Female Thai Migrants in Japan
Pataya Ruenkaew

Introduction
The international labour migration of Thai women commenced over two decades ago. The initialoverseas destination in the 1970s was Europe, especially Switzerland, Germany and Scandinavia.
Between the late 1980s and the early 1990s, during the economic boom in Japan, the number of
immigrant workers entering the Japanese labour market dramatically increased. In this period
Japan became one of the countries which received a large number of female women from Thailand
annually. The statistics of the Japanese Immigration Bureau show that no less than 70,000 Thais
entered Japan in 2000, and about one half of these new entrants were women, many of whom later
became overstayers.
There is a number of reports and studies about Thai female immigrants in Japan, mostly on
specific issues, for example about Thai sex workers (Vanaspong 1996, Watenabe 1997), about the lifeand community of Thai migrant workers (Smutkupt and Kitiarsa 1996), as well as about the qualityof working life (Rawiwong and Patanasri 1997, Sriwattananukunkit 1998), but little has been recorded
about the migratory process of the women. Though the work of Singhanetra-Renard (1995) touches
this aspect, it has focused mainly on the formation of linkages between Thailand and Japan, and as aresult there is still little insight into the migratory process and the global view of Thai femalemigration to Japan as a whole.
Based on narrative biographical interviews with 22 Thai female migrants at conducted in Japan1
during July and August 2001 and information provided by Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs)
helping Thai women, this study discusses the process of migration which includes migration
motivation, networks in migration, socio-economic factors associated with migration and women’s
experiences as migrants in Japan.
Due to the absence of baseline data extending to the aspects covered here, the term “Thai womenin Japan” as used here is not intended necessarily to refer to the group as a whole. Rather it refers
to those Thais whom I interviewed. All names cited in this article are pseudonyms.

１．The Migration of Thai Women to Japan
Since 1979, Japanese multinational corporations have obtained permission from the Thaigovernment to send their Thai employees to undergo training in the “mother” corporations in Japan(Rawiwong and Patanasri 1997, p. 26). This was the beginning of legal labour migration from47

Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in Japan

Thailand to Japan. Along with this kind of labour migration, the illegal recruitment of Thai labour,
especially that of women for prostitution, began in 1981. Annual statistics on Thai entry into, andexit from, Japan from 1980 to 2000, are given in figure 1. The data indicate that the rate of entry ofThai immigrants has been very volatile. It increased in a relatively steady manner from 1980 to
1989. In 1991, when the economic boom in Japan reached its peak, the number of Thais entering
Japan had exceeded 100,000, but thereafter, within only five years, it sharply declined by nearly half.
According to the findings of Ito Chiaki this decrease has to do with changes in Japanese immigration
policy in the early 1990s, which cam up in the form of a strict approval procedure by visa applicationand tightened control on the entry points (Ito 2000, p. 15). After 1996 the number of Thai
immigrants increased slightly but constantly. The same dynamic character is also found in thenumber of female Thai immigrants. From 1980 there is a steady increase in the number of entriesof Thai women (see figure 2). This number reached its peak in 1991 (nearly 50,000) and shrank in
the two following years, then increased steadily in the following years. The information from NGOs
reveals an increase in unlawful entries and disguised entries by those holding passports of othernationalities. These entries do not appear in the statistics cited here. The number of Thais
entering Japan thus is likely to be higher than official statistics show.
Figure 1. Thai Migrants in Japan
120000100000
80000
60000
40000
20000
0
1978

1980

1982
Entry

1984

1986

1988
Exit

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

2000

Balance

Source: Ministry of Justice, Annual Report of Statistics on Legal Migrants, 1981 ― 2000

Statistics of Thai nationals exiting Japan reveal a difference between the number of Thai new
entrants and those leaving the country, viz. the number of the former group exceeds that of thelatter. This indicates a number of overstayers, about half of whom are women e.g. in 1994 there
were 46,973 Thai overstayers in Japan, 25,905 were women (Ito 2000, p. 16).

The balance of entries

to and exits from the country of male and female Thai migrants in Japan is given in figure 3. It
shows the balance of female migrants slightly exceeds that of the males. Each year the number ofunauthorized visa overstayers by country of origin is reported by the Japanese Bureau of48

ジェンダー研究 第５号 ２００２Figure 2. Female Thai Migrants in Japan

50000

40000

30000

20000

10000

0
1978

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1996

1998

2000

Balance

Exit

Entry

1994

Source: Ministry of Justice, Annual Report of Statistics on Legal Migrants, 1981 ― 2000
Note: Figures for 1995 not available.

Figure 3. Male and Female Thai Migrants in Japan

20000

15000

10000

5000

0

-5000
1978

1980

1982

1984

Female (Balance)

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

2000

Male (Balance)

Source: Ministry of Justice, Annual Report of Statistics on Legal Migrants, 1981 ― 2000
Note: Figures for 1995 not available.

Immigration Control under the Ministry of Justice. According to Yamanaka (2000, p. 65) thiscalculation is done by matching data of individual entries and exits on entry visas. If an entrant isfound not to have departed by the end of the valid period of stay, he or she is defined as a visa
overstayer. Thus, due to Yamanaka, a simple calculation of the annual excess of entries over exits
provides an approximate number of overstayers each years. But this simple calculation does nottake into account the number of people who have changed their visa status and who have been
deported, both of which can influence the amount of the number of exits. Therefore this calculation

49

Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in Japan

can result only in a very rough estimate of overstayers. Following this calculation it can be
estimated that there are no less than 40,000 Thai women overstayers in Japan up to the year 2000.
According to the Annual Report of Statistics of the Ministry of Justice (1980−2000), no less than
1,000 Thai people since the early 1980s, more than 7,000 in 1992 and over 10,000 in 1993 and 1994 aredeported each year and women account for about half of them. Another figure that has to be taken
into account in the estimation of the number of Thai female overstayers is the increasing number ofintermarriages between Thai female migrants and Japanese men. In 1994 9.6% of all international
marriages in Japan were marriages of Thai and Japanese nationals, most of which are between Thai
women and Japanese men (Komai 1997 cited in Ito 2000, p. 17). As a result, through marriage Thai
women can obtain a spouse visa and achieve a legal status. Therefore, to obtain a more adequate
estimation of the number of Thai female overstayers the number of Thai female deportations and of
women receiving a spouse visa has to be subtracted from the total excess of arrivals overdepartures. According to Japanese government statistics, the number of Thai female overstayers
has gradually declined from a high of almost 30,000 in 1993. However, the same official source
estimates the number of female overstayers from Thailand to still exceed 20,0002 (Ministry of Justice
1997, 2000, cited in Human Rights Watch 2000, p. 31). Thus the number of Thai women without
legal status might be over 20,000 but less than 40,000.
The Japanese immigration law requires migrants staying in Japan for over 90 days to register withthe local government. This includes immigrants without legal status though few do register. The
majority of registered migrants are those holding legal status. In 1999 there was a registered Thai
population of 25,253 in Japan, 6,760 of whom were men and 18,493 women (Ministry of Justice 1999).
Based on figures mentioned above the conclusion can be drawn that it is hard to quote the exact
number of the Thai population in Japan and especially that of Thai females because of insufficientdata. On the other hand, the available figures mentioned above support the estimation that there
might be about 40,000 Thai female migrants living in Japan, both with and without legal status.

