Anti-foreign sentiment and politicians rising in Japan

TOKYO (AP) – Outside a railway station near Tokyo, hundreds of people are cheering as Sohei Kamiya, head of the surgent nationalist party’s Sansate, criticising Japan’s rapidly growing foreign population.

Opponents separated by uniformed police and bodyguards denounce racism and Kamiya screams, saying that he only speaks common sense.

Sanseito is still a minor party, but made a huge profit. Parliamentary elections in Julyand Kamiya’s “Japan’s first” platform for anti-globalism, anti-immigration and anti-liberalism, The ruling party will vote on Saturday It chooses the possibility Next Prime Minister.

Prohibition policy Populists who vent their dissatisfaction In a simple target, they are struggling, so they are more attractive to Japanese people Salary reductionprice rise and future prospects.

“We’re frustrated by these issues, but we’re way too reserved. Kamiya spells them all out for us,” said Kenzo Hagiya, an audience retired who said “foreigner issues” was one of his biggest concerns.

Populist surges come Japantraditionally isolated nations that value conformity and uniformity have seen a record surge in foreigners needed to strengthen their shrinking workforce.

In September, angry protests, backed by social media misinformation about the looming floods of African immigrants, negated government-led exchange programs between four Japanese municipalities and African countries.

Even the governing party, which promoted foreign labor and tourism, now calls for strict restrictions on foreigners, but without showing Japan, which has one of the fastest aging in the world, The fastest dwindling groupit floats economically without them.

Kamiya says his platform has nothing to do with racism

“We just want to protect the peaceful lives of the Japanese people and public safety,” he told a rally in Yokohama, a major residential area for foreigners. Japanese people tolerate foreigners who respect “Japanese methods,” but those who cling to their habits are unacceptable to threaten, stress, and anger the Japanese.

Kamiya said the government is only allowing the country to benefit foreign workers to benefit large Japanese companies.

“Why do foreigners come first when Japanese people struggle with fear and struggle with their goals?” Kamiya asked. “We’re just saying the obvious things in a clear way. It’s wrong to attack us for racism.”

Kamiya’s anti-immigrant message is gaining traction

All five candidates, the leader of the governing liberal Democratic Party on Saturday, will vote to replace the resignation of Isbaiba as the prime minister pledges stricter measures against foreigners.

One of her favourites, former economic security minister Takagi, is a hard-line, ultra-conservative Tagawa City, and has been criticized for defending unconfirmed claims that foreign tourists abused deer in her hometown of Nala’s park.

Kochi later said he wanted to convey a growing sense of anxiety and anger among many Japanese people about “outrageous” foreigners.

During the July election campaign, far-right candidates humiliated around 2,000 Kurdish people in Japan, many of whom fled persecution in Türkiye.

A Kurdish citizen who fled to Japan as a child after his father was arrested for complaining about military hazes said he and his fellow Kurdish people must deal with people calling criminals on social media.

Japan has a history of discrimination against the ethnic Koreans and Chinese people, which are said to be the colonial era of the first half of the 20th century.

Some of that discrimination continues today with insults and attacks targeting Chinese immigrants, investors and their businesses.

Hoang Vinh Tien, 44, a Vietnamese resident who has lived in Japan for over 20 years, says foreigners often have low wages and face discrimination, including renting apartments. He says he worked hard to be accepted as a part of the community.

“When I heard about the troubles involved in foreigners, I share the concerns of Japanese people who want to protect Japan and support stricter measures from all countries, including Vietnam,” Hoang said.

The increase in the number of foreigners, but not enough to strengthen the economy

Last year, Japan’s foreign population hit a new high of over 3.7 million. That’s only 3% The population of the country. Japan, which promotes inbound tourism, also aims to attract 60 million visitors in 2030, from 50 million last year.

Foreign workers tripled last year to a record 2.3 million, the last year, over the past decade, at 2.3 million, according to the Ministry of Health’s labor statistics. The 300,000 increase from the previous year was twice the expected pace. Many work in manufacturing, retail, agriculture and fishing.

Even if the number of foreigners increased dramatically, only around 12,000 foreigners were arrested last year, but the state police agency is shown despite the fact that the vigilant claims to commit crimes.

The Liberal Democrats in 1993, Foreign trainee program It has since expanded its scope dramatically. However, the program has been criticized as an exploitative attempt to compensate for the decline in the domestic workforce. Updated in 2027, it will increase workers’ flexibility and stricter employer oversight.

Many Japanese immigrants speak little Japanese and view them as cheap workers who allow their children to drop out of school and live in high crime communities, says Toshihiro Menju, an international research university professor at the Customs University and an immigration policy expert.

He says that bias comes from Japan’s “stealth immigration system” that accepts foreign workers as de facto immigrants, but without providing appropriate support for them and without providing explanations to the public to promote acceptance.

Her 50s Sansate supporters reflected some of these views, but admitted that she had never personally encountered trouble with foreigners.

Japan, on the other hand, faces real economic pain if it doesn’t understand the issue of immigration.

According to a 2022 survey by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the country will need three times more foreign workers, or a total of 6.7 million people, to achieve annual growth of 1.24% by 2040. Without these workers, the Japanese economy, including the agriculture, fishing and services sectors, would be paralyzed, experts say.

It is unclear whether Japan will be able to attract many foreign workers in the future. Because it is less attractive due to a decline in salary and lack of diversity.

Growing Party is part of a changing political landscape

Sanseito started in 2020 when Kamiya began attracting people who were unhappy with traditional parties on YouTube and social media.

Kamiya, a former council member of the town of Susa near Osaka, focused on modern Japanese history, conspiracy theory, anti-vaccine ideas and revisionist views of spiritualism.

Kamiya said he was “very inspired by anti-globalism policies.” US President Donald Trumpbut not his style. He invited conservative activists and Trump ally Charlie Kirk to Tokyo for a lecture event just days before his assassination, and Kamiya compared his party to far-right parties such as the German Party (AFD), the French national assembly, and the British reform Britain.

His priorities were to expand his support base further, and he said in an interview with the Associated Press that he hopes to send more than 100 candidates in future elections.