Refugees In Australia And Japan

In the modern world, the topic of refugees and asylum seekers is becoming an increasingly common point of interest. This is due to the trouble in places such as Syria, and other countries that have a population that are suffering in some way. Often asylum seekers are placed in a position of life or death. If they do not leave the country they are at risk of being persecuted in, they may die. However, attempting to enter other countries as a refugee can be dangerous, and very hard. Australia and Japan are two countries that have very different positions within the refugee crisis.
In Australia, the topic of the treatment and processing of refugees is often discussed. This is because it is a troublesome issue for the government, and the treatment
There are reports of child abuse, sexual abuse, threats, self-harm and psychological damage. Despite these reports, these claims have been dismissed by the government. This further displays the problems of Australia’s refugee policy. (Refugee Council of Australia, 2016)
In Japan, the viewpoint on asylum seekers and refugees has always been somewhat passive. The Japanese government is very selective about what refugees they allow into the country. The screening process for refugees is very strict in Japan. (Honma, n.d.)
Japan, like Australia, is a signatory to the UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. Despite their obligation to take in refugees based on cooperation with the UNHCR, they only take in a very small amount of refugees. For example, in 2012, only 0.56% of people who applied for refugee status in Japan were officially accepted as refugees. However, the Japanese government is more than willing to donate money to the UNHCR. In 2014, the government donated $181.6 million dollars to the UNHCR. Despite their financial support, they still do not take many refugees. (Pollman, 2015) (Wikipedia,
They are processed offshore, and will often spend a long time in the detention centres before finally being allowed entrance to Australia. The reports of abuse taking place in the offshore detention centre located in Nauru reveals the many issues of the Australian refugee policy. Despite Australia’s fair intake of refugees, there are a lot of issues with how it is done.
Japan takes in quite small amount of refugees in comparison to that of Australia’s intake. But this is due to how difficult it is to gain citizenship in Japan as a refugee, and how hard it is to assimilate into Japanese culture. There is also a language barrier issue. These things deter refugees from Japan. However, Japan is very charitable and is willing to cooperate with the UNHCR and donate to its cause.
Australia’s refugee policy is very poor. Despite the moderate intake, the process of it is bad. It is clear that the subject of asylum seekers and refugees is very hard to handle for the government, but they must do more. They should carefully analyse how they handle the process, listen and work with human rights groups, and try to find a solution to the processing issue. The ‘tough’ refugee policy is not appropriate, and is taking away the humans rights of