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As Japan moves to tighten restrictions on foreign residents, raise visa application fees for foreign nationals and review its immigration policies, signs of growing anti-foreigner sentiment are becoming increasingly apparent. A leader of the far-right Conservative Party of Japan has sparked controversy after making remarks at a campaign rally that appeared to mock foreigners.

According to a report published on Oct. 13 by Josei Jishin, a major Japanese weekly magazine, the Conservative Party of Japan held a campaign rally at a park in Fukuoka on Oct. 10. Kentaro Mori, the party’s candidate in the Fukuoka mayoral election, voiced concerns about expanding the acceptance of foreign nationals and called for Fukuoka City to stop providing public assistance to foreign residents.

“To protect Japan from foreigners who behave badly, we must start by changing our policies on accepting foreign nationals here in Fukuoka,” Mori said, defending the anti-foreigner policies of the current administration led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

Naoki Hyakuta, leader of the Conservative Party of Japan and a member of the House of Representatives, then added his own remarks, further fueling the controversy.

Hyakuta made a series of hard-line statements to supporters, saying, “If things continue this way, more than half the students in a single classroom could be foreigners,” “We could reach a point where we no longer know whose country this is,” and “We must restrict immigration to protect a clean Japan.”

Hyakuta was also reported to have pointed at foreigners passing by and remarked mockingly, “Aren’t those foreigners receiving public assistance?”

Mori responded, “That could be the case. That might be why they’re troubled by what we’re saying here.” Supporters at the scene responded with laughter and applause.

The incident spread on social media, prompting criticism. Critics argued that the remarks disparaged and generalized foreigners as a group, and that it was inappropriate for public officials and politicians to use public assistance as a subject of ridicule, given that the program supports people struggling to make ends meet for a variety of reasons.

Some social media users commented, “I had to wonder whether those were really words a public official should say,” and “It seems they failed to consider that even among their own party’s supporters, some may have no choice but to rely on public assistance.”

In a post on his own social media account, Hyakuta acknowledged that his remarks had been somewhat extreme but sought to justify them. “It is a fact that immigration and public assistance for foreigners are putting pressure on national finances,” he wrote. “The right policy is to reduce the money spent on them and restrict immigration, then return the resulting savings to Japanese citizens to ease the burden of consumption tax.”

                                                                                                           Jeong Eun-hye