Japan to Start Fingerprinting Foreign Travelers 520
rabiddeity writes "If you're planning to visit Japan sometime in the near future, you should be aware of the welcome you'll get. Last year, Japan's parliament passed a measure requiring foreigners to submit their fingerprints when entering the country. The measures, which apply to all foreigners over 16 regardless of visa status, take effect tomorrow. The worst part: the fingerprints are stored in a national database for an "unspecified time", and will be made available to both domestic police and foreign governments."
This policy sounds familiar... (Score:3, Informative)
http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/01/07/0127227 [slashdot.org]
http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/01/08/125235 [slashdot.org]
http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/06/26/1944228 [slashdot.org]
Yes, apparently it could. Japan isn't the first by a long shot.
Let me tell you how ridiculous this is... (Score:5, Informative)
Despite this, from this Tuesday I will be required to line up with the regular foreign tourists and have my picture and fingerprints taken every time I enter Japan and every time I *leave* Japan.
Also, I still have to make sure I have a re-entry permit which I have to get every 3 years or I will lose my status completely.
All of this because I *might* be a terrorist or criminal.
The one thing I wonder is, if I pass away during a trip abroad are they going to take my picture and fingerprints when they bring my body back to the nice gravesite in rural Gumma prefecture where I'm going to be buried when I die?
Re:Hmmm... (Score:4, Informative)
I live in Aomori-ken and yes, it does. I love living here, but I am very upset about these measures. Rightly or wrongly (stastically wrongly, but seeing the way some English teachers and others behave here, I'm not surprised many Japanese people see things this way) the uptick in immigration is associated with crime (though in the U.S. it's the same way). I am very unhappy that while I have been a productive citizen here I am going to be treated like a criminal when I leave to visit other countries and return.
There's a lot to love here, but the conservative party and those supporting it (including the supposed opposition party) need to go.
Re:New Travel Destination (Score:2, Informative)
I'd recommend Singapore, where I live, but they've got my fingerprint here too. I'm not a Singaporean national; they took my thumb print back in 2006 when I was a fresh graduate from university, applying for a work permit. They have a national ID card system for their nationals and permanent residents, though. And it's linked to nearly everything.
Back in Bangladesh, where I'm originally from, they're implementing a national ID card system. To wide public support, btw.
In the Middle East (United Arab Emirates) where I grew up, they've been keeping foreign workers' passports under lock & key of their employers for the longest time, and issuing an ID card for foreign workers (the majority of their resident population).
Most expatriates living and working in these countries have been stomaching this stuff for generations now. The general rule is keep your nose out of trouble and no trouble will come to you.
Re:Perfect timing (Score:3, Informative)
Re:New Travel Destination (Score:5, Informative)
For the Visa waiver program, I also need to fill out a form every time asking whether I am a nazi, have any infectious diseases or have the intention to commit terrorist acts.
It also warns you that 1f you check 'yes' to any of those questions, you may be denied entry to the united states
Gov't Video/Poster on this + an online petition (Score:5, Informative)
First off, I'd encourage everyone who opposes this policy to register their views with this online petition [ipetitions.com].
I would also encourage you to write a letter to the Ministry of Justice at:
Also, send a copy to the Japanese National Tourist Organization, making clear the impact on tourism, at their Japanese headquarters and your regional office listed at the URL below:
Not only is this policy an invasion of privacy, but also discriminatory in its application. Of the major terrorist incidents in Japan, none has been committed by a foreigner -- 1995 Tokyo Sarin Gas attacks, bombing of government office buildings in Hokkaido in the 70s, assassination of the Mayor of Nagasaki... all perpetrated by Japanese nationals.
Further, fingerprinting is dubious at best in preventing terrorist attacks. A terrorist organization capable of a serious attack on Japan is capable of entering the country without passing through immigration. From the point of view of politics, however, fingerprinting foreigners is an easy way to make it appear as though you're getting tough on terrorism and foreign crime.
Lastly, The Japanese government has produced an introductory video [gov-online.go.jp] on the new scheme that you really have to see to believe. As the guy in the video says "I'll pass it on to all my friends". I get the feeling this won't have the effect the Japanese government intends it to have.
They've also put out a PDF version [immi-moj.go.jp] of the poster for this program.
Re:Thanks to the US (Score:5, Informative)
Japan used to fingerprint all foreigners when they had to get their "gaijin cards". This was fought and overturned in 1999. Now Japan is playing the "terror" card to once again fingerprint foreigners. This is why the foreigners who live here are not exempt.
