Along with the Philippines, Japan was one of the first countries in Asia to sign the Refugee Convention.
Continuing as a precedent setter, Japan has also now become the first country in Asia to serve as a resettlement
country for refugees elsewhere without a durable solution. Japan has national RSD procedures, and has been recognizing refugees since 1981. However, its recognition rate is extremely low. Over 10,000 people have
applied for refugee protection in Japan in 30 years, but Japan maintains only a 5% overall recognition rate among
those applications, with only 0 .7% of applications being granted last year. Following a regional campaign
around finding alternatives to immigration detention, Japan has also recently conducted national workshops and
consultations. These consultations along with other factors have led to the creation of a detention monitoring
committee; and the conclusion of an MoU between the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), the Forum for Refugees Japan
(National NGO Network), and the Japan Federation of Bar Associations establishing a cooperative framework to
improve the asylum process and expand the use of alternatives to detention. The hope is that these talks will
lead to practical changes in law and practice.