No, really, I'm not just playing computer games. I'm helping to end world hunger while increasing my vocabulary.

New Japanese Immigration Controls Worry Foreigners

By MARTIN FACKLER
Published: November 18, 2007
TOKYO, Nov. 17 — Japan has tried hard in recent years to shake its image as an overly insular society and offer a warmer welcome to foreign investors and tourists. But the country is about to impose strict immigration controls that many fear could deter visitors and discourage businesses from locating here.

On Tuesday, Japan will put in place one of the toughest systems in the developed world for monitoring foreign visitors. Modeled on the United States’ controversial U.S.-Visit program, it will require foreign citizens to be fingerprinted, photographed and questioned every time they enter Japan.

The screening will extend even to Japan’s 2.1 million foreign residents, many of whom fear they will soon face clogged immigration lines whenever they enter the country. People exempted from the checks include children under 16, diplomats and “special permanent residents,” a euphemism for Koreans and other Asians brought to Japan as slave laborers during World War II and their descendants.

The authorities say such thorough screening is needed to protect Japan from attacks by foreign terrorists, which many fear here because of Japan’s support for the United States in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

But the measures, part of an immigration law enacted last year, have been criticized by civil rights groups and foreign residents’ associations as too sweeping and unnecessarily burdensome to foreigners. They note that the only significant terrorist attack in Japan in recent decades was carried out by a domestic religious sect, which released sarin nerve gas in the Tokyo subway in 1995, killing 12 people.

Some of the most vocal critics have been among foreign business leaders, who say the screening could hurt Japan’s standing as an Asian business center, especially if it is inefficiently carried out, leading to long waits at airports. Business groups here warn that such delays could make Japan less attractive than rival commercial hubs like Hong Kong and Singapore, where entry procedures are much easier.

The business groups also contend that the screening runs counter to recent efforts by the government to attract more foreign investment and tourism.

“If businessmen based here have to line up for two hours every time they come back from traveling, it will be a disaster,” said Jakob Edberg, policy director in the Tokyo office of the European Business Council. “This will affect real business decisions, like whether to base here.”

Business groups also fault the government for bungling the few attempts it has made at explanation. Two weeks ago, the justice minister created a commotion when he defended the new measures by stating that “a friend of a friend” who belonged to Al Qaeda had entered the country repeatedly using forged passports. The government scrambled to say that the minister, Kunio Hatoyama, had never had direct contact with the alleged Qaeda member.

However, some civil rights groups worry that the government is using terrorism to mask a deeper, xenophobic motive behind the new measures. They say that within Japan, the government has justified the screening as an anticrime measure, playing to widely held fears that an influx of foreigners is threatening Japan’s safe streets.

These groups also note that fingerprinting of foreigners is not new here. Until fairly recently, all foreign residents were routinely fingerprinted. That practice was phased out after years of protest by foreign residents and civil rights groups.

“Terrorism looks like an excuse to revive to the old system for monitoring foreigners,” said Sonoko Kawakami at Amnesty International in Japan. “We worry that the real point of these measures is just to keep foreigners out of Japan.”

One request made by the European Business Council, the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan and other business groups is to add special lines at airports for foreign residents, and especially frequent business travelers.

Until now, foreign residents have been allowed to use the same lines at airport immigration as Japanese citizens, speeding their entry. But the new law will bar them from doing so.

Only the Tokyo area’s main international airport at Narita has agreed to set aside lines for foreign residents. Others, including the nation’s second-largest airport, Kansai International near Osaka, will force these residents to line up with other foreigners, who even before the new screening often waited an hour or more to pass through immigration.

That irks Martin Issott, 59, a Briton and the regional director for a British chemical company who has lived in Japan for 20 years. Mr. Issott said he used the Kansai airport two or three times a month for business trips. He uses the immigration line for Japanese citizens and never waits more than five minutes. He said he feared that the change in rules would result in long waits at the end of every trip.

“I have no problem complying with the letter of this law,” said Mr. Issott, who lives in the western city of Kobe. “But I am utterly disgusted that they haven’t found a way to make this quicker and more painless.”

Chocolate covered potato chips, while not as tasty as chocolate covered pretzels, are quite good. I draw the line at chocolate covered shrimp crackers, though.