A few years back Japan tried to implement a program fingerprinting all of Japan's Citizens. There was a public outcry and the plan was scrapped, but foreigners are foreigners and fair game.
There are many things I love about Japan, but this is simply a waste of time and money.
Oh, here is a nice promotional video Japan has kindly put together for us stupid foreign people.
http://nettv.gov-online.go.jp/common/moviechk.php?p=1203&d=0&t=110&b=0&m=1&r=2 [gov-online.go.jp]
You can easily see their perception of foreigners as slightly retarded, happy, future criminals by the way we are portrayed in this video.
Re:Let me tell you how ridiculous this is... (Score:4, Informative)
1) You don't have to be a permanent resident to go through the "Japanese" line at Immigration. All you need is a re-entry permit. A person on a 3-month Entertainer visa can go through the JP Citizen line if they have a re-entry permit.
2) It doesn't necessarily take five to ten years to get permanent residency. The path that most permanent residents take is to marry a Japanese. In that case, 3 years of being married to a Japanese (with one year of that residing in Japan). To compare, in 2000 the U.S. required two years of marriage (but no residency requirement) for my Japanese spouse to receive permanent residency. Easier, but not that different.
3) You don't know that you will be required to line up with regular foreigners in the immigration line to get fingerprinted.
4) Lining up in the Japanese line is not always faster. Depending on the flights coming in, the Alien/Foreigner lines are sometimes faster and/or smaller. The big benefits you get from permanent residency is a) not needing a visa or a reason (job or spouse) to be in Japan and b) (making it easier to) qualify for home/business loans and consumer credit.
5) The re-entry permit length for permanent residency is not always three years. It lasts until you have to renew your permanent residency status. Usually five years. In comparison, a permanent resident of the U.S. (may) lose their status if they're out of the U.S. for more than a year, unless they can prove a residual tie or they have a re-entry permit. The U.S. re-entry permit lasts only two years. And it's much more expensive (>$150 for one-time use max 2 year US re-entry permit vs ¥3000 for a JP one-timer or ¥6000 for multiple-use permit).
One last thing: you obviously haven't lived in Japan for a very long time, as the non-fingerprinting of foreigners is a new post Y2K phenomenon. Granted, in the past it was done at the Ward Office and put on your Alien Registration Card.
To compare, as an American citizen, I've been fingerprinted for all sorts of jobs: working as a substitute public teacher during college and working at an investment bank. Many Americans whose jobs deal with law enforcement, children, or handling large amounts of money are required to submit to fingerprinting (and often drug tests).
* Also: UNDER FIVE minutes from plane to train? C'mon, even without a single human obstacle in your way, that's at least a sprint/race-walk pace from the jetway and down a lot of hallways and escalators to either the Keisei line or the JR line.
Re:New Travel Destination (Score:5, Informative)
A guy I know gave a silly answer to the question 'what is the reason for your visit?', and was held up for interrogation for several hours.
Re:New Travel Destination (Score:4, Informative)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_Waiver_Program [wikipedia.org]
Re:high and mighty (Score:5, Informative)
This happens when you REALLY start to learn to speak Japanese and start to talk to more of the citizens. When you get a job and have to do things like look for housing or deal with banks. Then the xenophobia starts to rear its ugly head. Landlords refuse to rent to you simply because you are a foreigner. You begin to understand the racist muttering from the older folks. You notice the condescending and discriminatory depiction of non-Japanese on the TV shows. Many gaijin go home at this point
Phase 3 begins when you accept that this is the reality of Japan and find ways to work around it. You move to the more progressive areas and modify your behaviour to fit better into the society. If you can get to this stage you will have a life-long love of Japan and all the wonderful things it has (geek toys, hot springs, and food, oh God the food!) despite all the negative aspects (pollution, crowding, expense, racism).
Eventually you may still move back to your country as some things cannot be overcome. In our case it was the education of our children. There was just no way we could put our kids through the Japanese school system and the living space we had was just too small to be comfortable. Hindsight has shown this to be a very wise move especially considering the experience of our kids when they have gone back to Japan for short-term attendance at Japanese schools.
Re:So? (Score:2, Informative)
- mistreating of arrested suspects (forced confessions, arrests for undefined lengths, denying lawyer contact, etc)
- an extremely high conviction rate (if you are brought to the bench, you will very likely be convicted. Judges are proud of their conviction rates. Suspects are oriented to write confessions/apologies in order to get lighter punishments - even if they are innocent, etc)
- a police force not accountable to anyone
The above are true for japanese citizens, and doubly true for "damn foreigners who come to japan just to commit crimes".
