FreedomDignityAsia
Aug 4, 2020
23
Interview with Mr. David McIntosh
Mr. David McIntosh
Co-Director. Center for Minority Issues and Mission (CMIM)
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1. Recently, discrimination and racism against the ethnic minority in Japan has aggravated. What is the key reason? Is this just a transitional phenomenon triggered by Abe government or a chronic problem of Japanese society which has little space for diversity (or difference)?
I think there are several factors behind the prejudice and discrimination seen in Japan. Some of these factors are long-term, and others are more short-term. The Abe government has been a trigger, as you say, of discrimination and racism in recent years, particularly against Koreans in Japan. Anti-Korean rhetoric is Abe’s go-to hot button with his nationalist-right support base, and we often see a spike in anti-Korean hate speech whenever an official in his administration criticizes North or South Korea. There is a clear cause-and-effect relationship between politicians’ signals and right-wing hate speech.
This character of the Abe government is rooted in longer-term factors, such as the oft-repeated “homogeneous race” myth, a long assimilationist tradition that has deep, systemic and psychological links to the Emperor system, and a studied refusal to address the past honestly in the Japanese education system. This is why so many Japanese citizen are woefully ignorant of their state’s historical wrongs against Koreans, or the Ainu indigenous people of the north, or Ryukyu-Okinawan people of the South. So they react personally, with denial and confused indignation, when they see Japan being criticized. The mainstream media contributes to this distortion by giving ample space to government-line commentators, but not to alternative, fuller viewpoints. These are all deep-rooted problems that require sustained, enlightened effort from government and public figures.
I’d like to mention here that the Japanese government enacted a law against hate speech in 2016, which has reduced the most egregious hate speech in public places. This is a good thing, to be sure, but the law has not been applied to the “virtual” public space of the internet. There is still a lot of terrible hate speech on the web, often targeting individuals. Meanwhile, leading figures who used to lead public hate speech rallies have started up political parties in the last few years, and are now using the privilege of “free speech” afforded under election laws to shout out thinly veiled xenophobic messages in public places. With a government that is willing to take only half-measures against racism, like the 2016 law, human right advocates feel like they are being forced to play cat-and-mouse with xenophobes. There are many fine people in Japan who recognize these problems and are working for just change, but the current political leadership appears to be pointed in the opposite direction.
2. The Abe government has excluded Chosun (Korean) school from the government subsidy, Why? and what are the impacts to the Chosun school community?
In 2013 the Japanese government introduced a tuition support program for high school students, under which high schools receive funds for each student whose family income/tax amounts are below a certain threshold. This progressive program has applied equally to all Japanese public and private schools, and also to non-Japanese schools. Only the 10 or so Chosun schools across Japan, whose students are mostly 3rd- and 4th-generation Koreans in Japan, have been excluded from this benefit, even though the students’ families pay the same taxes as everyone else. The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, as well as the UN Committee on the Rights of Children, have repeatedly issued recommendations to the Japanese government to cease this discrimination, but the exclusion still continues today, 7 years later.
The Japanese government argues that this exclusion is not discrimination, but due to the fact that the Chosun schools, unlike other high schools, are not recognized as “class 1” teaching instituitions. Students COULD receive the same financial benefit as any Japanese, if only they attended a class 1 school, so there is no discrimination, says the government. Chosun schools are not denied accreditation because of low standards: Their students learn all the same subjects as high school students across Japan; they spend more hours in classrooms than Japanese students (due to additional classes on Korean history and culture); many successfully pass entrance exams to Japanese universities and advance to responsible professions after they graduate. Accreditation is denied because, in the words of the Japanese government, “Chosun schools have close links to the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, which influences educational contents, personnel decisions and finances.” So, the exclusion is entirely political. It is designed to penalizes those who refuse to dissociate completely from the North Korean government, or to exchange their “Chosun” identy for Japanese, or for a passport of the politically more palatable South Korea.
The impact of this exclusion is significant, for students, parents and teachers. Parents must pay monthly tuition fees that other high schoolers’ parents receive government support for, and it is lower-income families that are impacted most by this. Teachers, almost without exception, accept wage levels far below those of teachers in Japanese schools. Students will often have to forego the kinds of life frills that the typical Japanese high schooler might take for granted, especially if they have siblings who also attend the Chosun school. Also, the linking of Chosun schools with the DPRK often subjects students and families to vile hate speech.