Recently I've been feeling disappointed by the pizza fliers I've been getting in the mail. Enter Aoki's Pizza's special winter set to lift my spirits. Presenting the Happy Winter Box Set:



The ingredient list is as follows: onions, potato salad, mini tomatoes, hamburger, ham, parsley, BBQ sauce, processed cheese, parmesan cheese, double cheese (this is an actual ingredient? Ok then.), mayonnaise, sausage rolls, and shrimp rolls.

What this picture doesn't show so clearly is the little snowmen made of potato salad, stars made of processed cheese, holly made from ham (for the leaves...sprinkled with parsley, natch, to get that authentic green colour) and tomatoes, and reindeer made from hamburger.

Booze is good. Shoes are good. Booze IN shoes? No.

Liam anecdotes!

Today I took a few moments in between classes to play with the baby brother of two of my students. He is...oh, 7, 8 months? And utterly, utterly adorable, with his big, anime-esque smile and shock of thick hair (babies with lots of hair = gah!) I was playing "jump jump!" with him when I looked over and saw Liam wearing the Face of Incipient Tantrums. Sure enough, he proceeded to burst into angry tears, but when I gave the baby back to his mom and ask if Liam wanted to play, he retreated behind Masami's legs and glared at me. I suppose I was meant to feel ashamed of myself (playing with other babies! The nerve!), but mostly I just laughed.

Oh, and this bit was funnier with the visual, but it's still cute...he was trying to convince me to give him a snack ("Pees? Pees? PEES!"), so I showed him the box of tea I was opening up. "See? Tea bags. Not for eating!" He opened his mouth and tried to get me to feed him the tea bag anyway. I can honestly say I've never been either that hungry or that desperate for a cuppa.

On Tuesday he grabbed my hand and hauled me towards the front door, telling me "Out! Out! Pees? Out!" and I had to tell him "I'm sorry, Mr. Man, but you don't have any shoes today." He thought about this for a minute and pointed to a random pair of shoes belonging to a student, all "Shoes! See, shoes! No more excuses, let's get this show on the road!" Unfortunately, while he now can connect going outdoors with the need for shoes, he hasn't quite grasped "Yes, well, even if Tatsumaru let you borrow his shoes, they're still about ten times too big for you. Sorry, little dude."

He's got his mother well trained, though (or else she just wanted some peace and quiet for ten minutes), so she ran out to the car and got his shoes. Our neighbour has a bench in front of his door, so we sat there and Liam pointed out various things of interest to me. "Leaf! Leaf! Tree! Leaf!" When I stood up because it was, alas, time to go inside and resume actually working for a living, he shook his head at me, patted the area I'd just vacated, and told me "Down!"

I think somebody's ready for his first puppy...

I remember watching The Muppet Show with my parents when I was a kid. I enjoyed it then, but not nearly as much as I am enjoying watching it now on dvd. The moments I do not spend laughing are spent going "Wait....this was a kids show??" Sure, there are the funny muppets and Fozzy Bear's bad jokes, and Gonzo (always Gonzo), but then there are bits like this sketch with ballet superstar, Rudolf Nureyev.

I...just...I....wow. Truly, a show for the whole family.

Monday mornings: all the early you have come to expect, now with an extra helping of cold!

Ok, so 14 degrees isn't actually cold, but it's still chillier than I like my mornings to be, and it's just the start of a downward trend. I'm actually looking forward to my two weeks in Canada, because I will be warm indoors. (Er, obviously I'm looking forward to Canada for more reasons than that, but seriously? Two whole weeks of waking up in the warm? Mmmm.) Of course, I know that in a month's time, 14 degrees will seem unbearably warm.

Monday work continues to be interesting. During my first class today, there were about 20 other children milling about at the other end of the room, (noisily) working on some art project. There was also a piano and the sound of dozens of tiny but loud drums being practiced for a good portion of the class, and there I was trying to teach new vocab. Oh well. I may not have been able to teach them proper pronunciation, but lip reading is a valuable life skill, too.

I thoroughly enjoyed my lazy lazy weekend. I did get a bit done (hello bedroom floor!), but mostly I lounged about watching the Muppets. Hey, it's my last free weekend until sometime in January.

