Japan 'failing' asylum-seekers

LONDON - Japan is shirking its responsibilities towards hundreds of asylum-seekers, says Amnesty International, writes Raymond Whitaker.

Officials often fail to act on applications for asylum or put pressure on refugees to return home, according to a report published today. Chinese asylum- seekers in particular have suffered. One woman who, unusually, managed to get legal advice said she had tried to apply for asylum but was told she had 'no right to be in Japan'. While an appeal was pending she was sent back to China, where she was sent to a labour camp for two years.