Although, they’re not forcing anyone to leave. It’s simply an option. Of course, it’s an insulting and short-sighted option that’s garnering a lot of publicity. And perhaps that was Kawasaki’s real goal–a publicity stunt that lets his supporters know that he’s Momotaro the Peach Boy doing his job to “protect” the good Japanese people and send the foreign devils home.
Several other Japanese experts are quoted in the article pointing out how offensive and short-sighted the idea is, further supporting the notion that this kind of xenophobia is not a majority viewpoint. And I have to say it’s refreshing to read an article in a U.S. paper including such strongly opinionated quotes from Japanese people. Additionally, the Japanese government has actually been making efforts in recent years to help provide support and training to foreign workers that have been losing their jobs, so Kawasaki’s plan may be more of a renegade effort that is occasionally part of modern democracies.
And on top of everything else, I can’t imagine the Japan National Tourist Organization is too happy about all of this.
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