Saitama City Reinstates Expelled Girl, Upholding Right to Education

Saitama City Reinstates Expelled Turkish Girl

The Saitama City Board of Education held a news conference on January 24th, 2024, to announce the reinstatement of a sixth-grade girl who was previously expelled from elementary school. The girl, who is of Turkish origin, had been expelled in September 2023 after her family's application for refugee status was rejected and their visa nullified.

The Board of Education admitted its mistake in expelling the girl, who had a valid Turkish passport and had expressed her desire to continue attending school. The central government has advised local governments to allow all foreign children to attend free compulsory education regardless of their visa status.

The girl's family arrived in Japan from Turkey in November 2022 and applied for refugee status. They were granted a "designated activities" visa, which automatically expired when their refugee application was rejected in July 2024. The Saitama City government then revoked the girl's residence registration and asked the family to submit her visa application form. However, the form was never submitted, leading to the decision to expel the girl from school.

The Board of Education's decision to expel the girl was in violation of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Japan has ratified. The Convention specifies that children have the right to education regardless of nationality. Additionally, in 2012, the Japanese Ministry of Education issued a notice to local governments to allow children to enter school as long as they have a confirmed address.

The Saitama City Board of Education's website also states that foreign children can attend school as long as they submit a valid passport and address, which the girl had done. However, the Board of Education also required foreigners to submit a document stating their intention to continue living in Japan, a formality unique to Saitama City.

After consulting with the Ministry of Education on January 24th, the Board of Education acknowledged that the additional document was not required and reversed its decision to expel the girl. The Board will now work to expedite the girl's return to school and help her catch up on her studies.

Saitama City officials stated that no similar problems regarding the expulsion of children had occurred in the past.