The morning after her arrival to Japan, Natalia was on the balcony looking out over the greenery surrounding the Arrupe and shedding tears. She was filled with unspeakable grief and sorrow, thinking of the forests of her hometown and the friends she had lost. That evening, after the rain, a large double rainbow appeared in the sky. It was a rainbow that seemed to heal wounded souls and broken hearts and pour hope into the divided land.

Alexei and Natalia have obtained residency status and have begun their lives as citizens of Kamakura. They have become accustomed to life at Arrupe and have started learning Japanese. Natalia, who honed her skills as a chef in Ukraine, sometimes serves us borscht, piroshki, brinchki (crepes), etc. We communicate with her using gestures and a translation app while living together.

We have been greatly encouraged by the growing circle of people who have learned about Arrupe for the first time through our support for Ukraine and have joined our network. At the same time, however, it is very complicated to think about the feelings of the residents from Asia and Africa who have been waiting for a long time to obtain residency status, during which time they are unable to work, their freedom of movement is restricted, and they have no access to health insurance. We strongly hope that the same treatment as the Ukrainian displaced persons will be applied to refugees and displaced persons fleeing from the rest of the world so that all can walk in dignity. May the rainbow of hope reach all!

Project Supporting Refugees from
Recovery to Independence through
Empowerment and Social Participation
After One Year of Activities

We started this project with various plans and hoped to create a place for refugees and help them recover.

However, when we conducted the activities, we realized that things did not go as planned. Each of the residents came to our shelter after having experienced pain in their home countries, isolation, economic hardship, and incarceration in immigration facilities after coming to Japan. We realized that the wounds they had suffered were far deeper and more complex than we had imagined and that they would be unable to “recover” easily.

We also found that participating in activities was not easy for the residents. Even imagining just a few months into the future for residents on provisional release was painful and difficult. So planning and executing events as a community and preparing for the future by imagining life after obtaining residency status was a challenge.

During the days when plans could not be implemented as planned, we were forced to reconsider what we had initially set as our goals, such as what “recovery” means and what the state of “independence” is.

On the other hand, we saw residents laughing with each other, saying, “Everyone at Arrupe is family,” and heard comments such as, “I look forward to meeting people,” and “I am glad I can do something to help others,” through their involvement with people in the community. After spending time with the residents who gradually opened up to me, we realized the importance of relationships with others and a place in the community again.

We believe that these results could not be seen with conventional commuting support or support that only provides housing but only with the form of communal living.

We have also noticed a change in the local residents as a result of our active involvement with the community. People who initially had a scary image of refugees or thought that the issue was something far away and had nothing to do with them have become more interested in the current situation surrounding refugees as they meet the residents.

We began to hear many voices saying, “I want to be friends” and “I want to do something about this issue.” These changes led to the submission of an opinion letter from the Kamakura City Council requesting the government to review its refugee policy and efforts toward the Kamakura Nanmin Kyosei Forum.

We have learned over the past year that “relationships with people” and “a place to stay” lead to “recovery” for refugees. At the same time, we have also seen signs of acceptance in welcoming refugees into our communities. We will continue our activities to create a society that accepts refugees.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the many people who have supported and cooperated with us in implementing this project.

March 31st, 2022
NPO Arrupe Refugee Center
All Staff

PDFファイル（3.3MB）はこちら

Kuruppo, a town coin, is part of Kanagawa Prefecture’s “SDGs Tsunagari Point Project” and was created in September 2019 as a tool for residents, stores, and businesses to connect through points to solve social issues. It is currently spread across 13 areas, including Tokyo, Nagano, Osaka, Okayama, Tottori, and Fukuoka prefectures, as well as municipalities in Okinawa Prefecture.

Kamakura City introduced the program in January 2021, and 5411 citizens and 197 businesses and organizations (as of January 21, 2022) have participated and used the program.

Alpe Refugee Center is also utilizing “Kuruppo” to help refugees in the center connect with the local community.

* Machi no Coin Management Company “Funny Corporation Kayak” wrote a cartoon episode and an introductory article.

■Episode Cartoon: “Smiles Brought Back by Machi no Coin” (Omoshiro Corporation Kayak)
A heartwarming episode about a Sri Lankan refugee who got his smile back after encountering the community currency “Machi no Coin” (Kayak Inc.)

■“A Connection and the Significance of Existence” given by Machi no Coin – The Case of Arrupe Refugee Center

NHK News October 2021 Initiatives Using Kurrupo

Ms. Ayako Niijima, a board member from the Association for Refugee Assistance, was invited to give a lecture on the status of refugee reception and support in Canada through collaboration between local governments and citizens’ groups.

