APFS reports on activities and requests for summer donations

Thank you for your continued support and cooperation with APFS.
Since October 2012, APFS has been working with 34 irregular foreign residents (17 families and 3 individuals) to seek special permission to stay in Japan. Although the number of irregular foreign residents has decreased statistically (62,009 as of January 2013), their desperate need for permission to stay in Japan remains unchanged. APFS continues to work energetically with the irregular foreign residents, including the "Yurakucho-Ginza Parade" (November 2012), the "Human Chain" Action in front of the Ministry of Justice" (December 2012), and the "Submission of a Petition to the Prime Minister's Office" (March 2013).

In May 2013, we carried out a "one-week sit-in" in front of the Tokyo Immigration Bureau. This action was proposed and carried out by the people themselves. Thanks to this, the action was reported in TBS, Asahi Shimbun, Japan Times, etc. In order to obtain special permission to stay in Japan, it is important that society once again pays attention to the problems faced by irregular residents. We will continue to appeal to society to allow them to stay in Japan.

Meanwhile, as we have been reporting for some time, the lawsuit for state compensation in the death of ABUBAKAR AWUDU SURAJ (Ghanaian national) is reaching its climax. The immigration officials who drove SURAJ to his death are scheduled to be questioned in Courtroom 706 of the Tokyo District Court from 10:00am to 5:00pm on Friday, September 13th, 2013. We ask for your cooperation in attending the hearing. APFS is determined to fight to the end together with the surviving family.

In addition, we have resumed the "Foreign Residents Support Project for Disaster Areas" since April 2013. In April 2013, six foreign members visited Rikuzentakata and Ofunato in Iwate Prefecture, where they provided foot baths for the elderly, made flower beds, and cut down trees. The efforts of the foreign members, who are in the prime of their working lives, were well received in the disaster-stricken areas, where the population is aging. In the disaster-stricken areas, some have said, "Two years have passed since the disaster, and tears are finally flowing," and it is believed that mental support will be necessary in the future. There are many things that foreign members can do. APFS plans to send foreign members to disaster-stricken areas three times a year.

In addition to the activities mentioned above, the office is engaged in "solution-oriented" consultations on a daily basis. We are cutting expenses as much as possible, including personnel costs, but APFS' finances are tight due to the need to maintain the office and full-time staff, as well as the cost of daily activities.

We would like to ask everyone for donations. We would be grateful if you could support APFS' activities with your donations. We appreciate your cooperation.

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