The Mainichi Daily News
19th October, 2010
Diary entries of three Cambodian men found working at a supermarket in Fukuoka Prefecture in a suspected violation of immigration laws have unveiled their bitter experiences in Japan, including discriminatory treatment.
The men were found working at the supermarket in Kurume, Fukuoka Prefecture, after coming to Japan under the guise of IT engineers. Police have arrested four people including the president of an IT company on suspicion of violating the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law by aiding them.
An Aug. 14 entry in the diary of one of the Cambodian men, a 27-year-old, indicated the three were not given the same treatment as other workers.
"Today is an Obon holiday. We three are the only ones working. Why do the Japanese get time off and the Cambodians have to work?" The following day he wrote, "We are all humans aren't we? Coming to Japan is like a bad dream."
The three workers had to stuff vegetables into bags and sort them in the storeroom of the Kurume Chimakiya supermarket. They dubbed their workplace "the vegetable factory." At first they were told that they could start stocking shelves and working the cash registers after a month, but their work in the "factory" continued. After being told that they could move to the store if their kanji skills improved, they bought children's kanji drills and started studying, but they saw no change in their positions.
"It's cold. There are a lot of goods today. I'm tired from morning to night," another diary entry dated Feb. 18 read. "It's 12:20 at night. We've finished. I'm tired. I'm going to sleep." Sometimes the workers arrived home after 1 a.m. and fell asleep without having a shower.
All of the other staff members doing the same job, including students from China, were foreign part-timers. But only the three Cambodian workers were without time cards. They said that when they asked their boss about it they were told, "Cambodians and Japanese are different. If you want to be accepted, work three times harder."
On one occasion, they called for an improvement in their conditions, reminding supermarket operator Masaru Sakai and IT company president Lim Wee, who arranged for them to come to Japan, that in Cambodia they were told they would be working just eight hours a day. Sakai, whom they had adored as their Japanese teacher while they were in Cambodia, told them, "If you can't handle it, go home." They realized for the first time that they had been deceived.
The three were also insulted by their Japanese boss, who reportedly told them, "Even Japanese children answer questions. Why don't you answer? Are you animals?"
The discrimination and disparagement they faced as Cambodians finally left them wanting to return to Cambodia.
"We will become mentally ill if things go on like this," one of the three wrote.
19th October, 2010
Diary entries of three Cambodian men found working at a supermarket in Fukuoka Prefecture in a suspected violation of immigration laws have unveiled their bitter experiences in Japan, including discriminatory treatment.
The men were found working at the supermarket in Kurume, Fukuoka Prefecture, after coming to Japan under the guise of IT engineers. Police have arrested four people including the president of an IT company on suspicion of violating the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law by aiding them.
An Aug. 14 entry in the diary of one of the Cambodian men, a 27-year-old, indicated the three were not given the same treatment as other workers.
"Today is an Obon holiday. We three are the only ones working. Why do the Japanese get time off and the Cambodians have to work?" The following day he wrote, "We are all humans aren't we? Coming to Japan is like a bad dream."
The three workers had to stuff vegetables into bags and sort them in the storeroom of the Kurume Chimakiya supermarket. They dubbed their workplace "the vegetable factory." At first they were told that they could start stocking shelves and working the cash registers after a month, but their work in the "factory" continued. After being told that they could move to the store if their kanji skills improved, they bought children's kanji drills and started studying, but they saw no change in their positions.
"It's cold. There are a lot of goods today. I'm tired from morning to night," another diary entry dated Feb. 18 read. "It's 12:20 at night. We've finished. I'm tired. I'm going to sleep." Sometimes the workers arrived home after 1 a.m. and fell asleep without having a shower.
All of the other staff members doing the same job, including students from China, were foreign part-timers. But only the three Cambodian workers were without time cards. They said that when they asked their boss about it they were told, "Cambodians and Japanese are different. If you want to be accepted, work three times harder."
On one occasion, they called for an improvement in their conditions, reminding supermarket operator Masaru Sakai and IT company president Lim Wee, who arranged for them to come to Japan, that in Cambodia they were told they would be working just eight hours a day. Sakai, whom they had adored as their Japanese teacher while they were in Cambodia, told them, "If you can't handle it, go home." They realized for the first time that they had been deceived.
The three were also insulted by their Japanese boss, who reportedly told them, "Even Japanese children answer questions. Why don't you answer? Are you animals?"
The discrimination and disparagement they faced as Cambodians finally left them wanting to return to Cambodia.
"We will become mentally ill if things go on like this," one of the three wrote.
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