Japanese immigration authorities are preparing to recognize Pyae Lyan Aung, a 27-year-old Myanmar soccer player, as a refugee eligible to stay in the nation.
Pyae Lyan Aung came to Japan as a member of Myanmar's national team to participate in preliminary rounds of the soccer World Cup. Later, he refused to return home and applied for recognition as a refugee in Japan.
The immigration authorities are expected to soon make the decision official and notify him of the result.
On May 28, when the Myanmar national team held a match with the Japanese team, he raised three fingers when Myanmar's national anthem was sung by the team members. The gesture indicates one's resistance against the country's military, which seized power in a coup.
On June 16 at Kansai International Airport, Pyae Lyan Aung sought Japan's protection, saying that if he returned to his home country, his life would be in danger.
On June 22, he applied for refugee status at the Osaka Regional Immigration Services Bureau.
The refugee recognition system allows foreign nationals to reside in Japan if they face the risk of persecution in their home countries because of their race, religion, political opinions or other reasons.
In Myanmar, the military's persecution of citizens who oppose the junta has been continuing. It seems that the immigration authorities judged it highly likely that he might be persecuted if he were to return to Myanmar, because his three-finger pose was widely reported.
The military coup took place in February. Since late May, the Japanese government has given resident status to Myanmar people who do designated activities and has allowed them to work in the nation.
The authorities have also taken emergency aid measures to process applications for refugee status from Myanmar nationals more quickly than in ordinary cases.
Pyae Lyan Aung is to be the first Myanmar national to be recognized as a refugee since the start of accepting the kind of applications under the measure.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
