Japan’s revised Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law, which comes into full effect on Monday, has raised alarms among those facing possible deportation under the new regulations.
The revised law marks a major change in the rules for detention and repatriation of foreigners without residency status and allows the government to deport individuals who have applied for refugee status three or more times even while their application is pending, unless they have a have a valid reason. .
“There will be no guarantee of life if I return,” said Myo Kyaw Kyaw, 38, a member of Myanmar’s persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority who is seeking refugee status in Japan after fleeing the Southeast Asian country. “It is a law that does not protect lives.”