２．Typology of Thai Female Migrants in JapanI have built up a typology of Thai female migrants in Japan through interviews with 22 women.
The typology, reflecting each woman's life and situation, is dynamic, and changes within the phase of
migration. For a better understanding of the dynamic of the lives of these women, I divide themigration process into three phases: (1) the period before migration, (2) the period of arrival in Japanand (3) the phase after initial migration, i.e. the women’s experiences as migrants in Japan. Thissection treats only the first two phases while the third phase will be discussed in the later sections.
In the period before migration the women can be grouped into three distinct categories: (1)prostitutes, (2) single women and (3) supporting mothers. Two criteria are used for classifying,namely marital status and occupation prior to migration.

50

ジェンダー研究 第５号 ２００２

Prostitutes

Four women belong to this group and were commercial sex workers in Bangkok or the

tourist city of Phuket, Thailand, prior to their immigration. Whilst Prao and Praeo worked as
prostitutes in Bangkok’s Pat Pong or in beer bars, Pring earned her income as a hostess in a cocktail
lounge, a kind of covert prostitution establishment. Only Porn, a masseuse at a Japanese massage
palour in Bangkok, has gained experiences in the sex industry in other Asian countries, viz. Hong
Kong, Macau and Singapore. Better earnings is a reason for these women’s entry this occupation.

Single women

Generally these women, of whom there were ten, belong to the Thai lower middle

class and feel affected by economic deprivation. This does not mean that they have to face severe
economic difficulties. Rather, in their own perception, they see no possibility to achieve economic
advancement according to their own criteria if they stay in Thailand. Migration to Japan isconsidered as the means of access to the things they desire. As opposed to other unmarried women
Wanpen has lived with a Thai husband as a de-facto couple without a marriage certificate. They
separated immediately before her emigration. I put her into this group because she does not have achild to take responsibility for, which is the crucial criterion for classification as a supporting mother.

Supporting mothers This group of women, of whom there were eight, had married or lived with aThai husband as a de-facto couple without marriage certificate, but had divorced, separated or
become a widow. They all have children, for whom they are the sole breadwinner. This is an
important stimulus for the women to migrate abroad in the expectation of economic improvement.
One exception is the case of Mora. She was not yet divorced at the time of emigration but hadcompleted the divorce a few months after arrival when her Thai husband took a new wife and she
found her Japanese husband. The reason for putting her into this group is that, even though she
was still legally married, she was the sole breadwinner for her children.
Upon arrival in Japan-the second phase of migration-the typology of Thai women interviewed
changes according to the new roles and career patterns they chose or were compelled to follow.
Three groups of women can be classified as (1) sex workers, (2) labourers and (3) brides.

Figure 4. Typology

Prostitutes

Single Women

Single Mothers

Sex Workers

Workers

Brides51

Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in Japan

Figure 4 shows the transition of types upon arrival as against the phase prior to migration. The
thickness of the arrows indicates the number of transitions observed in my sample. 11 women fromthe three groups mentioned above, i.e. three prostitutes and four each of the single women andsupporting mothers, became commercial sex workers, whilst another four (two single women and one
each from the prostitutes and supporting mothers) are going to be a bride. Four single women andthree supporting mothers became labourers. But none of the prostitutes earn their livelihood as non-sex industry workers, they rather voluntarily join the transnational prostitution industry in Japan.

Sex workers

The women in this group have to provide sexual service, including sexual intercourse,

for monetary exchange. All of them were placed into employment as hostesses in “dating” snackbars. Snack bars, often referred to simply as “snacks,” are a common venue where many Japanese
go for relaxation and conversation, but “dating” snack bars indicate bars from which clients may
take women out for sexual services (HRW 2000, p. 84). Other women besides the group of
prostitutes are enticed into transnational prostitution in Japan. The brokers promised them
employment with high incomes in manufacturing, or in conserved food factories, or as waitresses ordishwashers. Upon arrival, instead of working in these workplaces the women were sold to ownersof snack bars, mainly in Tokyo, Chiba and Ibaraki prefectures, where they were compelled to sell
drink and accompany customers to hotels to perform sexual services. Only the prostitutes and twoof the single women knew what kind of work awaited them in Japan.

Labourers

The women of this group have been given employment in Japan, but not the kind ofjobs they expected. Mak and Mee, two supporting mothers in over fifty years of age, got employeda cooks in Thai restaurants, while Mora was sent to work in furniture manufacturing. Waree, asingle woman, joined her mother and earned her livelihood as a waitress in an Izakaya, a kind ofsmall restaurant. The other three single women entered Japan as so-called covert workers in theguise of language students, as Wanni pointed out: “we didn’t come here only to study, frankly wewant to work.” They have registered and paid fees for a language school for the purpose ofobtaining student visas, which enables them to work a certain amount of hours daily. Usually the
initial working places of these so-called covert workers are Izakaya-restaurants, beginning as kitchen
hands, later with improved Japanese as waitresses.

Brides

The women belonging to this typology entered Japan as the fiancee of a Japanese man withthe purpose of getting married to him. Most of the women met their husband-to-be in Thailand,through the introduction of a friend or in the workplace (such as tourist cafes or bars). Rendezvous
in a tourist site of Thailand is found to be a common place of initial relationship among Thai
marriage migrant women and German men too (see Ruenkaew 2001). Only Wipa becameacquainted with her husband upon her first business visit to Japan.