For the past several years, parents, teachers and students of Chosun schools have been protesting every Friday at the front entrance to the Japanese Ministry of Education. They are always joined by Japanese supporters, and sometimes by visitors from other countries, too. Legal teams of Korean-in-Japan and Japanese lawyers have initiated court cases in several cities to demand fair treatment, but the discrimination has not ended yet. The Chosun school community and its supporters are committed to advocate for justice on this issue for as long as it takes.
3. What is the Japanese young generation’s attitude to the discrimination and racism? What is their overall reaction to Abe’s attempt to revise the article 9?
Japanese youth are generally open-minded about diversity, racially, and also in relation to sex and gender matters. I was surprised to learn recently that students in Japanese public high schools receive very thoughtful instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity. The church is lagging on this front, despite long, diligent efforts of affected persons and allies within the church. The enduring popularity of K-pop and Korean dramas among youth demonstrates that young people are able to ignore the othering noises of political leaders. However, this is also a sign that young people tend to be politically disengaged. I’d say their open-mindedness is esthetic and cultural, rather than conscious, or ideological.
Regarding the constitution, every student learns about the unique significance of Article 9, in which the people of Japan renounce war and reject maintenance of a standing army. But young people today don’t feel the same ownership and passion toward their peace Constitution as their grandparents and parents.
Sadly, according to recent surveys, young people appear to be increasingly swayed by the language of “security” rather than “peace.” A clear majority now hold a positive view of Japan’s security agreement with the U.S., and agrees with the principle of “collective self-defense,” both which feed into the Abe government’s design to revise the Constitution to allow Japanese military to engage in foreign lands. This is worrying. I believe this is a direct effect of the constant rhetoric of belligerence heard from Japanese and foreign leaders. “Security” is associated with othering, mistrust, fear and conflict; It is not peace at all. If young people can learn to reject prejudice and speak the language of respect toward “others,” how can fear-mongering leaders learn to reject “security” and speak the language of peace?
4. Please share more about CMIM’s initiative to eliminate racism in Japan and uphold the value of diversity.
The Center for Minority Issues and Mission is a small, ecumenically supported organization that works with people in civil society and churches who are striving toward the same goal, of building a society in which every person, of any background, can live with dignity, free of fear and discrimination. Together with human rights NGOs, national lawyers’ groups and support organization for refugees and migrant workers, we advocate for legal and institutional changes to better protect marginalized and vulnerable minority communities in Japan. With ecumenical partners like the National Christian Council in Japan (NCCJ) Committee on the Rights of Foreign Residents in Japan and the National Conference of Christians Seeking Institution of a Basic Law for Non-Japanese Residents (“Gaikikyo”), CMIM initiated a series of “colourful cafés,” in which guests who have non-Japanese roots share their unique stories and perspectives about life in Japan as a minority person. Eight of these stories have been published in manga format, in two, 20-page teaching resources that challenge young people to examine stereotypes and discrimination in Japanese society, and invite them to see every person as a friend, rather than “other.”
The Minority Youth Forum, a 4-day program held each September, has brought together young people from a range of churches across Japan and abroad, to learn about the history and present challenges of minority communities through lectures, testimonies, field trips, discussions and worship. Each Forum has focused on a different aspect of complex minority issues: Koreans in Japan and Japan’s imperial era, the Buraku community and , Ainu and indigenous peoples, and the disregard of the people of Ryukyu/Okinawa and their disregard by the state. This year’s 4th Minority Youth Forum, which was to take place in Fukushima, has been postponed to next year due to COVID-19, but we look forward with hope to future Forums and other events with young people.
Similar to other countries, the COVID-19 pandemic has placed great strain on some of the most vulnerable communities in Japan, like foreign students, refugee claimants, and undocumented foreign residents. Many of these people have lost work and income in this period, but cannot access financial assistance offered to most residents by the Japanese government. To raise awareness about this problem, and to help gather donations for an emergency assistance fund established by an NGO for hard-hit neighbors, CMIM has issued a series of information bulletins.
Inspired by Christ and strengthened by partners, we will continue our mission to march toward a just and inclusive society for all.
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Mission life: THE KUKMIN DAILY
David McIntosh: “I continue the mission of my father, who fought for Koreans in Japan”
2017-12-20 15:52
On December 15 at the Center for Minority Issues and Mission (CMIM), located near Waseda University in Tokyo, I met Missionary David McIntosh (57, photo), who works to support minority groups suffering discrimination in Japan. Currently his position is co-director of the mission center, which was founded this past April. He came to Japan with his missionary parents when he was 11 months old. Having attended local Japanese schools in Osaka up to middle school, he speaks Japanese fluently. Speaking in both English and Japanese, he introduced minorities living in Japan who are not well known to Koreans.