So, it is not a case of "they might get you for an unjust crime", but rather - "if someone points a finger at you, you are fsck'd". Since they are only fingerprinting foreigners, if they get to a crime scene, where there are japanese fingerprints (not recorded) and foreign fingerprints (recorded), guess what is going to happen.
Re:...and this differs US entry practices HOW? (Score:1, Informative)
Brazil is implementing reciprocity in the sense that there is a special line for "US citizens" (soon to include Japanese citizens as well) to get fingerprinted.
But, with the Japenese implementation, this is not reciprocity,... unless you ignore the collateral damage.
I am a European living in Japan (permanent resident). For work and leisure, I do travel quite frequently to Europe, US, and other Asian countries (i.e., more than 10-15 international trips a year). Now, when travelling to the US, I will get full service both ways, with the "super quad-S oversize-me security check" each time I board a plane to or from the US. This is in spite of the fact that my country fingerprints neither US nor Japanese citizens (although this may come someday).
There is also another difference between the US and the Japanese implementations in that, in the US one, green card holders are at least not asked to give their fingerprints each time they reenter their country of residency (and thus line up for 45 minutes or more, together with all regular visitors).
This is significant when one makes short trips (3-4 nights) abroad and thus does not have any checked-in luggage. In my case, when traveliing back from the US, the difference in time can be significant in that it determines whether I can be back home on the same day or must stay overnight in a hotel near the airport.
Re:Let me tell you how ridiculous this is... (Score:3, Informative)
I found a n announcement note that claims initially they may allow families with at least one Japanese parent and a re-entry holder and kids under 16 to use the Japanese citizens line. (and potentially bypass fingerprinting) Don't want the kids asking why Daddy is being treated like a criminal.
Re:Hmmm... (Score:3, Informative)
That statistic doesn't mean anything on its own, so I'm going to contribute an article [bbc.co.uk].
Re:Let me tell you how ridiculous this is... (Score:1, Informative)
We've got lots of silly rules before you can apply for the dutch nationality, like having lived (legally) in the Netherlands for no less than 15 years, but you do not need to renounce other nationalities. Yet.
Description of the new gate system (Score:4, Informative)
I lost my first post which included this and a small rant. Whatever. I am quite unhappy about this, and it seems to reverse the direction they were going, but the U.S. remains the king of security theater and it is an easy political win I suppose. They already got my photo and fingerprint from my passport and old foreigner card but I know I'm going to hate this. If it is in fact required.
Forwarded Email:
---
Further to my message on new immigration procedures last week, this is to
inform you that Ministry of Justice has now issued instructions in English
on how to undergo pre-registration for the new semi automatic gate system to
be established at Narita Airport on November 20.
Please find attached the instruction document, which should be available
soon on the MoJ website.
---
[For Foreigners]
(Reference Material for the PR Dept.)
Operation of the Automated Gate
Ministry of Justice, Immigration Bureau
1. Introduction
Automated gates will be placed at Narita Airport from November 20th, 2007, in order to improve convenience of immigration procedures by simplifying and accelerating them. We would like to ask foreigners who wish to use the automated gates to provide their personal identification information (fingerprints and a facial portrait) in advance and register themselves as applicants in order to use the gate.
2. Registration as an Applicant to Use the Automated Gate
1. Required Items for Registration
1. Valid passport (including Re-entry Permit) and re-entry permission
2. Application form to use the automated gate
2. Where and When to Register
We will be accepting applications from November 20th at the locations stated below:
1. Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau
Application Counter for re-entry permission (2F) 9:00-16:00 (Except Saturdays, Sundays, National Holidays and December 29th to January 3rd)
2. Narita Airport District Immigration Office
The departure inspection area at South Wing of Passenger Terminal 1: 9:00-17:00
The departure inspection area at the South Exit of Passenger Terminal 2: 9:00-17:00
3. Registration Procedures
Submit your application form with your passport and provide fingerprints of both index fingers and a facial portrait.
Then, when the official affixes a registration stamp on your passport, the registration procedure is complete. In principle, you can use the gate from that day forward.
4. Points of Concern for the Registration
1. Time Limit of Registration
You can register until the expiration date of your passport or the expiration date of your re-entry permit, whichever comes earlier.
2. Registration Restrictions
In some cases, such as when you cannot provide fingerprints, you may not be able to register.
3. Using and Providing the Registered Information
We will manage information including fingerprints and facial portraits provided at the registration as personal information set forth in laws on protection of personal informati
Conrad Black managed it... (Score:3, Informative)
Of course, if you look into Conrad's story, he wants it back now!