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ジェンダー研究 第５号 ２００２

３．Socio-economic Profiles and Patterns of Migration
Socio-economic Profiles
Most of the prostitutes are poorly educated, having only completed the compulsory education.
Only two could continue their study in secondary school but without completion. Six supporting
mothers have completed elementary education, while the other two passed secondary school.
Among all Thai women interviewed the group of single women are the best educated. Six of them
have completed vocational education, senior high school and university, while three others havepassed elementary education. Nine women were married or lived with a Thai husband as a de-facto
couple without a marriage certificate, most of the women, except Mora were divorced, separated or
widowed. All of them have children, except Wanpen.
From the point of view of the last occupation before emigration, two main groups can be
distinguished. One consists of women engaged in prostitution, including women working in massage
parlours. The second group of Thai female migrants earned their income from various professions
such as traders, cooks, labourers in manufacturing, singers, or company employees. Only two had
just completed their education, one elementary school graduate and one university graduate, but had
not yet entered the labour market.
Most of the women interviewed have a rural background. The majority were born in the North
East of the country, mainly Udon Thani (five out of eight). The remaining migrants came from thecentral regions (7), the North (2), the South (2), and from Bangkok (2). A close examination of
biographical data reveals that most of the Thai female migrants have taken part in the rural-urban
migration process in Thailand. In their younger days these women left their home town in ruralarea, mostly after completing compulsory education. For most of the sample moving to an urban
area had served the purpose of searching for a job in order to support their families and themselves
and for a few it was the only means of access into higher education. After completing higher
education another step of migration was undertaken on searching for employment. The need to findan alternative source of income drives the women to set off on another step of migration, particularly
to places offering economic improvement. Prior to their migration to Japan three women have evengained experiences in transnational migration. Mawika was a labourer in Saudi-Arabia, Pring
worked in the sex industry in Hong Kong and Singapore, whilst Marisa immigrated to Switzerland in
search of a marriage partner.
At the time of interview the women were aged between 24 and 67 years and on average 38.90
years old. Upon immigration to Japan most of them were older than 23 years (the average is 26.59
years). There is a vast difference in age upon immigration of Thai women. Mak, the oldest
supporting mother, entered the country at the age of 53, while Watana was the youngest single
woman at the age of 14. This indicates that women in nearly all age group join transnational labour
migration to Japan. Looking at their first step in the rural-urban migratory process in Thailand they
were much younger, between 14 and 20 years (15. 9 years in average). These figures reveal a long53

Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in Japan

strech of time between their first movement from the places of origin and the immigration to Japan.

Pattern of Migration
The biographies of the women, particularly prior to their immigration to Japan, as pointed out
above, reveal that the majority of them, most of those of origin in the rural area, have an internalmigration history. Moreover, some of these former internal female migrants had already gained
experience as transnational labour migrants. Therefore, one conclusion based on empirical analysis
can be drawn, namely that the transnational labour migration to Japan is the last phase of a staged
international migratory process of Thai women, with its beginning mainly in villages in remote areas.
This pattern is also found in the marriage migration of Thai women to Germany, which in fact meansa variety of transnational labour migration patterns (Ruenkaew 2001). It affirms the findings of myrecent study (Ruenkaew 1998; 2001), that transnational labour migration is a continuation of internalmigration. The pattern of international migration of Thai women to Japan is depicted in figure 5.
Figure 5. The Stepwise Migration of Thai Women to Japan

Bangkok
provincial capitalforeign countries

Japan

villagecentres of prostitution

foreign countries
legend:labour and educational migration
prostitution
direct entry into prostitution
single step migration

As shown in figure 5, the migratory process of Thai women to Japan includes a variety of internalmigration processes. The exceptions are in the cases of women born in Bangkok (2) and of the few
women with a rural background (3), who have no previous migration history.

For these groups the

migratory process is found to be a one step process, that is from a rural area directly to Japan.
The migratory process to Japan can be described as follows:
１． It begins mainly in villages in rural areas. The women move, usually after compulsory
education, from their places of birth to urban areas in a district or provincial capital. Somemigrate directly to the national capital. The purpose of the movement is employment or
higher education. Few women move directly from villages to become a prostitute in Bangkok.
２． From the district or province, they move on to a bigger city or to Bangkok, looking for better
earnings or advanced education.

54

ジェンダー研究 第５号 ２００２

３． From female labour migrants to prostitution: They further migrate to the centres of the sex
industry such as Bangkok or to some provinces in the South and become commercial sex
workers.
４．The last phase is transnational migration to Japan. The women find many different ways tomigrate to Japan. For the women with origins in Bangkok and for some from rural areas
without internal migration experience it is a one step migratory process.

４．Motivation for Migration
For economic perspectives (such as Ravenstein 1889, Borjas 1989) people emigrate in search of
better economic opportunities than those available to them in their origin country. This seems to beaffirmed in the cases of Thai female migration to Japan. The findings of this study and those of
Chunjitkaruna (2000) and Ruangsuwan (2000) reveal that expectations of economic improvement andhigh paid are among the important motivations of women of all three categories to leave for Japan.
With regard to some women it can be stated that they are seduced by the chance to earn a longamount of money in a very short time, like Wandee, a single woman, who reported:
My friend said working in manufacturing I would get 40−50,000 Baht monthly. . . . here I haveto stand the whole day long and earn only 7,000 Baht (Wandee, p. 1).
But this must not be taken to mean that migration to Japan is caused by poverty. In general, mostof the women, I interviewed earn enough for their livelihood. What they want is an opportunity forbuilding an economic existence. They hope to receive a large sum of money in a very short timeand return to establish themselves-to buy a house or land or start their own business on the basis of
their earnings in Japan.
The motive for migration to Japan for the bride is clear: to marry a Japanese fiance. Besides, thedata from interviews suggest that the expectation of the economic betterment is a motive formarriage and leaving Thailand too. Mayura, a supporting mother who entered Japan as a bride toldme:
It was not that long, I met him only that day we went for dinner. I decided to forge ahead, totake a chance ahead. If I stay here my life remains unchanged, no progression. But if he is agood guy, it might be good for me too. I might have money to send for my children and mymother (Mayura, p. 3).
In case of Praoe, a prostitute in Phuket, marriage to a Japanese can also mean a chance to retire
from prostitution without losing economic security. This is found to be an important motivation offormer Thai prostitutes to marry German tourists and undertake marriage migration to Germany(Ruenkaew 2001, pp. 185−188).
Though economic motives are crucial in the case of Thai female migrants to Japan, they are not

