Refugees and Asylum Seekers in East Asia: Perspectives from Japan and Taiwan

Refugees and Asylum Seekers in East Asia: Perspectives from Japan and Taiwan, edited by Lara Momesso and Polina Ivanova, is a volume in the Palgrave Macmillan series ‘Human Rights in Asia’ and a welcome addition to refugee law scholarship. Literature on refugee protection is dominated by analysis of European and Anglo-American jurisdictions. On the rarer occasions when jurisdictions in Asia are considered, it is often through an external lens. With a disproportionate focus on ‘Asian exceptionalism’, refugee law scholarship on Asia tends to identify and explain the lower number of refugee and human rights treaty ratifications in the region.¹ But there is a critical need for future scholarship to move beyond notions of Asian exceptionalism,² consider contextual nuance, and challenge assumptions that essentialize or marginalize a country or region. While this book does not entirely escape the assumptions of Asian exceptionalism, it does address a gap in the scholarship by considering the refugee policies of Japan and Taiwan and the experiences of refugees and asylum seekers in those countries.

The title of the volume is somewhat misleading, in that it purports to speak to East Asia, but in fact covers only Japan and Taiwan. Despite this limited scope, the detailed discussion of Japan and Taiwan is welcome and needed. The book is divided into three parts: part I (chapters 2–6) looks at the law and policy frameworks in each country with regard to the status and treatment of refugees; part II (chapters 7–10) explores media representation and public perceptions about refugees; part III (chapters 11–14) considers the experiences of specific population groups in the two countries.

For the most part, the volume alternates between chapters on Japan and Taiwan. However, the chapters do not always speak to each other, resulting in some duplication, and there are few instances where Japan and Taiwan are effectively compared in detail. A notable exception is Bonny Ling and Mariko Hayashi’s comparison of refugee protection in the two jurisdictions. They note key differences, including that Japan is a State party to the 1951 Refugee Convention whereas Taiwan is not; Japan has specific domestic legislation whereas a refugee law has repeatedly failed to pass in Taiwan; and Taiwan has particular challenges due to its lack of membership in the United Nations and tensions with the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Yet, Ling and Hayashi find that Japan and Taiwan both engage with international protection as a ‘diplomatic sign of being a responsible global player’ (p 30). They note that there are similar challenges for integration and enjoyment of rights in both contexts, and the important role of civil society in meeting needs and achieving reform.

The real star of the book is Min-yen Chiang and Candia Tong’s contribution dealing with the evolution of Taiwan’s response to Hong Kong asylum seekers. The authors were key participants in the development of Taiwan’s processes and policies towards Hong Kong asylum seekers. Their insider perspectives shine through and their analysis serves as a blueprint for advocates who seek policy change which translates into a change of practice. Change in Taiwan started with civil society organizations coming together, leveraging their networks, and proactively organizing a humanitarian response and case management. This civil society mechanism received passive endorsement from the government, which extended visas and mitigated administrative obstacles, and eventually official endorsement through the Hong Kong Humanitarian Assistance and Care Action Scheme. Civil society then continued to play a key role in addressing a lack of transparency and other systemic issues to improve the process. Chiang and Tong provide a clear elucidation of different perspectives on the same issue, recognizing the validity of opposing views, including ‘consideration of national security and the real need for asylum’ (p 144). The authors say it best themselves when they note, ‘[i]t is precisely because of the flexibility and initiative of civil society that the government opened up to assistance work early on and created the foundation for subsequent public–third sector cooperation’ (p 144).

The balance of part I comprises chapters by Christine Lin; Yingjiao Zhu; and David Green, Lisa Unangst, and Eriko Tomita on various aspects of law and policy in Japan and Taiwan. Lin focuses on Taiwan as a non-signatory State to the Refugee Convention. She brings in some comparison with Hong Kong, and emphasizes the challenges associated with not being able to engage with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Zhu considers the legal framework in Japan, and tries to identify different aspects of the system that might explain the low recognition rate. He provides some historical analysis of legislative and judicial developments, including a discussion of the most recent changes. Green, Unangst, and Tomita discuss the small but growing programmes that facilitate access to higher education for refugees in Japan, identifying some ways in which Japan is an innovator and global leader in this space.

Part II of the book turns to media representation and public perception. Cody Wai Kwok Yau identifies the partisan leaning of Taiwan’s media sources, and the impact of these politics on the way they portray migration issues. Zdenka Kyselova and Kristina Kironska’s chapter explores public perceptions of refugees in Japan. The findings provide some optimism in the face of growing xenophobia globally, noting that ‘once a very concrete group is addressed (and their plight described), people tend to be more compassionate’ (p 225). Kironska provides the same kind of analysis for Taiwan in a separate chapter, finding that refugees are seen more positively than negatively, and that people tend to agree that Taiwan needs an asylum system to deal with refugee cases. Sohrab Ahmadian concludes with an analysis of social media activism among the Kurdish diaspora in Japan and how it can provide a forum for cultural identity and political mobilization.

Finally, part III addresses the experiences of specific population groups. Mei-Lin Pan and Dolma Tsering provide a fascinating and important look at the experience of Tibetan refugees in Taiwan over time. The chapter sheds light on a group that is otherwise completely hidden. Shu-Fen Lin shares the story of a Vietnamese refugee, covering different parts of his journey and post-resettlement activism which involved both Japan and Taiwan at different stages. Kate Hannah Martin grapples with the future of climate-related displacement, a challenge that will likely require international and national responses through new legal frameworks or new uses of existing frameworks. The chapter attempts to identify and understand the degree of readiness in Japan and Taiwan towards Pacific Islanders in particular. Finally, Firman Budianto and Yusy Widarahesty discuss Indonesian migrant workers in Japan, touching on those who find themselves in the asylum process as a survival strategy.

The various parts and chapters of the book do not always fit together seamlessly, and do not necessarily flow from one to the other. But this is not the kind of book that readers are likely to pick up and read cover to cover. Readers with a geographic interest in Japan or Taiwan are likely to consult those chapters most relevant to them. Similarly, those with a thematic interest, or an interest in a particular population group, might turn to those sections of the volume.

The book draws no conclusions about East Asia as a sub-region, and the editors are right not to attempt to do so on the basis of findings from Japan and Taiwan alone. As a broader issue, it is not immediately obvious why Japan and Taiwan are chosen as case studies for comparison in East Asia. An alternative approach – flagged by Kironska in her separate chapter – might be to look at Taiwan and the Republic of Korea (ROK, South Korea). The relationship between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK, North Korea) and the ROK provides an interesting comparator to the relationship between the PRC and the Republic of China (Taiwan). North Koreans are not considered refugees in South Korea, but rather as citizens, with a different process from other refugees. This could provide lessons to Taiwan as it considers how to respond to arrivals from the PRC. Both pairings experience similar security concerns due to the past conflict and ongoing geopolitical tensions. Similarly, a comparative case study of Hong Kong and Taiwan might produce rich findings with regard to their approaches to refugee protection. Neither is a State party to the Refugee Convention, and both rely on the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to provide a normative framework for protection. Taiwan and Hong Kong have different relationships with the PRC, but this difference might also reveal something interesting.

Still, the analysis in this book can serve as the basis for future work, and by writing it, the editors and contributors have helped to set that agenda. The coverage of Japan and Taiwan from various perspectives addresses a significant gap in the scholarship and provides a useful starting point for future scholarship and critique.

Footnotes