Filipino-Japanese children and their future: a reflection

Nagano-There are lots of growing Filipino-Japanese children in Japan now. One I met two years ago was already in his 17 years old and was in his high school education in Japan.

My only five Fil-Jap children were all born in the Philippines but one among them could not have a Japanese passport as it was a policy in Japan Embassy based in Manila to report the birth of the baby within 15 days from birth. It was only in Japan that the child could apply for a Japanese passport and have her birth be registered as well during her first visit in Japan. They have the dual citizenship this time and when they will reach the age of 18, they can choose their own citizenship too for legal purposes.

As I was monitoring the Osaka legal case of Fil-Jap children which was elevated to the highest court in Japan, I too was contemplating on the future of both "cain and abel" Fil-Jap children who are living in Japan.

Ten children of Filipina mothers had filed suit seeking Japanese nationality because Japanese men -- who were married to other women -- had acknowledged they were their fathers.
"I want to make my dream come true, a dream only Japanese can achieve," said 10-year-old Masami, one of the 10 children. "I want to become a police officer." Masami and nine other children, even though they were born in Japan and speak only Japanese, were not granted nationality because the fathers acknowledged them only after they were born. Previously under Japanese law, the father had to confirm the child as his before an out-of-wedlock birth.
The mother of another plaintiff, 14-year-old Jurie-Anne, said, "I didn't think nationality would matter for my daughter when she was a baby." "But from around age five, she kept asking me why she wasn't Japanese. I was always sorry for her that I wasn't married."
With tears welling up in her eyes, Jurie-Anne said, "I know I've been such a handful for my mother, but I want to say to her today, 'thank you'."

According to official statistics, approximately 2,800 children born out of wedlock from foreign mothers reside in Japan, more than 2,000 of whom have Japanese fathers. Japan, which largely regards itself as ethnically homogeneous, bases nationality on blood ties. It has rejected the idea of large-scale immigration even though it has one of the world's lowest birthrates.

The SC decision of Japan yesterday was a landmark for these Japanese-fathered children not only for Fil-Jap.

Eventually, for the spiritual development these Fil-Jap children need is a more Christian orientation for them to be God-centered, God-knowing in their way of living and education. Their academic study in Japan except in English and religion seems to be good due to the advanced technical facilities of the schools. But their struggles to learn more on nihonggo and kanji need supplemental tuturing.

In terms of social exposures, unlike in Philippines, they cannot easily befriend their neighbors in Japan due to socio-cultural orientation. But their class and schoolmates are open to them as they already know each other. Moreover, I noticed that home-telephone conversation between teachers and parents; between teachers and students; between a child and classmate are frequent enough aside from the semestral home-visit of the teachers to the students' house to talk with their parents.

Even then, the bullying in the schools are still present and more if the stronger and taller students could find someone like small students if not those isolated-type children of foreigners.

Employment in the Japan still manifests racism and descrimination though some companies are open now to employ the gaijin or foreigners. Yet there are still many things to hurdle in this labor sector for equality.

Internally, the abel Fil-Jap children are literally blessed as they can easily come to Japan with legal visa being a child/children of blessed Fil-Jap couples. But those who undergo the long process of legal battle like those cain Fil-Jap children born in Japan played a seemingly stronger fight to acquire their legal migration to Japan or their Japanese citizenship.

I was asked by a Filipina why bother on those legal battles? And her question made me reflect more.

In my three years stay in Japan, I can witness and talk more to Filipinas than Japanese people. And true, there are many Filipinas here who were previously entertainers and have mothered their Fil-Jap child/children here. But some are responsive to the lectures I gave too. Maybe because of their Christian backbround and language orientation in English for the lectures. Witnessing to these kind of Filipina mothers is a potential opportunity. In fact I have talked and given counsel to a now blessed Filipina member who was a former entertainer in Japan and a single mother to a Fil-Jap son now living sacrificially in the Philippines.

Moreover, the tale of the comfort women who suffered much under the Japanese Imperial Army is still unresolved and unindemnified. Yet, I feel that those souls of the departed comfort women were so happy in the spirit world if not in the Philippines on the recognition of the Fil-Jap children to be given equal treatment and rights by the Japanese goverment pretty soon after the landmark Japan SC decision to give these children the citizenship they deserved.

The providential role of the Philippines to cooperate and unite with Japan as a mother nation is seemingly welcomed by parallel recognition of Japan on those Fil-Jap children. Hence, cain and abel Fil-Jap children have a big responsibility to bridge the God-centered true lineage to the next generation of mankind. Their friendship can build a strong socio-cultural foundation that can soon be connected to spiritual inclination and recieve the blessing for them to be engrafted to the true vine of a God-centered lineage.

To cain and abel Fil-Jap Children, banzai, mabuhay, eog mansie!!!