55

Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in Japanthe sole decisive motivation to leave Thailand. A close examination of interview data suggests that
non economic factors also have an influence on the decision to emigrate. Mayura’s statement above
reveals that her migration should benefit her family, especially her children, too. Statement asked
why they came to Japan, all the supporting mothers referred to their children for whom they are
responsible. For them, economic security through their transnational migration can result in
economic and social advancement of their children. Besides providing support to the parents theirsojourn in Japan offers an avenue to prosperity for their close siblings. This is the belief of thegroups of single women and prostitutes. The remittances from Japan can be used for higher
education of these relatives, which in return could help them find better occupation, status andhigher income. Or, these people could follow in their footsteps and obtain better economic
opportunities in Japan. In fact, many women do recruit their brothers, sisters or even daughters towork with them. Porn has one sister and one brother working in her Thai restaurant. Waree wasrecruited by her mother who came to work in an Izakaya restaurant four years prior to Waree’s
immigration. A brother of Wanna is found being a covert worker under the status of student oflanguage school, the migration venue of his sister some years ago. Familial responsibilities must
therefore be regarded as an important motivation.
Can these familial responsibilities be considered as family or household strategies? Under thehousehold strategy perspective (e.g. Wood 1982, Chant and Radcliffe 1992) migration is seen as ahousehold strategy to self-insure against risk to income, production and property, or to gain access to
scarce investment capital. Thus, the decision as to who will migrate is made by the family orhousehold not the individual. As discussed above, most of the women I interviewed were internalmigrant workers living in the destination area of their internal migration rather than with theirfamilies in their village of origin. Many of them decided to emigrate without consulting with, or
informing the family left behind. One exception might be the case of Watana, a single woman who
was only 14 years old at the time of entry to Japan, since her mother acknowledged her sojourn andwas the one discussing the migration venue with the broker. But, unlike the other women, Watana
did not remit money to her mother, after she knew that her first and second remittances were
wasted by her mother. In regard to familial responsibilities, although the women provide financial
support to their parents and close siblings, this does not happen with the intention to establish a“family” business or any enterprise in the sense of familial belonging. Rather, it is a intrinsic bondthat family members should support each other. On the other hand the women consider property,
such as land bought by their remittances, as their possession.
My family is highly indebted. They put land in pledge. I always send them money to pay
back. . . . This year I will stay a bit longer in Thailand. I want to go to the government office tolet them transfer the ownership of the land that was redeemed from my remittances to be mine.
(Wandee, p. 2).

56

ジェンダー研究 第５号 ２００２Therefore, familial responsibility in the case of Thais in Japan should not be understood as ahousehold strategy.
As pointed out by Zlotnik (1995, p. 265), among women, migration and marital dissolution areclosely linked, since those who are separated or divorced are more likely to engage in migration than
women in stable unions. This is true of Thai female migrants to Germany. One determinant offemale migration lies in the quality of ties within the family and between spouses (Ruenkaew 2001,
p. 213). Similarity in this aspect is also found among Thai women migrants to Japan, particularly
the supporting mothers.

“I had just separated from the father of my daughter. I was broken

hearted and wanted to be out of Thailand, no matter where I would go” (Marisa, p. 1). Considering
this aspect of ties in the family and the above discussion of familial responsibilities, familial aspects
seem to be one factor in the motivation for migration. This supports Zlotnik’s (1995) suggestion thatthe family perspective is especially important for the analysis of female migration.

Factors associated with Migration
However, in addition to the motivations previously discussed, there are other important factors
behind the flow of Thai female migration to Japan. As a response to my question on the motive ofcoming to Japan; Pring said “I want to work to get big money and to pai muang nok (go abroad)”(Pring, p. 2). In Thai society muang nok (foreign country) and all matters concerning muang nok,
especially Europe or America, or Japan, have been given high social value. Pai muang nok (goingabroad) or khong muang nok (products from abroad) are symbols of social prestige. Going abroad andowning products made abroad are expensive and only the wealthy can afford them. It is sad, buttrue, as Chunjitkaruna (2000, p. 259) has pointed out, that money has gradually replaced traditional
power. Leadership, social status and prestige can be attained for those who have money and wealth.
Thus, money has become a crucial condition to improve social status. And among Thai femalemigrants, migration to Japan is understood as an avenue to wealth.
On the other hand “going abroad” refers to curiosity, the urge for new experiences, for “bright
lights” and for adventure, which are normal characteristics of young people. Under the “bright
lights hypothesis”, the desire for a change in life, particularly from rural to urban areas, can beunderstood as a motive for migration (May and Skeldon 1977). Migrants are attracted by the socialand economic opportunities on offer in cities (Yap 1977; Arnold and Cochrane 1980). Comparing
Thailand and Japan it is obvious that Japan presents more options for economic and social
advancement and is thus very seductive for Thais. Besides Japan belongs to a temperate zone
certainly comprising many things not available exist in a tropical land like Thailand (e.g. snow), whichmake Japan attractive enough for some Thais to visit. Walaya, a single woman reports: “I did notthink about anything, as his parents came to see me in Bangkok. I wanted only to see Japan . . . . I
wanted to see Sakura, to see snow. . . .” (Walaya, p. 2). In regard to the age at the time of thedecision to emigrate, Pring and Walaya were still young, in the early twenties. Accordingly, they
were influenced by these human drives for curiosity and for “bright lights.”

57

Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in JapanThe most decisive factor making migration possible is embeddedness in social and kinshipnetworks

providinginformation

andsupportnecessaryforemigration.

Empirically,

thetransnational migration of Thai women to Japan contains an element of chain migration. The
pioneer female migrants later function as parts of social networks, maintaining links to their homecommunity, providing information about living and working conditions and on modalities of entrance
into the target country; they organize the trip and help at the place of destination, and sometimes
even recruit more women. Hence, within these networks the transnational migration of Thai
women becomes “self-sustaining”.
Japan has no policy of accepting “unskilled” immigrant workers despite the fact that medium andsmall business are faced with a labour shortage. There are no official overseas labour contracts
between Thailand and Japan. Thus, many Thais enter the country of destination through venues
facilitated by transnational criminal networks that will be discussed below.

