ACTION

In 2016, 10,901 people sought asylum in Japan, up 44 percent from a year earlier, when the country accepted 27. Of the accepted refugees, seven were from Afghanistan, four from Ethiopia and three from Eritrea. It was not clear whether any Syrians had applied for, or won, asylum.

And one of the reasons for this policy is this: Of the 27 Muslim ‘refugees’ taken in by Japan in 2015, two Turkish nationals have already gang-raped a woman

Another reason is Muslims protesting in Tokyo against free speech:

Another reason is Turkish Muslims rioting in Tokyo about something not even happening in Japan:

Reuters  Immigration is a controversial subject in Japan, where many pride themselves on cultural and ethnic homogeneity, even as the population ages and its workforce shrinks. Although a major donor to international aid organizations, Japan has been reluctant to relax asylum policies or allow in Muslim migrant workers.

Human Rights Watch last month called Japan’s record on asylum seekers “abysmal,” urging it to accept more and strengthen protection for migrant workers.

The beheadings of two Japanese nationals by ISIS in Syria didn’t bode well for Muslim immigration to Japan.

Asylum seekers from Indonesia topped the list of those arriving in Japan last year, followed by people from Nepal, the Philippines and Turkey. Ninety-seven people, though not recognized as refugees, were granted residency for humanitarian reasons.

“The refugee system here is so tough,” said Suleyman Yucel, 32, a Kurdish Muslim asylum seeker from Turkey whose third bid for refugee status was rejected in April. Like many Muslim asylum seekers, Yucel is banned from working and lives under severe restrictions on movement. “Japan is making decisions on my life, and I have no choice over what happens to me,” he said.