November 21, 2007	Wednesday	Ziqa’ad 10, 1428

TOKYO, Nov 20: Japan began fingerprinting and photographing foreigners entering the country on Tuesday in an effort to tighten security, despite concerns by rights groups and business leaders.

Japan modelled the tighter immigration controls on the controversial US-Visit system launched in the United States after the Sept 11 2001 attacks, which keeps biometric data of foreign visitors.

“This has the very large objective of preventing terrorism,” Justice Minister Kunio Hatoyama said as he slid his two index fingers onto a scanner at Narita airport near Tokyo in a demonstration for reporters on Monday.

“Privacy issues are a matter of perception and so I would like everyone to bear with us. Since we are treating individuals’ private information it will be strictly protected,” he said.

The system requires all foreign visitors aged 16 years and older to scan their fingerprints and submit to photographs on arrival, with the potential for follow-up questions from immigration officials.

Unlike in the United States, where green card holders are exempt, Japan will extend the controls to foreign permanent residents.

The only foreigners who can bypass the system are ‘special residents’ — ethnic Koreans and Chinese who were forcefully brought to Japan before and during World War II and their descendants.

The system is costing $329 million and scanners will be installed at 415 airports and seaports across the country.

Japan also has 128 portable scanners on hand.

Human rights activists have voiced concerns about privacy and the possible affect of the new conditions on how foreigners are perceived in Japan.

“Forcing entering foreigners to give their biometric information is based on the preconceived notion that ‘all foreigners are terrorists’,” Amnesty International Japan said in a statement.

Some 60 demonstrators, mostly Westerners along with some Koreans, rallied outside the justice ministry in central Tokyo early on Tuesday, carrying a giant balloon representing an index finger and signs showing fingerprint images covered by the word “No!”.

“One must not forget that equating non-Japanese with criminals is a great insult and indignity,” said a statement issued at the demonstration, which Amnesty helped organise.

Japan, which largely sees itself as ethnically homogeneous, is a close US ally and hub for US troops which has faced repeated threats by Al Qaeda, in part for supporting the Iraq war.

Last month Justice Minister Hatoyama caused a storm when he said he had a friend of a friend who was an Al Qaeda terrorist and had infiltrated Japan several times using different identities. He later played down his remarks.

Foreign business leaders are worried that the system will create another layer of red tape in the world’s second largest economy, which has been trying to draw more tourists and promote itself as Asia’s premier financial hub.

Critics say that competitors, such as Singapore and Hong Kong, could gain an advantage if business people on short trips face long waits to enter Japan.

Companies have called on immigration authorities to create a special lane for frequent business travelers.

“The only thing we are asking Japan is to give those of us who have visas a fast-track. They all know us, they know who we are, they know what we are here for,” said Richard Collasse, chairman of the European Business Council in Japan and president of the local branch of French fashion house Chanel.

“I have nothing against this system, as long as it does not impair our ability to come and go and especially to return,” he said.

The justice ministry has estimated that the average waiting time will not exceed 20 minutes.

“Should line waits increase substantially as a result of the changes, then we would be concerned and will actively work to improve the situation,” said Mina Takahashi, spokeswoman for the American Chamber of Commerce.

“An active programme which allows for automated immigration clearance of frequent business travelers, as is available in both Hong Kong and Singapore, needs to be a significant feature of Japan’s new immigration policy,” she said.—AFP