５．Venues of Migration
For most of the women, in the group of sex workers and labourers, except Waree who came to
Japan with the help of her mother, their entry to Japan is facilitated by brokers who belong totransnational criminal networks. In general, the women gain information on economic opportunities
in Japan from relatives, friends, or other acquaintances who later introduce them to the brokers.
These brokers then make arrangements for the women’s travel and job placement, obtaining thenecessary documents, contacting job brokers in Japan, and hiring escorts to accompany the womenon the trip. When the women arrive in Japan, job brokers receive them and deliver them to
employers.
After the agreement on working in Japan had been made the women in the sex workers groupwere told to wait in an apartment, somewhere in Bangkok, where they had to stay with other
women sharing the same destination. As the sex workers I interviewed reported, this waiting
period can be considered as a process of preparing the women to be attractive sex workers who canbring a lot of profit to the brokers. The women have to beautify themselves, get their skinwhitened or even undertake plastic surgery. Women who were regarded as not beautiful enoughwere given a ticket home. During the stay in this apartment the women were provided with freeboard and lodging and all of the expenses for beautifying were taken care of by the brokers, too.
When they needed money to remit home (for example, in the case of supporting mothers) they wereintroduced to Thai male clients to perform sexual services in exchange for money.
In this regard I asked one respondent whether she was sceptical about this act and whether it
revealed the reality of the work she would undertake.

The answer was: “They said we only to gowith a man here in Bangkok. In Japan we would work in a factory. Every thing is free of charge,
but if we want money we have to do this. Because they could not give us money to send home.
Every woman had to do the same as me” (Marisa, p. 2). This may sound naive but the women58

ジェンダー研究 第５号 ２００２

showed no suspicion. The only explanation that can be applied here is that their desire for highwaged employment in Japan was so strong that it made them blind. The length of stay in suchapartments varied depending on how long the beautifying process took and how fast the brokers
could arrange travel. From the interview data, it took between two weeks and two months.
According to other studies (Chunjitkaruna 2000, HRW 2000), Thai brokers and agents have ties toand work together with transnational organized criminal sydicates located in many countries
including China, Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan and Malaysia. This claim is supported by in the casesof the Thai women I interviewed, when the routes of travel are analyzed. Only Prao, Mukdee,
Wandee and Marisa flew directly from Bangkok to Tokyo holding their own passports. Watana was
only fourteen years old so she had to travel through Singapore with a passport of a woman of theage of twenty five who obtained a visa for Japan. Some women, like Mawika, left Bangkok with
their own passport, then dropped in to third countries like Hong Kong or Malaysia to receive a new
passport with a visa for Japan. Usually it is a real passport issued by the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs in Thailand, but the agents change the photograph of the holder. The other route is throughHat Yai, Thailand, to Malaysia. There, the women, like Wilai, were given a Malaysian passport andtravelled to Tokyo accompanied by either a Malaysian or a European man as a couple spending
holidays in Japan. The brokers will hire one or two escorts to accompany the women to Tokyo but
in some cases the brokers themselves will come along on the trip. No fee is charged until after
entry to Japan. Some of the interviews were told that they would be in debt upon arrival in Japan,
but the amount of debt was mainly misrepresented.
For the group of labourers the procedure of travel organized by the brokers is quite similar. One
difference is that the women need not undertake the beautifying process and they have only to wait
for a passport and visa. The waiting period takes from two weeks to one month. After obtaining a
passport and visa the brokers or escorts hired by them take the women to Japan. In the cases I
interviewed the route was from Bangkok directly to Tokyo. For all these services the women werecharged about 250,000 Baht (about 700,000 Yen) and this had to be paid before departure. The datafrom the interviews reveal that brokers sending the women for sex work and those facilitating
people for other jobs have links or one broker engages in both businesses. As reported by Mora thebroker organized her labour migration also sent women for sex work. Four relatives of hers whoentered Japan through the service of the same broker were put into employment as sex workers insnack bars in Nagano. Some women were recruited by their relatives working already in Japan
who have experience in organizing documents and facilitating entry. Waree’s travel was organisedby her mother who had already been working for three years in an Izakaya restaurant. Mak andMee went to Japan with a visa as a cook in a Thai restaurant belonging to Mee’s daughter who
facilitated the trip. In such cases the women were not deceived and given a job promised, nor they
were charged a fee. Another venue to become a worker in Japan is through enrolling in a Japanese
language school. This was the route of Wanna, Wanni and Weena who came to Japan as￣￣shugakusei.
According to Komai (1995, p. 54) the category of shugakusei
is given to people who

59Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in Japan

come to study in a variety of schools other than the institutions of higher education specified in the
School Education Law, or vocational and special schools. Most people who entered the country withthis status become students in a Japanese school, like these three women in my study. The news of￣
shugakusei
as a convenient vehicle for becoming workers in Japan is spread by the brokers behindthe scenes as well as the recruiting slogans of schools such as “you can get a part−time job in Japan
while you study” (Komai 1995, p. 55). There have also been cases where companies have set up
language schools specifically to secure low ― wage labour (Komai 1995, p. 56). These companies
established a Japanese school and had the students work on its premises. Based on interview data
two women, Wanna and Wanni, who were friends and colleagues in the same firms, were attracted
by the advertisements of such schools in a Thai daily newspaper. There were Thai brokers alsobehind this type of recruitment. Wanni was the one who made contact with the brokers at theaddress given in the newspaper. These brokers organised the application to the school. All these
services costed Wanni about 80,000 Baht (230,000 Yen). Three months after Wanni’s safe arrival andsettlement in Tokyo, Wanna followed her footsteps and with her assistance became a covert migrant￣
worker in Japan. Weena also used the status of shugakusei
as a vehicle to come and work in Japan.

But her trip was organized by her sister, Wipa who came to Japan as a bride in 1983.
In the case of the “brides” I interviewed, their migration took the form of accompanying their
Japanese husband or fiance. As mentioned, above most of the brides met their husband-to-be in
Thailand; Mayura through the introduction of her friend; Walaya whilst working in a cafe in
Bangkok; and Praeo in a bar in Phuket. The procedure from building up a relationship to marriage
migration to Japan has some similarities with Thai women in Germany (see Ruenkaew 2001). The
couple got to know each other in Thailand then the man went back to his country. Contact ismaintained through correspondence, then the fiance comes and takes his partner to be married inJapan. In case of Praoe, after meeting her husband the two lived together as a de-facto couple in
Phuket, where they opened a “beer-bar”. After some time her husband got bored with living in a
touristic milieu and came back to Japan. Praoe accompanied him and got married there.
Wipas procedure follows the same steps, the difference being that she met her husband in Japan
during a business trip.

６．The Phase after Migration: Work and Living Conditions and Legal Status
Work and Living Conditions
The sex workers I interviewed entered Japan between 1984 and 1992, mainly between 1990 and
1992, which were the gold era for Thai sex workers to earn a big amount of money in a very shorttime. During this time over 100,000 Thai people entered Japan.