Over 30 people from Kamakura City Council members, Kamakura City Council of Social Welfare, citizen groups, local welfare facilities and businesses, and media attended the event and discussed how the Kamakura community can accept refugees in the future, while learning from practical examples of refugee acceptance in Canada.

From this connection, the “Kamakura Refugee Forum” was born, and together we will continue to promote “community building for living together with refugees”.

We were featured in an article introducing our activities on the front page of the evening edition of the Tokyo Shimbun.

We call each other by name.

Think of it as your own thing. 

Support Shelter in Kamakura Gives a Boost to Japan’s Refugee Policy

September 18, 2021 (Saturday) Tokyo Shimbun evening edition, front page

The online article can be found here.

The opening of Japan’s largest shelter for foreigners applying for refugee status, the Alpe-Nanmin Center, in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, has led to increased interaction between the foreigners living there and local residents. The director of the shelter says, “When people call each other by name, they begin to think of refugee issues as their own business. We would like to convey from Kamakura the absurdity of Japan’s refugee policy. (Maki Ishihara) 

At a multigenerational exchange event in July, a Sri Lankan man, when asked what his favorite food was, replied in fluent Japanese, “If it’s Sri Lankan food, it’s curry, and if it’s Japanese food, it’s gyoza.” 

He came to Japan in 2016, fearing for his life due to political strife, but was repeatedly detained in immigration detention facilities because he was not recognized as a refugee. After coming to the shelter in June, “I finally relaxed,” he says.

◆Providing food, clothing, shelter, and a place to learn Japanese to those who are applying for refugee status

　Three people from the shelter participated in the event. A Ugandan man said, “There are many delicious foods in Uganda, but the best is banana.” 

The participants showed the location of their home country on a world map and enjoyed a performance by a local music group together, deepening their friendship.

　The shelter was built last April. It is a Jesuit facility in the mountains, rented free of charge. It has about 30 private rooms and currently houses 10 people from Asia and Africa. The shelter is operated by the Arrupe Refugee Center, a non-profit organization established by people involved in refugee support groups. The center provides food, clothing, shelter, and a place to learn Japanese to those who have been provisionally released but are unable to work while applying for refugee status. Kenji Arikawa, 59, secretary-general of Arrupe, regrets that “the public does not have a high level of interest in refugee issues.” Japan’s refugee status is extremely low, and human rights abuses by the Immigration Bureau have become an issue, such as the death in March of Wishma Sandamari, then 33, a Sri Lankan national detained at the Nagoya Immigration and Resident Management Bureau.

　According to Mr. Arikawa, what is needed to change such a situation is to create a relationship in which people can call each other by their first names. “If people wonder why “〇〇-san” is not granted refugee status, they will realize that Japan’s refugee policy is wrong.”

◆Local exchange little by little…and sending out messages to the whole country

　Some of the children in the shelter attend the same kindergarten as their own children, or are treated to dishes from their home countries as a thank-you for teaching them Japanese. After seeing each other many times, local people can become more familiar with the refugee issue. Those who are in the process of applying for refugee status can gain a foothold to live in Japan after their status is approved.

　Despite the COVID19 pandemic, local children sometimes come to visit and work together in the fields on the premises. Local organizations are donating food, and exchanges are gradually beginning to take root.

　In July, the city council passed an opinion piece calling for the government to review its refugee policy, including refugee recognition and institutionalization. Mr. Arikawa hopes that the community he fostered in Kamakura will spread throughout Japan. 

Kamakura City Council, “Kamakura City Council Urges the State to Review Refugee Policy” (July 2, 2021)

Refugee Shelter in Kamakura: To Restore Closed Hearts and Minds (Asahi Shimbun, July 28, 2021)
*available only in Japanese

YouTube “Arrupe Channel”
You can see our activities and videos of World Refugee Day events.

Request for your support
The activities of Arrupe Refugee Center are supported not by government or official support but by your donations. We appreciate your support.

Arrupe News Letter No.2 (July 2021)
*available only in Japanese

Among the entities involved in these activities is the “SDGs Promotion Team,” a team consisting of elementary and junior high school students.

On Saturday, September 4, a study session was held with the children of the SDGs Promotion Team.

Although the event was held online, it was the first time for the refugees at Arrupe Refugee Center to speak about their experiences and thoughts to elementary and junior high school students. 

Although they were nervous, they seemed to experience fresh excitement and joy when they received greetings in the local language from behind the screen in response to their calls, and when questions they had worked so hard to come up with were posed to them.

“What can I, an elementary school student, do for you?” 

To which Myanmarese, M. responded, “Will you be my friend?” 

“Tell your mothers and fathers that there are people like this,” replied B, a Ugandan.

“When you grow up, will you make Japan an easy place for foreigners to live?” 

Such were some of the answers.

The questions from the hard-working elementary school students and the answers from the hard-working refugees were heartwarming.

