RIGHTS-JAPAN: Desperate, Kurds Persist with Sit-in Protest

By Suvendrini Kakuchi Reprint | | Print |

Suvendrini Kakuchi

TOKYO, Aug 30 2004 (IPS) - Nearly 50 days have passed since a group of Kurds, desperate for refugee status after years of waiting, launched a sit-in at the entrance of the building in the Japanese capital that houses the offices of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Although the protest has been largely fruitless, they vow to press on.

– There is nothing else we can do. This is our only hope," said Ahmet Kazankiran, his voice hoarse and eyes blood shot, after spending sleepless nights on the concrete floor with his family and another Kurdish family that includes a two-year-old boy.

The group is demanding that the UNHCR help them acquire refugee status or urge Japan to relocate them to a third country that would be amenable to their asylum request.

Kazankiran, currently fighting a deportation order by the Ministry of Justice and fellow protestor Erdal Dogan claim they face death if sent back to Turkey because of their activities in Turkey and Japan in support of Kurdish independence.

The Turkish government has banned the Kurdish language and has been suppressing the independence movement.

In addition to their families, an Iranian Kurd has joined the two men joined in their protest.

Last week, Kazankiran was taken to a hospital after showing signs of acute fatigue. His son, Mustapha, who sleeps by his side in the family’s tent, said the stress, intensified by poor living conditions – they sleep only two to three hours a day and are unable to bathe û has taken its toll on everyone.

His 48-year-old father, he added, is growing more desperate as time goes by with no signs of change or help from authorities.

ôSince we began our protest, the only response we have gotten was an order to move as quickly as possible," he explained. ôThe situation is unbearable."

Local UNHCR officials have refused to answer questions, but they released a statement last week calling on the Japanese government to assist the asylum seekers, voicing particular concern about the health impact on the young children in the group.

ôWe are not slaves. We are refugees and must be given our rights," said 30-year-old Dogan, who has also taken residence at the office building with his family.

The government maintains that people like Dogan want to remain in Japan for economic reasons. The Justice Ministry made public a report, based on an investigation its officials conducted in Turkey, that presumes Dogan is in Japan to earn money.

Human rights activists, however, question the government’s motives, citing Japan’s notoriously poor record in accepting refugees.

Between 1982, when Japan joined the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, and 2002, nearly 2,800 foreigners applied for refugee status. However, only 298 applications were approved. The approval rate last year was even lower, when just 11 of 336 applications were granted.

The numbers are even more dismal for Turkish nationals seeking asylum, 90 percent of whom, according to activists, are Kurds. Over the past five years, none of the 330 applications filed by Turks have been approved.

Japan lags far behind its western industrialised counterparts. The United States and Britain accept about 40,000 refugees annually, while Germany takes in 20,000.

ôThe plight of the Kurds is an apt illustration of the cold reception for refugees in Japan. There is much to be done to support their psychological and financial needs," said Eri Ishikawa, spokeswoman for the Centre to Support Refugees, a citizens’ group that provides humanitarian aid to asylum seekers.

The group is now monitoring the protesting Kurds. Ishikawa says members have joined the sit-in and are providing food and other medical needs. ôWe are so worried about their health, which is deteriorating given the sweltering heat this summer. We are on call 24 hours in case they need us," she explained.

Kazankiran’s case, according to supporters, is particularly traumatic. A Turkish citizen, he arrived in Japan in 1990 and was later joined by his wife and five children. The slightly built man earned a living doing various work, including truck driving, until an accident caused him to lose his job.

He first applied for refugee status in 1996, but this was not approved. Two later applications were turned down after the Justice Ministry appealed a 1999 decision by the Tokyo District Court that granted him refugee status.

Akikata Kobayashi, a lawyer who has volunteered to represent Kazankiran, said Japanese officials who investigated his case have found discrepancies in his testimony, such as certain dates when he claimed to be in Turkey but was actually in Britain. ôSuch problems work against his case," he acknowledged.

Still, Ishizkawa argues that the government’s stance illustrates how human rights and the need to protect people from persecution have less priority in Japan’s policy towards refugees and asylum seekers.

ôThe issue that faces Japan now is protecting Kurds from persecution in Turkey," she said. ôAnd clearly, given UNHCR intervention, Kazankiran needs help. That must be the priority."