### Chapter 7. Measures Against Trafficking in Persons and Protection of Foreign Victims of Domestic Violence

## Section 1 ◆ Measures Against Trafficking in Persons

## 1 Measures Against Trafficking in Persons

Trafficking in persons is a grave violation of human rights and a prompt and accurate response is called for from a humanitarian perspective. This is due to the fact that trafficking in persons inflicts serious mental and physical pain on the victims, especially on women and children, and it is difficult to recover from such damage. Moreover, human trafficking is an issue of serious concern to the international community since it is a crime which is committed across borders.

The Japanese government formulated the “Action Plan for Measures against Trafficking in Persons” through the relevant ministries and agencies in December 2004 and the “Action Plan for Measures against Trafficking in Persons 2009” through the Ministerial Conference for Measures against Crime in December 2009, and although the entire government had been promoting measures up to this point, the “Action Plan for Measures against Trafficking in Persons 2014” was formulated through the same Conference in December 2014 in order to work on more powerful, comprehensive and all-encompassing measures against human trafficking. Then, in May 2016, the “Conference for the Promotion of Measures against Trafficking in Persons” comprising the competent ministers in charge of measures against human trafficking held its second meeting, and the relevant government ministries and agencies led by the Conference are currently promoting government-wide efforts against the trafficking of persons.

In addition, based on the “Action Plan for Measures against Trafficking in Persons 2014”, the Immigration Bureau has also been striving to prevent human trafficking by further strengthening its system of cooperation with the related organizations, has been tracking hidden cases where there is the possibility of human trafficking and has been proactively engaged in eradicating trafficking in persons and offering appropriate protection to the victims.

## ② Protection of Victims of Trafficking in Persons

The Immigration Bureau gives full consideration to the position of the victims of trafficking, and grants permission such as extension of the period of stay or a change of the status of residence from the perspective of victim protection, and moreover, if the victim is in violation of the Immigration Control Act such as by overstaying the authorized period of stay, the legal status of the victim will be stabilized through such means as granting special permission to stay to the victim.

The number of foreign nationals for whom the Immigration Bureau implemented procedures for protection as victims of trafficking in persons (including support to return to their home country) was 26 in 2015 (9 persons in the previous year). According to the statistics by nationality/region, 17 victims came from the Philippines (7 in the previous year), 8 victims came from Thailand (1 in the previous year), and 1 victim came from Sri Lanka.

The number of victims who had a status of residence out of the total of 26 victims was 15 persons (5 persons in the previous year), and the number of victims who were in violation of the Immigration Control Act such as overstaying the authorized period of stay was 11 persons (4 persons in the previous year).