“Koreans are not the only group of people targeted for discrimination in Japan. In fact there are various such unjustly victimized groups: Burakumin (部落民), who were an outcaste group in the feudal era, the indigenous Ainu people of Hokkaido, the Japanese diaspora who grew up in South America, migrant workers, immigrant women who came to Japan to marry men in agricultural or fishery regions, disabled persons, and Okinawan residents who suffer due to the presence of the U.S. forces in Japan.”
He explained, “In the case of the Burakumin, the history of discrimination against them is rooted deeply in Japanese society. Still today, when someone is planning marriage, the Japanese family will check whether the future spouse’s family includes any Burakumin. While it is true that Korean residents of Japan are subject to relatively less discrimination, hate speech is common against jochongnyeon (pro-North Korean) schools and Koreans living in Japan. It’s in the air.”
CMIM, in solidarity with overseas churches in Australia, U.S. and Canada, raises public awareness about the discriminatory reality faced by these social minorities. The Center also urges the Japanese government and the Diet to pass legislation of basic acts banning racial discrimination and discriminatory treatment of foreign residents.
Missionary McIntosh said, “Our center holds forums for youth, and carries out an active program of lectures, movies, and prayer gatherings. Through theological research and Bible study groups on minority issues, we also encourage faith education for reconciliation.”
CMIM was established by nine Christian organizations including the Korean Christian Church in Japan and United Church of Christ in Japan. Its main projects include the struggle against racism, youth programs, development of spirituality for reconciliation and peace, and partnerships with Japanese and international churches.
David McIntosh said his work is related also to his father, John McIntosh, who was dispatched by the Presbyterian Church of Canada in 1961 to work for Koreans in Japan. Twenty-five years old at the time, Missionary John McIntosh stood on the side of Korean residents in Japan for 40 years, working in the Osaka and Kyoto regions.
In particular, John was deported by the Japanese government in the 1970s for refusing to be fingerprinted as a foreigner, but later won a lawsuit against that treatment. This is a famous episode for Korean residents in Japan, who also were subject to the fingerprinting requirement. Missionary John returned to Canada when he was 65 years old and passed away a year later. Koreans in Canada buried part of his remains in the Toronto Korean Presbyterian Church (Rev. Son Myeong-su), and erected a memorial stone commemorating his love for Koreans.
His son David said, “PCC dispatched my father to Japan for the Korean residents mission, and their mission has continued from 1927 until now. I inherited my father’s love for minorities and his mission for them. Nowadays the world is much more complex, and personal relationships are collapsing. I hope the Korean church and believers become a community that heals this wounded world.”
Towards the end of the interview, David McIntosh read a Bible verse that John McIntosh had loved: “O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8)
*John and Clarabeth McIntosh (photo) served Koreans in Japan for 40 years from 1961, with the Korean Christian Church in Japan. Photo provided by David McIntosh.
Article and photo by reporter Sangmok Shin (smshin@kmib.co.kr), from Tokyo, with Yeara Ahn-Park (yap@kmib.co.kr)
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Original Article in Korean:
[미션 인 재팬] “재일 한인 위해 싸운 부친의 뜻 이어갑니다”: 일본 소수자 차별에 맞서는 데이비드 매킨토시 선교사
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[미션 인 재팬] “재일 한인 위해 싸운 부친의 뜻 이어갑니다”
일본 소수자 차별에 맞서는 데이비드 매킨토시 선교사
입력 : 2017-12-18 00:01
데이비드 매킨토시 선교사가 지난 15일 도쿄 와세다대 인근 마이너리티선교센터 사무실에서 일본 내 소수자들이 처한 차별 현실을 설명하고 있다.
헤이트 스피치(hate speech)는 특정 인종이나 국적 종교 성별 등을 이유로 타인에 대한 증오를 선동하는 발언을 말한다. 일본의 경우 2012년부터 2014년까지 재일 한국인에 대한 헤이트 스피치가 극심했다. 헤이트 스피치는 일본 거주 마이너리티(소수자)에 대한 전형적 차별 행위이기도 하다. 최근 일본 내 외국인이 증가하면서 차별도 심화되고 있는 것으로 알려져 있다. 양심 있는 일본 시민과 단체 등은 이들 마이너리티와 연대하며 차별에 맞서고 있다.
