I can't see why it would be a problem, if they're permanent residents. It'd be a /good/ thing. If people plan to live there for long enough that they're registered citizens or something, they ought to have a say in what direction the government takes, yeah?
Foreigners haven't brought the rest of the world to "ruin and whatnot" yet.

Yes, they are foreigners, a word that in itself indicates they are not naturalized and in that sense have no direct connection with the country. I think a distinction should be made between just foreign residents (like having a green card in the US) versus someone that has resided in the country legally for a prolonged time.

Remember that to naturalize in Japan you have to renounce citizenship to any other nation, unlike the USA where you are permitted to keep multiple citizenships, so most people never naturalize.

The situation could destabilise if the number of foreign voters exceeds that of the Japanese voters, which could happen if citizens of a specific nationality were to all reside in one prefecture.

However, that still doesn't address the main issue, that is, what changes could happen if foreigners are able to swing the votes in public policy. Would Japanese citizenship become easier to obtain, or harder? Will there be attempts to push through a second or third language into the school curriculum?

But as Japan has stringent requirements for permanent residents anyway, I presume there won't be a problem in allowing their vote.

Oh wow, this is freaking huge. Between this and the rest of the fallout from DPJ coup, it's starting to look pretty damn prescient that I chose to study moonspeak and international relations a year ago.

If they pass this measure, we might be witnessing what amounts to a second "opening" of Japan, and a self-initiated one at that. Eat your heart out, Commodore Perry.

Permanent residents, no. Citizens, yes. From what I hear, it's not too difficult to get permanent residency in Japan, once you're already there on a long enough visa (getting that extended visa - usually a 1-year Working Holiday Visa - is the difficult part).

On this issue I feel a bit strongly opposed. If you're not going to be citizen of the country then you don't even deserve a say in anything there. You're already freeloading as is.

At the same time though, Japan should fix its laws to actually allow for naturalization of citizens, since the current ones f**k up any hope you have of being naturalized as a citizen, short of having all of the blood drained out of your body and refilled with pure nippon's.

I wish we would get more uptight on this stuff in the US too.

Well, if the foreigners became citizens then it would be all good. It's just that Japan is so isolationist when it comes to foreigners living there. This is a move in the right direction, and no, it won't be the end of the world for Japan. Talk about doom and gloom propoganda.

Yeah, I think it'd be better to just grant citizenship to all those Korean and Chinese "immigrants" who got screwed out of their citizenship after the Empire got dissolved. If your grandparents and parents were born in Japan and you speak Japanese better than Korean, you probably deserve citizenship. Giving them voting rights without citizenship sounds a little bizarre.

@dark: "Remember that to naturalize in Japan you have to renounce citizenship to any other nation, unlike the USA where you are permitted to keep multiple citizenships, so most people never naturalize. "


http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1753.html

The US has never recognized dual citizenship. In fact, the Oath of Allegiance is required for any Naturalized citizen. The very first line states:

"I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America"

@DGX Goggles

"On this issue I feel a bit strongly opposed. If you're not going to be citizen of the country then you don't even deserve a say in anything there. You're already freeloading as is. "

Immigrants are not "freeloading" by default. The vast majority of them are working at jobs and PAYING TAXES. You're pretty ignorant.


IMO, if you're not a citizen, you don't get to vote. Not having voting rights is something that is understood when you become an immigrant. It is an incentive for you to invest the time, effort, and money into becoming a citizen. If you don't have to invest that time, effort, and money then you don't care nearly as much as you should..

Obviously, as a US citizen, I don't have a dog in this hunt but my advice to Japan would be to make their naturalization process a bit easier. Japan has a population growth issue that is really starting to hurt them. Immigration is the short term solution to that issue.