[War] Japan: "The Strangers Amoung Us"

[Ian]

OOC: Changing the date of "Headaches" to 10 March, and keeping it in the this WR. This post follows.

"The Strangers Amoung Us"
Prime Minister Shunichi Sato
Japan
10 March 2014
----------------------------

Japan was a hard country to live in if you weren't Japanese; and unlike the West where you could be American or Canadian just by crossing the border filling out some form and jumping through some hoops, to be Japanese, you had to be born of Japanese parents, who were in turn born of Japanese back until your neighbours forgot, otherwise you were Gaijin.

Sato had grown up with that and was fine with it really, in some ways he was even proud; while the rest of the world became a melting pot had Japan retained it's identity. However he was also aware that the countries who survived were like bamboo, they bent in the wind. So he too was willing to bend.

To that end he met with the Minister of Justice Matsumoto and Minister of Education Sekihara to discuss plans for the future of Japan's non-native populations, and it's one non-Japanese native one.

Sato sat down with the Ministers at his conference table just off of his office and nodded as tea was served. "I know these are troubling subjects so let us start with the easiest things first," he said.

The men nodded gratefully and the Justice Minister began.

"The Burakumin," he began speaking of Japan's untouchable class who traditionally worked as butchers, leather workers and undertakers who by the standards of Shinto were unclean due to their contact with death. "We were discussing making looking into a person's family background illegal for employers."

Sato nodded. "Yes," he said. "And firing Burakumin if their history is discovered after employment."

The Justice Minister inclined his head. "Yes."

Sato knew as well as the others this would be only a token gesture and would effect only the most low level jobs, senior jobs, management and so on would always involve some inquiry into the applicant's family history, however under the law it would now have to be unofficial.

Sekihara who came from the party's far-left asked. "What about marriage arrangments?"

Matsumoto shook his head. "Impossible to legislate, families will always want to know who their children are marrying and we have no right to interfere with it."

"Yes, but if these people are denyed marriage we are effectively committing genocide."

Sato knew this was going to go on for a bit if he didn't step in. "Sekihara-san, the Justice Minister is correct, we cannot interfere with the actions of families."

Sekihara frowned but nodded. "Yes, Mr. Prime Minister."

Genocide? Sato thought as he sat back and listened to the Justice Minister spin out his proposal for the bill introduction, a touch over-dramatic, Burakumin married all the time, yes, often to their own kind, but then it was only a responsible for a parent to prevent their children marrying one of their kind, what good would that do their children? His mind came back to the present.

"Have you informed the business community about our intent?" Sato asked Matsumoto.

"Yes, I mentioned it to a number of my aquaintances, it will be widely known by now."

Good, the last thing they needed was to raise the ire of buisiness over such a token law. "When do you see us moving ahead with this?"

"We will introduce it for it's first reading next week there is likely to be no opposition."

Sato nodded. "Good, next then I suppose," he checked the agenda. "The Ainu."

Japan's indiginous population. Again you could lay their problems at the door of Shinto, which claimed that the O-Kami created Japan and the Japanese people; another people being here first somewhat complicated that belief. Sato for his part was perfectly fine reconciling his faith in Shinto with the facts of science. The texts were works of men, the Kami, were a matter of faith.

Sekihara took over. "We're adding to April's budget, with the approval of the Finance Ministry, a billion yen for the preservation of the Ainu language and special grants to schools in the Hokkaido region who provide classes in the language to their Ainu students over the next three years."

Sato nodded. It was past due, the Ainu language was all but extinct and no matter what the Kojiki might say, he felt the Ainu were part of his Japan and worthy of preservation.

Matsumoto added. "They will also be allowed to be added to the Family Registry without modification of their names," he said. 

The Family Registry was how you were counted in Japan, it was a census, record of your birth, marriage, death and property all in one, and under the existing laws you needed to have a Japanese name writeable in Kanji to be added, meaning it had to be Japanese. 

"Very good," he said.  "The next subject, the foreign residents."

"Well I think the amensity will be accepted by the people but we will have a hard time of naturalizing the foreign communities in Japan. They are either too different in the case of Westerners and the South Americans, or they are too distrusted in the case of the Chinese and Koreans."

Sato frowned, this from the party who had four members of the Diet who were foreigners born in Japan. 

Matsumoto continued. "In particular the Koreans are a concern, the Korean Residence Union and the Association of Korean Residents in Japan have both been stirring up problems of late with the conflict in North Korea."

The Korean Residence Union or Midran as it was called for short primarily supported the South Korean side of the penninsula's dispute, and actively supported it's people keeping their Korean identity while living in Japan; the Association of Korean Residents or Chosen Soren was depending on who you ask either strongly allied to, or a front for the government of old North Korea. Both groups were actively lobbying for Japan to oppose the Chinese mission in North Korea, for once in their organizational lives agreeing on something. However a couple of violent protests had coloured them poorly in the country's perception.

"I see what you mean," Sato said. 

Matsumoto nodded. "Yes, and in reguards to Chosen Soren, Koancho wanted permission to quietly contact the Chinese intelligence community about any information they might have on Chosen Soren's activities during the Kim regime."

"They have it, to what end though?"

"We have an opportunity here to prove if they had anything to do with the abductions of Japanese citizens and arrest foreign intelligence assets on Japanese soil."

Sato nodded. "Let's approach the North Korean's too, bribe them if nessissary, I am sure some of the members of the Provisional Government would have access to the information we're after."

Matsumoto grunted his agreement. "I'll make sure Koancho begins looking into this. Now, are we going ahead with these changes for the foreigners currently living in Japan?"

Sato sat back and then shook his head. "No, not yet, we'll see how our leak to the media plays with the public. If there seems to be support we'll move forward, if not, then we'll put it on a shelf for a while. However unless there is strenuous objection from your ministry or the cabinet, I'd like to allow non-Japanese spouses of Japanese citizens on the Family Registry, with kana-ized names. 

Matsumoto made another agreeing noise. "I do not think anyone in the ministry will disagree to that, however the family registry is managed at a local level, I would appreciate if we could speak with the local governments before there is any public announcement of our plans."

Sato nodded. "Of course."

He turned to Sekihara. "And you had one last intitiative for in reguards to language?"

The Minister nodded. "Yes, my Ministry would like to support classes in the languages of the Ryukyu islands in schools in that region."

Sato nodded. He'd read the report, it was sound, support for in class studies of those languages and funds for after school programs as well, all for around three billion yen over five years. Expensive yes, but culturally important. "I approve, we'll introduce it in the budget."

Shortly after the meeting ajourned.

note: billion yen aprox 10 million USD


Actions:

1. Propose a bill that makes looking at a person's family history illegal for perspective employers, the same bill also proposes to make firing a Burakumin an offence. Both crimes will be punishable with fines of $10,000 USD. The Japanese business community will be given advance warning as not to blind side them.

2. Add 1 billion yen (10 million USD) over three years to the budget for classes in the Hokkaido region aimed at teaching the Ainu the Ainu languange. Additionally a bill will be proposed to add the Ainu to the Family Registry without requiring them to choose a Japanese name.

3. Continue to debate naturalization of Japan's foreign residents.

4. Allow foreign spouses of Japanese citizens to be entered into the Family Registry without needing to choose Japanese names. (Currently foreign spouses are added as a footnote and any children are listed as illegitimate)

5. Add 3 billion yen (30 million USD) over five years to the budget for classes to teach the languages of the Ryukyu's in the Okninawa prefecture.







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