How a Policy Network Matters for Refugee Protection: A Case Study of Japan’s Refugee Resettlement Programme

IF 1.4 Q3 DEMOGRAPHY

Refugee Survey Quarterly Pub Date : 2021-06-17 DOI:10.1093/rsq/hdab001

J. Akashi

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Abstract

In 2010, Japan became the first Asian country to launch a refugee resettlement programme. The programme continues today, and the government expanded the scheme to accept more refugees through the resettlement channel in 2020. How Japan, a country known for its reluctance to accept refugees, has strengthened its commitment to its refugee resettlement programme has been insufficiently investigated. Based on surveys of literature that mainly involved primary resources and interviews with key stakeholders of the programmes, this study reveals that the development of a policy network that mediates local constraints on refugee protection processes is a key determinant of the state’s capability to accept refugees as well as how well the refugee protection programme functions. Retracing the decade-long history of Japan’s resettlement programme, this study argues that the performance of the programme has hinged on local actors and in part on a non-governmental organisation that acts as an intermediary between the state and municipalities, whereas institutional settings in Japan remain the greatest hindrance to the effective participation of NGOs in national humanitarian initiatives.

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政策网络如何影响难民保护：以日本难民安置计划为例

2010年，日本成为第一个启动难民安置计划的亚洲国家。该计划至今仍在继续，政府扩大了该计划，到2020年通过重新安置渠道接收更多难民。以不愿接受难民著称的日本如何加强其对难民重新安置方案的承诺还没有得到充分的调查。基于文献调查(主要涉及主要资源)和对项目主要利益相关者的访谈，本研究表明，政策网络的发展对难民保护过程的地方约束进行调解，是国家接收难民能力以及难民保护项目运作情况的关键决定因素。回顾日本重新安置计划长达十年的历史，本研究认为，该计划的表现取决于地方行动者，部分取决于充当国家和市政当局之间中介的非政府组织，而日本的机构设置仍然是非政府组织有效参与国家人道主义倡议的最大障碍。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Refugee Survey Quarterly Social Sciences-Political Science and International Relations

CiteScore

2.40

自引率

8.30%

发文量

期刊介绍： The Refugee Survey Quarterly is published four times a year and serves as an authoritative source on current refugee and international protection issues. Each issue contains a selection of articles and documents on a specific theme, as well as book reviews on refugee-related literature. With this distinctive thematic approach, the journal crosses in each issue the entire range of refugee research on a particular key challenge to forced migration. The journal seeks to act as a link between scholars and practitioners by highlighting the evolving nature of refugee protection as reflected in the practice of UNHCR and other major actors in the field.