Refugee Law and Practice in Japan

Osamu Arakaki is Professor at the College of Foreign Studies, Kansai Gaidai University, Japan. He was Refugee Adjudication Counsellor for the Japanese Minister of Justice and a Visiting Professor at the Graduate School of the University of Tokyo.

• Contents: Introduction; Crisis of refugee protection; Refugees and Japan; Refugee status determination procedure; Refugee definition; Refugee rights; Conclusion: towards international cooperation for human rights and world peace; Appendices; Bibliography; Index.

Refugee Law and Practice in Japan is not only the first book written in English that provides a comprehensive treatment and analysis on the subject, but it is also a remarkable achievement in comparative legal scholarship. This thorough review not only illuminates the current shortcomings and weaknesses in Japan's refugee law and practice, but it also suggests practical remedies to address these critical areas of concern. It concludes by providing an agenda for how, and more importantly why, Japan must play a leadership role in advancing international human rights, refugee rights, and world peace, in an era of unprecedented globalisation. James C. Simeon, York University, Toronto, Canada 'This book describes the Japanese law and practice on refugees in a comprehensive manner. The author, currently an academic, has ample practical experience, for example, as a legal officer of the UNHCR in Australia and a Refugee Examination Counsellor in Japan. The book skillfully analyzes not only what the law of refugees is, but also how it functions in Japan.' Yuji Iwasawa, University of Tokyo, Japan '[This book] is the most detailed work in English on actual refugee practice in Japan...[and] explains better than anyone has done to date in English the puzzle of why a rich and safe country like Japan has such a low number of asylum seekers and recognized refugees. Rather than myopically limit itself to a single narrow explanation or unhelpfully provide an unlimited list of reasons, the great value of this book is how Arakaki's subtlety weaves the argument that it is institutional norms that most matter and are most lacking.' Human Rights Law Review 'Arakaki's work is informed by his work for UNHCR and as a Refugee Examination Counsellor for the Japanese Ministry of Justice. It is a scholarly analysis which throws light into a dark corner of Japan's domestic humanitarian record on refugees. The book is the first comprehensive analysis of the topic in English and makes a unique and significant contribution to the study of comparative refugee law.' Journal of Refugee Studies