On 6 Jul 2004 06:45:08 -0700, worthj1970@yahoo.com (John W.) wrote:

>"Ryan Ginstrom" <ginstrom@hotmail.com> wrote in message news:<2kv01bF6l2caU1@uni-berlin.de>...
>> puntspeedchunk wrote:
>> > On Mon, 05 Jul 2004 19:09:19 -0500, "John W."
>> > <worthj1970@yahoo.com> wrote:

>> >> ... about Japan that I honestly don't understand.
 
>> Seems like a storm in a teacup to me. They are only talking about not giving
>> the girl permanent residency, not deporting her. Hell, I don't have
>> permanent residency either.
 
>> It says in the article that the girl is afraid she will be deported when her
>> visa expires. What is the basis for that fear? Sounds a bit like a publicity
>> stunt from the immigration reform folks. The fact that the "government
>> officials" are basically schoolteachers is pretty telling.

>I'd say the basis for that fear is that she's in Japan, a country that
>IMHO would be more likely to follow the letter of the law (which, I
>assume, would be to deport anyone whose visa has expired) than use
>compassion and 'interpretation' of the law.

I would agree with that assessment. The exception, of course, is when
there is a sufficient public fuss that the actions of the Immigration
Department are perceived negatively and they give in and are compelled
to be "compassionate".

Raj