Which makes me sound very busy and important, yes? Yes, well, as is often the case, reality is not quite as interesting. Next weekend Liz and Pauline and I are taking a short trip down to Izu. Then the next weekend is a four day one and I am heading out to Chiba for some pampering and impressive breakfasts and wine served in teeny tiny thimbles of glasses. Then it's December already (!!) and we have our annual zoo trip on the 2nd. So far we have 31 kids plus Saya and Liam. I am in charge of a pretty good group of kids, although one of them suffers from verbal diarrhea and another one may have to be forcibly pried away from Liam.

Then the next weekend is the kindergarten's winter pageant. The kids will be performing that old classic, "The Wheels On The Bus", after which I will finally be finished with the damned thing. Almost worth getting up early on a Saturday for.

Then there is my own personal Christmas party, and then the following weekend I am off to Canada!

I remember when Christmas used to take forever to come. Now I'm looking at the calendar and wondering if I should start packing now, because it's going to be the 22nd before I know it.

And yes, I DO know where my passport is, thanks for asking.

Are you familiar with the song "Jimmy Crack Corn"? Well, Masami found a Christmas song set to that tune and now I am singing it four days a week.

Ring those bells and turn around
Ring those bells and turn around
Ring those bells and turn around
For Christmas time has come!

There are three verses. After the turning around, we stamp our feet and then, just for kicks, jump up high. It's cute and all....the kids love it and we got them some bells to ring (Liam's reaction was to try eating it) and it's really fast and they all get the giggles and it's very cute, but....here is what I have going around and around in my head nearly 24/7:

Jimmy crack corn and I don't care
Jimmy crack corn and I don't care
Jimmy crack corn and I don't care
For Christmas time has come!

Which...just...GAH. And if you are now staring in horror at the computer as the song winds its way into your brain, I can only offer you a slightly crazed grin and the adage "misery loves company."

I will never understand why in any given group of kids, there will always be one who, when asked "What's your favourite fruit?" answers "lemon". Lemon? Really? Sure, they're great in pies and they add zest to your tea or ice water, but how many people are actually going to choose lemons over strawberries?

I'm getting sick again. Or at least, I was. I dosed myself with Cold-FX and it seems to have made the sniffles and sore throat go away, but I'm still all tired and a bit achy (although the latter might be due to the two hours I spent at the gym yesterday.) I even had a nap this afternoon, and while it helped a whole heap (it doesn't look good if the teacher falls asleep during class), I'm still thinking about an early night tonight. Oh, cold season. Go away already.

It's a little frustrating to know that if I were a train, Liam would have no problem saying my name. He might have said it today...a couple of times he said "Isa", which might have been an attempt to pronounce "Alisa", or it might just have been baby babble. He has mastered the "please", though. Want to go outdoors? Point to the door and say "pees!" Want a snack? Point to the food and say "pees!" Want a new Thomas the Tank Engine toy? Grab the catalogue, carry it over to mom, point to the picture and say "pees!"

I have reached the point where I am sitting at home, trimming my split ends with scissors that would probably cause my hair dresser to weep and/or cut off my hands so I couldn't do it anymore. Obviously, it is time for a trim. I'm torn between going to the cheap place here and getting the ends lopped off or going to Tokyo and...well, getting the ends lopped off, but possibly in a more stylish (and decidedly more pricey) manner, with some fancy colour thrown in for good measure. No, not pink. Although it WOULD be fun to see the look on Andrew's face if I walked into work with pink hair....

Random Halloween anecdote:

At one point in the evening, Andy came up to me and said that some of the boys were comparing me to JLo. As in, Jennifer Lopez. He assures me that this is a good thing, but I remain not so much flattered as utterly bewildered.

Now that Halloween is over, it is, of course, time to move directly onto Christmas. Masami's reasoning is pretty sound...we only have two weeks in December before our week of Christmas party, and there is no way the kids will learn the Christmas vocab/songs in just two lessons. (Also, this makes less work for us as we don't have to have separate November/December curriculums. Hush.) It IS a bit weird to be doing Christmas vocab when there are still some bats on the window, though.

You're still laughing about the JLo thing, aren't you?

In the interests of not splashing pictures of random kids all about the internet (and also in the interests of playing with iPhoto, whee!) I give you the following:



These costumes were handmade. By a mother of three. Who is a doctor. Apparently, she no longer needs to bother with mundane things like sleep or time constraints.



Rwrarrrr, I am a giant spider! Fear me and my multiple legs/arms!



And here we have a skeleton riding a Percy train. As they do.