It was a day that gave us a feeling that a good future, even though it will take time, will come if we continue to interact with the younger generation in this way. 

I believe that the expression of an opinion on refugee policy by a local assembly is a groundbreaking event. We hope that this movement will spread nationwide. The full text of the opinion letter is posted here.

Click here for the PDF file

Opinion Regarding the Need to Review Refugee Policy from a Humanitarian Standpoint

Although Japan is a signatory to the Refugee Convention, the reception of refugees is extremely low compared to other developed countries. The recognition rate has not reached 1% for a long time: in 2019, Japan recognized 44 people (0.4%) out of 10,375 applicants for refugee status, and in 2020, due to entry restrictions caused by the Corona disaster While the number of applicants plummeted to 3,936, 47 (1.2%) were granted recognition.

As a result of the strict interpretation of the Refugee Convention and that only “refugees in the limited sense” are eligible for protection, foreigners fleeing civil war and persecution, who should be protected, are in a difficult situation without being saved. For example, while many Kurds fleeing persecution in Turkey and other countries have been granted refugee status in other countries, not a single Kurd has been recognized as a refugee in Japan.

The United Nations and other organizations have long demanded that Japan’s immigration administration correct this situation. One criticism is the low refugee recognition rate. Another is the “detention of all cases” policy, which, in principle, detains foreigners who do not have the status of residence and are suspected of having grounds for deportation in immigration facilities, and the long-term detention without a maximum period of stay in these facilities, as well as the treatment that ignores human rights.

The Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act Amendment Bill submitted to the recent 204th session of the Diet was effectively scrapped due to criticism that the truth about the death of Wisima Sandamari, a Sri Lankan woman detained in an immigration facility, has not been clarified. The bill was criticized by many for such reasons as the bill facilitates the repatriation of foreigners who are unable to return home due to persecution or fear for their lives and may cause serious disadvantages and human rights violations to those targeted; the supervision measures to be introduced to correct long-term detention in immigration facilities will preserve the immigration bureau’s large discretionary authority, and the bill will be used as a means of preventing the death of foreigners who have been detained in immigration facilities for a long time. The supervision measures to be introduced to correct long-term detention in immigration facilities will lead to the preservation of the immigration bureau’s large discretionary authority. Japan’s immigration administration, which has been repeatedly pointed out for its lack of consideration for human rights, must be fundamentally reformed.

Kawaguchi City, Saitama Prefecture, has approximately 500 provisionally released Kurds residing in the city. The city takes the impoverished situation of its Kurdish residents very seriously and submitted a written request to the Minister of Justice in December 2020, requesting work permits and health insurance coverage for those on provisional release. We understand that this is a realization of the philosophy of regional coexistence by the local government.

The city of Kamakura is also committed to regional symbiosis and aims to realize a society in which “no One is Left Behind,” which is also linked to human security, which the Japanese government has positioned as a major pillar of its foreign policy. In the city, there is also a facility of the NPO Arrupe Refugee Center, where refugees live, which has started to serve as a center for regional symbiosis, connecting refugees and the local community.

The Kamakura City Council believes that a country or society that is cold to refugees who are persecuted and seek asylum in fear for their lives is a country or society that is cold to all people, and requests that the following items be promptly implemented by the government.

1 Refugee Recognition

The Immigration Bureau should establish an independent organization in charge of refugee recognition, clarify the criteria for recognition, and create a system in which attorneys are present during the recognition process, in order to change the situation in which refugees who should be protected are not recognized.

2 Detention in immigration facilities

The current situation in which, in principle, all foreign nationals without a status of residence are detained in immigration facilities should be promptly changed, and indefinite detention at the discretion of the Immigration Bureau should be eliminated. The supervision measures introduced in the revised bill should be changed to those that position detention as an exception.

3 Problems of Poverty

Under the current system, individuals under provisional release are unsure about when they will be reincarcerated, and they are also unable to earn a living on their own. The government should make it possible for such persons to work if they are guaranteed by a support group, and provide administrative services such as health insurance on the responsibility of the government.

We submit our opinion in accordance with Article 99 of the Local Autonomy Law.

July 2, 2021

The event was held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the live-streaming was a great success, with over 100 people participating in real-time, and over 1,500 people watching the event including those who came back later.

Having so many people watch the live performance and having it featured on TBS and NHK gave the Arrupe refugees a sense that their voices were heard by many people, and that is a great source of support and joy for them.

Thank you very much for tuning in.
You can also watch the video below.

World Refugee Day 2021 “Arrupe Special Live 2021” in its entirety (56 minutes)

Introduction of Alpe Nammin Center (13 minutes

Song “Thank you” (6 minutes

TBS News: Record number of refugees in the world, “further impoverished by Corona” (2021/6/20)