Upon arrival most of the them still

had no idea of the work they were going to do until they were brought to snack bars one after
another to place into employment as snack hostesses. Some women could find a bar owner who
took them within two or three weeks, but some women, like Mawika who was considered as too old60ジェンダー研究 第５号 ２００２and Marisa who was not beautiful enough in the eyes of bar owners, were taken around from one
prefecture to another searching for a snack bar which would accept. In general the women I
interviewed were first taken to find a work place in Shinjuku, Tokyo. If they had no success they
were taken to Chiba and Ibaraki prefecture or Nagoya. Most of them were put into snack bars in
Aragawa, Ibaraki prefecture, the place with a number of bars with Thai sex workers which wasgiven the name “little Bangkok” between 1990 and 1992. HRW (2000) reveals that until the end of
the 1990s there were still women from Thailand who were deceived in the same way. This
indicates the continuation of recruitment of Thai women for sexual services in Japan whose end can
not be foreseen in the near future.
In the snack bar, as Watana reported, the women were told to undress to show their bodies to theowner of the bar, then the bargaining about the price of the women selected by the bar ownerstarted. When the broker and the bar owner agreed on the price, the bar owner paid the broker.
The women on their part were charged with the same amount as the one paid by the bar owner,
thus becoming a commodity and debtor at the same time. The amount of the women’s debts varied
depending on their entry period, from the middle to the end of the 1980s between 2 to 2. 5 million
yen and during the early 1990s 3 million to 4 million yen. The debts were increased at theemployers’ discretion as fees for such items as housing, food, or clothing. All of them had toreimburse the debts through sex work often under coercive conditions, such as physical violence orthreats to be resold to another snack bar which would mean an increase in debt. “I changed thebars quite often because I did not want to work. I tried always to escape so they beat me. . . .
When I arrived in Tokyo they told me I had 4 million yen in debt. When I escaped and they foundme they increased my debt to 5 million yen (Wandee, p. 1).” The other way the brokers and barowners prevented women from escape was to confiscate their passport and other documents while
they were in debt. Most of them did not get their passports back. The women would not receive
money for their work until their debts were repaid.

“I have never seen the money. The clients

paid it to “mama san”, for a short time 250,000 yen, for the whole night 300,000 yen. . . . Mama wrote
all these in the book, and when the debt was repaid, she told us.” (Marisa, p. 3). In the case of thewomen I interview the amount of time it took women to repay their debts varied from one month tonearly one year. After this period most of the women continued their work in the same snack bar
for some time then moved somewhere else later. Within this time the women were relatively free,they could choose which clients to take or which day to work. They could earn money from what
they worked and make remittances to their families in Thailand. Some time later they met aJapanese husband, gave up their job and got married.
An examination of the process of this recruitment comprising the preparation before emigration,
the way the women were put into such employment as well as their working conditions, reveals thecharacteristics of trafficking in women.
（１）The beautifying process the women having to undertake serves the purpose of profit

61

Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in Japanmaking for the brokers. Because the more beautiful the women were, the higher price thebar owner would pay. It can be compared with the preparation of̀ “goods” to be sold.
（２）The method whereby the women were brought to the bar owners, and the way they haveto show their body can not be anything other than presenting “goods” for the buyer.
（３）Most of the women, expected to work in either manufacturing or small factories, but in fact
they were put into prostitution. Thus female migration to Japan, particularly for sex work,
can be understood as a kind of trafficking in women.
Some women, like Prao, Mukdee, Mawika, Watana and Wandee managed to stop work before theirdebts were repaid. With the assistance of a client Wandee managed to escape and returned toThailand. The others were released from debt bondage by a client who paid off the outstanding
debts in exchange for becoming his mistress. Except Watana, all the women mentioned here
married the Japanese man who helped them out of sex work business. Watana stayed for two years
with the man then separated and met her husband some time later. The client assisting Wandee
followed her to Thailand and proposed marriage to her.
According to Sriwattananukunkit (1998) most Thai migrant workers find employment inrestaurants, in construction work (mainly for men) or in manufacturing with intensive work. Except
construction work, these are found to be the areas of employment for the Thai female migrants I
interviewed. When the women in the group of the labourers arrive, job brokers receive them anddeliver them to employers. Mora was put into employment in a small food factory. The employer
arranged a place in a house for her to stay together with twenty other Thais working in different
manufacturing plants belonging to the same employer. Mora reported that she earned 200,000 yen amonth. Mak and Mee have contracts as cooks in Mee’s daughter restaurant, so did not use theservices of brokers. Working in that restaurant they received 200,000 yen at the beginning, later
increasing to 300,000 yen.
￣
For the women in the category of covert labourers, as shugakusei,
they were allowed to work part￣time for about five hours daily. But in fact most shugakusei
spent more time on earning money

than they were allowed. The income from working only five hours can not cover all living expenses
in Japan and, in cases of the women I interviewed, not enough to remit home. The interviews
reveal that they worked from 8 to 12 a.m., then attended classes from 1 to 5 p.m. and started
working again from 6 p.m. till midnight. The typical jobs they took at the beginning were
dishwashing or kitchen hand in Izakaya or Thai restaurant, jobs which do not need good Japaneseknowledge. After some time when their Japanese was improved they shifted to waitressing thus￣
opening up a job in the kitchen for newcoming shugakusei.
Working in such restaurants the women￣earned 850 to 900 yen per hour. The Thai shugakusei
I interviewed either entered in the early 1990s or in 1999. The method of entry and the kind of employment they obtained reveal no difference.
￣Thus, it can be concluded that shugakusei
is still a vehicle for foreigners to immigrate to work legallyin Japan. Similar to the group of sex workers most of the women in the category of labourers

62ジェンダー研究 第５号 ２００２married or lived as a de-facto couple with a Japanese man at some stage.
Most of the women complained about the bad conditions of their employment. The wages theyreceived was not enough to cover their living expenses so they needed to work in different places or
to do overtime. Some faced discrimination in their work places, with the employer treating foreign
and Japanese workers differently. For example in the restaurant the Japanese were allowed to takea drink free of charge, but the foreign workers had to pay for it. The women consider suchdiscrimination not to be gender specific. In other words, they understand this as racial
discrimination rather than sexual discrimination.
At the time of interview all the Thai female migrants in this study were married or living as a defacto couple waiting for marriage, with the exception of Wilai who is divorced and Mak and Mee who
were olds: The situation reported in the following thus comprises not only that of the brides but thesex workers and labourers as spouses also.
All of the brides became housewives after marriage. One barrier that impeded their ability towork outside the home were the children which came shortly after marriage.

