Message of the Commission

For The 92th World Day of Migrants and Refugees 2006

Let the children come to me and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.

According to statistics for 2005, approximately 5% of the total number of marriages, which is one marriage in twenty, was an international marriage. If we simply calculate from this fact, then one in twenty marriages will produce multicultural children. Naturally, there are also children in the families of refugees and migrants from overseas. When we add in this fact as well, then in an elementary school class of 40 children, there will be 2 or 3 children who have their roots overseas. We desire that couples of international marriages have a happy married life, but along with this, we can never stop seeking the happiness of the children as well.
However, do Japanese society and the church sufficiently think about the happiness of these children? Do adults think from the standpoint of the children? I would like to offer the following two cases for us to think about.

It seems now that an amendment to the Fundamental Law of Education is about to be debated in the Diet.?Written into the proposed amendment are these words, "To foster an attitude of respect for tradition and culture, love for our nation and homeland which has nurtured them, respect for other countries and a willingness to contribute to international peace and development." If this is actualized in an educational setting, then it will mean the forced assimilation of migrant/refugee children and multicultural children. It will cast a dark shadow over the"formation of personality," which is being held up as the purpose of education, and also over the formation of the identities of the children. The thinking expressed in this proposed amendment ignores the existence of the children of migrants and refugees from overseas, as well as the multicultural children of international marriages.

On March 29 of this year, the Tokyo District Court, in a case which sought verification of the Japanese nationality of the children of an unmarried Filipino woman who even though the Japanese father acknowledged the children after birth, was denied Japanese nationality for her children, issued a decision which stated,"The stipulation in the nationality law which designates the marriage relationship of the parents as a requisite for nationality acquisition is unconstitutional." Even though it is certainly no fault of the child, depending on which stage the father acknowledges the child as an influencing factor in determining whether or not the child can acquire nationality, is clearly a violation of the Constitution of Japan, the Code of International Human Rights and the Treaty Regarding the Rights of Children. There is also a place in the last interpretation issued by the United Nations Rights Commission, (2004), where this is clearly pointed out. With this understanding, the court decision can be said to make good sense. However, the country appealed the decision. The children involved in this case, are just the tip of the iceberg. Many children are suffering and are discriminated against because of the nationality laws. In addition, according to various circumstances, even among second generation Indo-Chinese refugees and resident Koreans, there are also children who have no nationality and have become "stateless."

Jesus said, "Let the children come to me and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these." (Matthew 19:13 -15)" Jesus taught that we adults should think from the standpoint of these children, and that we must guarantee the children"s freedom to speak and act.
On this World Day of Migrants, Refugees and People on the Move, let us pray together that our church may protect the dignity of the lives of the children that God has given to us, and their basic human rights.

September , 2006
Catholic Commission of Japan for Migrants, Refugees and People on the Move Chairman: Tani Daiji (Bishop of Saitama Diocese)