Japan sees their F’ed demographics and wants these foreigners to stay. Anything to avoid fixing the toxic culture and ethos surrounding work.
I think it’s probably more their plummeting birth rate and aging population. Japan is becoming a society of seniors.
Kind of crazy considering how insular that place is. Say what you will about the west but Japan is not generally less friendly to immigrants
Yeah that’s what I said. The demographics in their country have been f’ed for a while.
And Instead of fixing their society that younger people are able and willing to have children they see an easy way to infuse some young blood.
But the bottom line is that Japan seriously needs to address their societal problems and one of them is the toxic work culture they have, as it makes starting a family near impossible.
How long is that “long term”? A refugee only wants a permanent solution. Any law that will send them back at, say 80, is a nonsolution if they are seeking refuge from China, Saudi, wherever. Because they know they are lucky if their punishment at home is merely a death sentence.
I won’t believe this is a well-minded deal. The pattern has been that the bureaucrats feared conservative backlash and took every step to deter foreigners to stay. That WON’T change without destroying the current political structure.
It’s a step in the right direction, regardless. Refugees are not all in the same situation and not all of them “only want a permanent solution”. The article cites “refugees from conflict zones”, and many people in such situations are indeed considering returning home if it becomes safe. Many other people may be in a location for several years before choosing a more careful plan to settle somewhere.
Lastly, it’s a lot easier for a country to normalize the long term status of temporary residents when they are already in the work force, speaking the language, not an outsized burden on social services, etc.
