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From Japan: At Home in a Foreign
Land For tens of thousands of foreign workers in Japan, settling in is a struggle. But a Filipina manages to fit into the society and find happiness in her marriage, writes Suvendrini Kakuchi. - Maria, the 31-year-old Filipino wife of a Japanese truck driver, says her husband's country will be her home until she dies. Tokyo, Japan- ''At first it was difficult to think that way,'' says the slight woman who spends most evenings teaching English to her neighbours' kids. ''But now Japan is definitely my home.''Her husband Yasushi nods in agreement. ''Maria is much better than a Japanese wife,'' he laughs. ''When Japanese women marry, they expect husbands to be the breadwinner. But Maria cooks, cleans, and also contributes to the home budget.'' Maria is one of many Filipinos who have found a second home in Japan, a country they first arrived in to work, and have adjusted to life here. ''They are not the majority but some women do find good marriages,'' says Ken Suzuki of the Foreign Women's Solidarity Association, Yokohama chapter. The association supports women workers from places like the Philippines, South Korea and Latin America, who enter Japan seeking a slice of their host country's economic success. ''Far-reaching changes can be observed in Japanese society that once prided itself as a homogenous country,'' explains Suzuki. ''Foreigners have made Japan more international.'' Japan is a magnet for migrants from countries like China, South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia. Many Asian women end up in Japan's huge entertainment industry, and other workers provide cheap labour for small and medium-sized firms. Officially, there are more than 115,000 Filipinos here as migrant workers, although some estimates put the total number including those overstaying their visas, at 400,000. Japan began getting more foreign workers in the late eighties, at the start of the "bubble economy.". Today, ''there is no doubt that migrant labour is changing Japanese society,'' Suzuki says. Through the years, social trends arising from this phenomenon have emerged. The number of marriages between foreigners and Japanese is increasing, as well as children from those relationships. Many Filipino women meet their future husbands at their work places, including bars or snacks, because 90 percent of Filipino migrant workers in Japan are women in the entertainment industry. The Justice Ministry says international marriages now make-up almost a third of marriages registered in Japan yearly. In 1999, there were 31,900 international marriages, up from 27,727 in 1995. That year, Japanese marriages with Chinese women topped the list at 7,810, followed by Filipinos at 6,414 and Korean women third. But settling down in Japan is not all rosy. The lack of proper visas that women can have on their own, the difficulties children of mixed parentage have and communication barriers can make life for Asian women and their children miserable. Most Filipinas say they are WRONGFULLY characterised as being ''loose women'' because they work in bars in Japan's deeply-entrenched entertainment industry. Even those like Maria have had their share of adjustment woes, including being scolded several times by her in-laws for speaking or laughing loudly. As Japan's foreign migrant population develops deeper roots, organisations like the Japan-Philippine Children's Support Group are lobbying the government to accept migrants as part of society and update its laws to reflect this. ''It is not important what nationality the person belongs to,'' says a representative of the group. ''We want the Japanese government to accept the fact that migrant labour plays a very important role in supporting the Japanese economy, and is already part of the local society.'' The group, which supports children born to Filipino women abandoned by Japanese men, estimates that there are 6,000 relationships between Japanese and foreigners a year. These relationships can lead to complicated situations if they end, especially if there are children. Many Filipinos are saddled with visa problems as a result, especially if they have overstayed visas. A foreign wife who splits up with her partner cannot have her own visa without his sponsorship. Lenny Tolentino of the Solidarity Centre for Migrants in Yokohama says unmarried women with children with their Japanese partners cannot apply for proper visas to stay on and would not find it easy to land jobs or have access to social welfare. Still, ''the better conditions for migrant labour in Japan is also
another reason why they decide to marry Japanese and stay,'' says
Suzuki. The issue of children of Filipino women with Japanese fathers, called "Japinos," has been festering for some time, not least because under Japan's laws a child can be extended Japanese nationality if the father recognises the child as his before its birth. The government has yet to develop a clear policy on migrant labour and its social effects -- some children of Japanese and foreign parents might get visas, others might not. A study by Tokyo Women's Medical College reports that one of 14 babies
born in Tokyo's 23 wards in 1999 had at least one non-Japanese parent.
By nationality, babies born of either South Korean or North Korean
mothers numbered 6,991 followed by Filipinos with 6,024.
Republished with permission from Inter Press Service News Agency (IPS) Asia-Pacific. About Inter Press Service News Agency (IPS): IPS, the world's leading provider of information on global issues, is backed by a network of journalists in more than 100 countries. Its clients include more than 3,000 media organizations and tens of thousands of civil society groups, academics, and other users. IPS focuses its news coverage on the events and global processes affecting the economic, social and political development of peoples and nations.
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