Provisional Release Association in Japan to Hold a March on February 25

 (circulation welcome)


February.25. (Fri.) 12:30 gathering at Shinagawa Station Bus Stop for Nyukan / 13:00 Departure
２月２５日（金） 12：30 品川駅入管行きバス停前集合 / 13：00出発

Organized by Provisional Release Association in Japan (PRAJ)
Contact: MASUDA 080-3421-4060 / MIYASAKO 090-6547-7628
主催 ： 仮放免者の会  連絡先:増田080-3421-4060　宮廻090-6547-7628

  

On February 25, Friday, Provisional Release Association in Japan (PRAJ) is organizing a protest demonstration in Shinagawa, Tokyo (For the event’s details, see the bottom of this entry).
     The first question: what is “provisional release”?

     In Japan, like anywhere else, there are refugees and immigrants. Almost all refugee applications are denied, however. Also, there are many migrant workers who have built their lives in their communities and workplaces in this country and are unable to obtain valid resident status.

     The Immigration Bureau (Nyukan)’s “principle” is to detain every single foreigner without a valid visa status. Since it is impossible to detain all those foreigners, however, the Immigration “provisionally release” some of them out of exceptional “mercy,” as it were. A warrantor and bond money amounting from thousands and thousands of yet to three million yen are required for provisional release.

     Though they are liberated from severe detention, those on provisional release face a number of restraints and are left without any rights. The government denies their right to work and deprive them of freedom to move (They are required to apply for “temporary travel permit” to the Immigration and get their approval to go outside of their own prefecture). Plus, without resident status, they are excluded from the health insurance and welfare benefits. The police often threateningly stop and question them just for looking “foreign (of Asian or African descent).”

     Furthermore, since those on provisional release are merely given “release” on a “provisional” ground as far as the Immigration is concerned, they have to live with the constant fear of re-detention. They have to visit the Immigration every month or every three months for the extension of provisional release; immigration officers sometimes threaten, “we will detain you next month.”

     On October 31, 2010, we founded the Provisional Release Association in Japan to improve the situation and to restore the rights of all on provisional release as human beings; we decided to go on fighting in solidarity.

     the Provisional Release Association in Japan demands

    

1. To request to refrain from repeatedly arresting of Foreigners who lives as ( Karihomen ) Provisional Released Persons by immigration and emigration officers ( authorities ).
2. To allow the Provisional Released Persons to live independently and allow ( permit ) them for employment during their stay in Japan.
3. To make necessary Rules for ( Karihomen ) Provisional Released Persons to live in Japan without any kind of harassments and troubles.
4. To transform ( Karihomen ) Provisional Released Persons with valid Visas to live and stay in Japan.
5. Immigration, to apologize and redress to mental and physical damage during and after detention.

     We call on you, individuals or organizations, to express support for the five demands above.

     Also, we invite everyone interested in this issue living in Japan, non-Japanese or Japanese, to participate in the demonstration on February 25.

- If you would like to express your support, email junkie_slip999@yahoo.co.jp .

- Please include your name; it does not have to be your officially registered name; add affiliation and/or title if you would like it to be published.

- If it is OK to publish your name on our website, please let us know. We also accept support from individuals who wish to remain anonymous.

- We publish the names of organizations on our website that express support for us.

List of those who have expressed support

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stop “Re-Detention”!
～再収容をやめろ～

Dear Friends　親愛なる友へ
 We, the refugees and immigrants, have been finally granted a so-called "provisional release" after over a year of detainment in the immigration center which had a devastating effect on our body and soul. Since then, we turn ourselves over to the immigration officials on a stated day every month. However we are in fear of facing further hardships by re-detention, depending on the result of the refugee recognition procedure or administrative lawsuit. If that were the case what was the meaning of our first detainment? Even as we applied for the recognition of refugee status and the administrative lawsuit thereof, we are yet to be freed. We cannot accept such a violation of human rights. That is why we established “Provisional Release Association in Japan” (PRAJ) and encourage everyone to oppose the re-detention policy. We may be foreigners but we are just as human as the people of Japan. Japanese Government’s policy which hinders the basic human rights of foreigners must not be allowed. In order to abolish such a policy which is directly in violation of human rights, we foreigners need to unite and let our voices be heard.

Stop mental torture 精神的拷問をやめろ 　Stop killing overstayers オーバーステイ外国人を殺すな 　Release detainees from your torture 被収容者を拷問から解放しろ 　Stop re-detention 再収容するな 　Stop violations of human rights 人権侵害をやめろ

February.25. (Fri.) 12:30 gathering at Shinagawa Station Bus Stop for Nyukan / 13:00 Departure
２月２５日（金） 12：30 品川駅入管行きバス停前集合 / 13：00出発

Organized by Provisional Release Association in Japan (PRAJ)
Contact: MASUDA 080-3421-4060 / MIYASAKO 090-6547-7628
主催 ： 仮放免者の会  連絡先:増田080-3421-4060　宮廻090-6547-7628