Asked about her

occupation, Mayura answered “I do not work now. My work is here. I look after my children,
three of them.” (Mayura, p. 3). In contrast to the bride the sex workers and labourers continued
working. Some sex workers still kept their employment in snack bars selling drinks but did not
perform sexual services with clients. The other sex workers found a job as kitchen hands or
waitresses, while most of the labourers remained in their former work. Some time later the sex
workers faced the same barrier to employment as those of the brides when their children were born.
They had to give up their job since finding a baby sitter was difficult and too expensive. On theother hand, most of the husbands did not appreciate and support the employment of their wives.
The women always complained about the double burden as working woman. In the morning before
setting off for work they have to prepare breakfast and a packed lunch for themselves and theirhusbands. After work they had to cook dinner and finish all household works. Most of theJapanese husbands leave these tasks to their Thai wives.
In the early stage of marriage most of the women suffered from isolation and loneliness. This canbe attributed to the lack of Japanese language skills which impedes their communication with social
environments and separates them from Japanese society. Accordingly it leads them strengthen
their ties with the Thai community they are already in contact with which in turn strengthens theirisolation from the Japanese environment. Some women had to stay in a remote area with no Thai
people around. This led also to isolation, when they were not yet able to communicate withJapanese neighbors. Many Japanese husbands were much more concerned with their work, andtherefore unintentionally neglected their wives. This was another factor leading to loneliness. On
the other hand this “isolation” is regarded by some Thai women as convenient. In their opinion lesscontact means fewer opportunities for conflict and they prefer to keep their distance. Keeping one’s
distance to avoid conflicts is found to be a survival strategy for Thai migrants in Germany too(Ruenkaew 2001).

63

Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in Japan

Many Thai-Japanese couples stayed with the parents of the Japanese husband, which was very
unpleasant to some women because they were not accepted by their parents in law. In the women’s
opinion there are two reasons, first the stigmatisation of Thai women as prostitutes in Japan andsecond because they are foreigners and the Japanese society is not open to people from othercultures. Some women reported that it was not easy to understand the Japanese mentality and todeal with the Japanese. ‘The Japanese do not show their feelings, whether they like you or hateyou, whether they agree or disagree. They do not say, and how could I know, what they want.’(Walaya, p. 3). Some women felt that they were not welcome and were discriminated against, notonly by the parents and relatives of their husband but by the society, too, because they were
foreigners. In some cases the refusal by the parents was an impediment to their marriage. Thus
some couples had to live as a de-facto couple without a marriage certificate. On the other hand,some women felt accepted by the Japanese society, particularly by parents in law, who provided
assistance in various aspects.
This situation discussed above occurred mainly during the early stage of the marriage. As time
went on the situation changed, particularly when the children grew up. When the children reachedschool age there were many activities which required the participation of parents, especially mothers,
because they were the ones staying at home. The women were more or less pushed tocommunicate with the outside society.
Through these contacts they gradually learned the language which inspired them to attend
language class. From school activities some women joined community and voluntary works and had
less time to be lonely. For some women, especially those who felt rejected and discriminatedagainst, it was the period of their skill-building. They participated in the labour market, earned theirown livelihood and joined charity activities. They gained recognition from the people they worked
with. This compensated for the discrimination from their in-laws and helped them survive theunpleasant circumstances in their surroundings.
In regard to problems with the parents-in-law, it was again the children that were a decisive factor
which changed the situation. Most of the Japanese parents accepted the immigrant daughter-in-law
when they saw their grandchild. Some couples had managed to moved away to their own
apartment to avoid conflicts.
Some sex workers quit their jobs in snack bars and established their own businesses such as
selling clothes, vegetables and food. They started vending from a bicycle, then using a van andsometime later they were able to open a Thai shop or restaurant. By contrast some women like
Mak and Mee, who entered the country as legal migrant workers, obtaining a job as promised, were
kicked out of employment in their early sixties. They became members of the Thai population withno legal status.
Thus, the living situation of Thai female migrants in Japan changes over time and overcircumstances.

64ジェンダー研究 第５号 ２００２Legal Status￣
The group of brides and labourers with status of shugakusei
entered the country with a valid visa

and could obtain legal status while living in Japan. Regularly attending class is the only condition￣
for shugakusei
to fulfill if they want to have their visa extended. So, as the women reported, they

had to go to the class even though they were very exhausted from their work. Whether they could
learn or gain the knowledge or not was not so important, the main thing was that they had to appear￣
in the class regularly. Except for the brides and labourers with the status of shugakusei,
the Thai

women I interviewed entered Japan with a tourist visa, which allowed them to stay for a maximum
period of 90 days. After this period all of them overstayed their visa. Only Mak and Mee whoentered the country as cooks were allowed to stay for one year. But the process of visa extension
was complicated, so after the visa expired for the second time the employer let these two womenoverstay.
Thus, many Thai women I interviewed did not obtain legal status at the initial period of their stayin Japan. They had to avoid the immigration police, otherwise they might be arrested and deported
to Thailand, like Mora. After a five-year stay as an illegal migrant worker Mora was arrested
together with forty other Thais working in the same factory. They were then deported to Thailand.
After 14 months with the arrangement of her Japanese husband Mora came back to Japan again as abride.
She married him and obtained a spouse visa, which enabled her to stay and work legally. Like
Mora most of the sex workers obtained a residence permit after they married a Japanese man.
Therefore a decisive factor that can change the status of the women from illegal migrants to legal
migrants is marriage to a Japanese national. For the women I interviewed, to obtain legal status
can be considered an important motive for marriage to Japanese men. Mora preferred to live as ade-facto couple because she knew that her partner might help her to gain legal status one day.
Marisa had a similar motive in selecting her husband as a partner.

“He asked me whether I would

stay with him. I had no backer. I asked him whether he could help me, whether he could marryme”(Marisa, p. 4). Marriage seems to be the last way for some labourers to immigrate to andremain in Japan.

