Thai girl pleads to stay in Japan as resident status set to expire
An adopted Thai girl living with her grandparents in Japan following the death of her parents held a press conference in Tokyo on Tuesday appealing for permanent residence to avoid being deported.
The girl, Mevisa Yoshida, 13, read out a message addressed to the Justice Minister, asking to be allowed to permanently stay in the country.
"I'm worried about what's going to happen in the future," she said. "Even if I go back to Thailand, I won't have a place to stay. I'm happy with my life in Japan. I've received a lot of support from friends, and I want to do my best in Japan in the future. Please grant my wish."Let's see what the Japanese authorities decide. They aren't going to send a 13-year old orphan back to her home country alone, when the only relative she has lives in Japan, married to a Japanese. That would be inhumane.Mevisa came to Japan in February last year to live as an adopted child of her grandmother. Her grandmother is married to a Japanese man.
Her current resident status is classified under "designated activities." She has applied for permanent residence, but the Ministry of Justice allows adoption as a reason for granting permanent residence only if the person is aged under six years. Former Justice Minister Daizo Nozawa extended the limit on Mevisa's stay by three months in July. This runs out on Wednesday.
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"Generally speaking, if the only people who can support the person are in Japan, then the person is allowed to live in the country on humanitarian grounds. I want to reach a solution as soon as possible."
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