It was one of the first public actions in defense of the rights of undocumented immigrants in Japan, a small but growing component of the working class in that country. The marchers protested the discrimination faced by noncitizens and smears against immigrants by Tokyo governor Shintaro Ishihara. The action was called by the Asian People's Friendship Society.

"Sangokujin and foreigners are repeating atrocious crimes," Ishihara declared at an event in April celebrating the 50th anniversary of Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force. "In the event of a major disaster it is possible that there may even be an uprising" by them.

Sangokujin is a pejorative term used against Korean and Chinese immigrants. These workers face systematic discrimination. They are unprotected by labor laws and are provided no health insurance programs.

Ishihara's comments were calculated to evoke recollections of the devastating 1923 Tokyo earthquake, after which chauvinist forces spread rumors that Korean immigrants had poisoned their wells. This led to a massacre of 6,000 Koreans.

In March the Japanese government stated publicly that it would end discriminatory treatment of immigrants who refused to be fingerprinted for residency registration. The refusal to be fingerprinted forced them to stay in the country without legal status.

Tokyo introduced compulsory fingerprinting for immigrants in 1955. The new policy was adopted to comply with a resolution passed by Japan's parliament in May 1999. The move coincided with a report released by the Justice Ministry stating that the country's labor shortage required the government to implement measures allowing more immigrants to work in Japan. A recent UN report said Japan would need 609,000 immigrants over the next 50 years to maintain the country's workforce at its 1995 level.  
 
 
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