지난 15일 도쿄 와세다대 인근 마이너리티선교센터에서 만난 데이비드 매킨토시(57) 선교사도 차별받는 일본 내 마이너리티를 위해 일하는 외국인이다. 선교센터의 공동대표를 맡고 있는 그는 생후 11개월 때 선교사였던 부모를 따라 일본으로 왔다. 중학교 때까지 일본 학교를 다닌 그는 일본어를 현지인처럼 구사한다. 그는 영어와 일본어를 섞어가며 한국인은 잘 모르는 일본 내 마이너리티를 소개했다.
“일본에서 차별을 받는 사람은 재일 한국인뿐만이 아닙니다. 과거 천민 계급이었던 부라쿠민(部落民), 홋카이도(北海道)에 모여 사는 선주민(先住民) 아이누족, 남미 출신 일본인 2세들, 외국인 노동자, 농어촌 남성들과 결혼한 외국인 여성, 장애인, 주일미군 때문에 고통받는 오키나와 주민까지 다양하게 분포돼 있습니다.”
그는 “부라쿠민의 경우 일본 사회에 뿌리 깊은 차별의 역사가 존재해 왔다”며 “아직도 일본 가정에서는 자식들이 결혼할 때 양쪽 집안에 부라쿠민이 있는지 조사하는 관습이 있다”고 말했다. 한국인에 대해서도 “과거에 비해 줄어든 것은 사실이지만 조총련 학교나 재일동포에 대한 혐오 발언은 여전하다. 일본 공기에 떠다닐 정도”라고 말했다.
선교센터는 마이너리티가 처한 차별 현실을 일본 사회에 알리는 한편, 호주 미국 캐나다 등 해외 교회와 연대하고 있다. 일본 정부와 국회를 향해서도 인종차별 철폐 기본법이나 외국인 주민 기본법 제정을 촉구하고 있다.
매킨토시 선교사는 “선교센터는 청년들을 중심으로 포럼이 개최되고 강연이나 영화상영회, 기도회 등이 활발한 편”이라며 “마이너리티 문제에 대한 신학연구나 성경공부를 통해 화해를 추구하는 신앙을 고취하고 있다”고 말했다.
선교센터는 올 4월 재일대한기독교회와 일본기독교단 등 9개 기독교 단체를 중심으로 설립됐다. 인종주의와의 싸움, 청년 프로그램 개최, 화해와 평화를 지향하는 영성 개발, 일본교회와 세계교회의 적극적인 협력 등을 주요 사업으로 정해놓고 있다.
매킨토시 선교사는 자신이 이 일을 하는 것은 부친과도 관련이 있다고 했다. 부친은 존 매킨토시 선교사로 1961년 일본 내 한국인 선교를 위해 캐나다장로교회에서 파송됐다. 당시 25세였던 존 선교사는 오사카와 교토를 중심으로 40년을 활동하며 재일 한국인 편에 섰다.
존 선교사는 특히 1970년대 지문 날인에 반대해 일본 정부로부터 추방당했다가 재판에서 승소한 적도 있었다. 이 일은 재일 한국인 사이에서는 유명한 일화로 전해진다. 존 선교사는 65세에 캐나다로 귀국, 1년 후 별세했다. 캐나다 한인들은 존 선교사의 유해 일부를 토론토한인장로교회(손명수 목사 시무)에 묻어 기념비를 세우고 그의 한국인 사랑을 기억하고 있다.
매킨토시 선교사는 “아버지를 파송했던 캐나다장로교회는 일본 내 재일동포 선교를 위해 1927년부터 지금까지 사역해온 교단”이라며 “나는 부친이 보여준 사랑의 정신을 가지고 마이너리티 선교를 이어가고 있는 셈”이라고 말했다. 그는 “지금의 세계는 점점 복잡해지고 있으며 사람들의 관계가 무너지고 있다”며 “한국교회와 성도들이 상처받은 세상을 치유하는 공동체가 돼 달라”고 덧붙였다.
그는 인터뷰 말미에 아버지인 존 선교사가 가장 좋아했다는 성경 구절을 읽어줬다. “사람아 주께서 선한 것이 무엇임을 네게 보이셨나니 여호와께서 네게 구하시는 것은 오직 정의를 행하며 인자를 사랑하며 겸손하게 네 하나님과 함께 행하는 것이 아니냐.”(미 6:8)
도쿄=글·사진 신상목 기자 smshin@kmib.co.kr
[출처] - 국민일보
[원본링크] - http://news.kmib.co.kr/article/view.asp?arcid=0923868181
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