Critical Analysis of the Japanese Practice on Establishing Facts in Refugee Status Determination Procedure

Mitsuru Namba

[Secretary-General of Japan Lawyers Network for Refugees] 

This presentation discusses the current situation in Japan with regard to proving facts related to refugee status from critical perspective. In doing so, I will look at Japan’s refugee status determination (RSD) practice and the administrative interpretations therein from the Ministry of Justice. I will also assess interpretations from Japanese courts and their judgments in RSD cases. In examining trends, eight lower court cases from August 2015 to October 2019 in which refugee status was at issue were selected and included for the sake of this study. This presentation first examines the issues of burden of proof and the standard of proof regarding refugee status in Japan, and then, in referring to the aforementioned eight court cases, looks at issues surrounding the credibility assessment of statements, and issues related to country of origin information.