Chinese Migration to Japan on the Rise

During the last three decades, Japan has been one of the main destinations for Chinese migrants. The population of Chinese in Japan is growing rapidly. According to the Immigration Bureau statistics, the Chinese population in Japan had grown thirteen-fold since the 1980s, surpassing the Korean migrants in Japan. Despite the recent political turmoil between China and Japan, many Chinese tourists and migrants come to Japan. If this trend continues, there could be a prospect for improvement of the Sino-Japanese relations with non-traditional security aspects in spite of the political tensions. Through their economic interdependence, both nations can not only benefit financially, but also culturally, thus building multicultural coexistence.

Chinese migrants have the longest history of any migrant group in Japan, and their numbers are certainly remarkable (Chen 2008). The Chinese migrants have been present in Japan since the 1900s and played a significant role in the introduction of Western products by acting as intermediaries between Japan and the West. They served as translators for Western merchants and acted as agents for Japanese traders who were not accustomed to doing business with the Westerners. They also taught the Japanese how to manufacture Western products such as clothes, furniture and even Western-style houses. For instance, as the Yokohama settlement flourished and Western houses needed to be built, Chinese craftsmen who had experience building such dwellings in the foreign settlements in Hong Kong or Shanghai were engaged (Nishikawa 2002). The Chinese concentrated in trading, restaurants, barber shops and the clothing industry. Many of these migrants came to Japan through kinship networks and they were not welcomed by...

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...te in the Japanese cultural and linguistic environment.

Integration is a two-way process. Migrants adapt, and become integrated into the host country, but equally, the society must accept them, and must change itself. There has been a recent tendency for the press and public opinion to lay responsibility for the rise in criminality at the Chinese. With the ongoing tension of the disputed islands between China and Japan, the Sino-Japanese relations could worsen. However, through non-traditional security relations, there is a prospect for improvement or remaining status quo. Through Chinese migrants, China and Japan can build tighter economic interdependence and create multicultural coexistence. Starting with MIC’s Multicultural Promotion Plan (Nagy 2012) and LDP's proposal for 10 million foreigners by 2050, there is a hope for improvement in Sino-Japanese relations.