“After completing my study I returned to Thailand. After a year I came to Japanagain with a tourist visa. This time I had to marry him because there was no way out for me. If I
wanted to live and work here I had to ask for his help. I had to rely on him. I was in an impasse.”(Wanni, p. 1).
This reveals that the women utilized marriage as a means to obtain a residence permit which
would enable them to work legally. This is also the legal pathway of the immigration of Thai
women to Germany, which I define as “marriage migration”: migration concerning or emerging bymeans of marriage (Ruenkaew 2001, p. 52). The decisive mechanism shaping the immigration ofThai women into this specific form of marriage migration is the Japanese immigration law which
stipulates exactly the types of immigrants entitled to stay and work in Japan. Given the barriers of65

Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in Japan

immigration policy of countries of destination, marriage has turned out as a means of legal
immigration coupled with the expectation of social and economic achievement.
Chunjitkaruna (2000, p. 269) pointed out correctly that Thai female migrant workers wish to marry
Japanese men because this might guarantee them legal status. This is confirmed by my findings.
But whether the women really wish to have children of Japanese nationality in order that they could
obtain legal status, as Chunjitkaruna stated in her conclusion, is questionable. Data from interviews
with women in shelters reveals that it is very difficult for children born out of wedlock to acquire
Japanese citizenship, even if the father is Japanese. The procedure of acquisition of Japanesecitizenship is complicated. On the other hand most of the women lack such knowledge. This is thereason why there are so many children born from foreign mothers and Japanese fathers that have nonationality.
At the time of interview most of the women had obtained their legal status through marriage to a
Japanese man. Some women, like Mak and Mee, who are in older age groups remained illegal
migrant workers. A few of the sex workers had not yet acquired a legal status because they were
waiting for some documents from Thailand which are necessary to register a marriage. Very soon
their status can be changed into a legal status after marriage to Japanese men. In regard to legal
status, there are two paths taken by Thai female migrants in Japan. Some women make a transition
from illegal to legal status through marriage, while others remain illegal and become members of theThai community without a residence permit.

Tabel 1. Summary of Types

Type
Age
Socio-economic
Background

Bride
under 25

Labourer
Juniorfrom 18 to 35

Seniorover 50

Sex Worker
from 14 to 39*poorly educated*poorly educated*well educated*poorly educated*mainly unattached*internal migration
experience*mainly unattached*internal migration
experience*divorced or separated *former prostitutes,
single women and*internal migration
supporting
experience
mothers*experience withinternal migration,some withinternationalmigrationMediators ofMigration

Japanese men*brokers￣*shugakusei*relatives*brokers*brokers*international
criminal networks

Legal Statusspouse*initially illegal
workers,
later as spouse*initially illegal
workers, later still
illegal migrants*initially illegal
migrant, later
mainly as spouse66

ジェンダー研究 第５号 ２００２Conclusion
Based on narrative biographical interviews with 22 Thai female migrants this article has discussed
the process of female migration from Thailand to Japan. The findings show that Thai womenimmigrating to Japan comprise former prostitutes, single unattached women and supporting mothers.
They enter the country to work in the sex industry, in the service sector, small manufacturing, or to
be a bride. Because of Japanese immigration policy there is no possibility for unskilled foreignlabourers to work legally in Japan. Thus, many women enter the country through venues facilitatedby transnational criminal networks, which often attain the characteristic of trafficking in women,
particularly when recruiting women for sex work.
Due to economic deprivation that impedes them from establishing a livelihood the women migrate
to Japan with the expectation of economic and social improvement. Though economic motives are
crucial, familial responsibilities, particularly for the children and parents, also have a great influenceon the decision to emigrate. For them, transnational migration can result in the economic and social
advancement of their children and in financial support for the parents and close siblings in need.
There are two patterns of transnational female migration from Thailand to Japan. In the case of
women born in Bangkok or of a rural background with no previous migration history, the migratory
process is found to be a one step process, i.e. from rural origin directly to Japan. The majority ofwomen with origins in the rural area have an internal migration history, some of them even had
already gained experiences as transnational labour migrants. For this group the transnational
labour migration to Japan is the last phase of a long stayed international migratory process with its
beginning mainly in villages in remote areas. For some women the immigration to Japan bears thecharacteristic of “marriage migration” i.e. the women utilize marriage as a means to immigrate inorder to obtain a residence permit which enables them to work legally. Because of the barriers ofJapanese immigration policy marriage seems to be the only legal pathway open for Thai female
unskilled workers to enter the country.
Women’s lives and situations are dynamic, and so the legal status the women gain is alsotransformed. While many women, mainly the sex workers, could change their status from initialillegal migrants to legal immigrants through marriage, many women became or remain illegal
migrant workers. As time went by this latter group turned themselves into illegal immigrants andformed a Thai community without legal status. The members of such group are not only Thai
migrants of working age but also children born to Thai couples with no legal status, as well as aged
people. Except for the study of Smutkupt and Kitiarsa (1996) which analysed the formation of thecommunity of Thai migrant workers in Japan, there is little knowledge of the population of illegal
Thai immigrants, or of the situation of these stateless children and aged illegal Thai immigrants.
These aspects should be the focus of research by academics to analyse the situation of this Thai
ethnic community and its young as well as old members. Such research is also necessary so that
Thai and Japanese policy makers can devise some measures against these problems.

67

Pataya Ruenkaew Female Thai Migrants in Japan

This article has considered the migratory process of Thai female migration to Japan and analysed
the motives as well as the factors accompanying migration. But the transnational migration of Thai
women to Japan involves two countries. This study has analysed the causes and factors in thesending country, namely in Thailand.
However, the causes and factors in the receiving country, namely Japan, remain unexamined.
Many questions have to be raised with respect to the demand side of migration. Why, for example,
are Japanese men so eager to have Thai women as their sexual partners or as brides? Unlessstudies on this aspect are conducted the process of transnational female migration to Japan can not
be completely understood.

Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank the Nippon Foundation for awarding the Asian Public Intellectual Fellowship forthe sojourn in Japan, without which this paper would not have been possible. Special thanks are offered to Prof. Ito
Ruri of the Institute of Gender Study (IGS), Ochanomizu University, and all of its staff, and to Dr. Hayami Yoko of theCenter for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University, for their cooperation and assistance throughout the period of
my fellowship in Japan.

Notes
１．The interviews took place in the Tokyo, Mie, Aichi, Ibaraki, Kanagawa and Tochigi Prefectures.
２．In 1997 there were an estimated 22,574 Thai women overstaying their visa in Japan (Ministry of Justice,
Immigration Bureau, 1997)

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＊Dr. Pataya Ruenkaew はドイツ・ビーレフェルト大学にて社会学博士号を取得。日本財団アジア・
フェローシップの・プログラムの第１回フェローとして、平成１３年７月１日から８月１５日の間研究員としてお茶の水女子大学ジェンダー研究センターに所属し、“Thai Migrant Women in Japan” のテーマで研究を行った。

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