On Juluy 9, Japan’s Tokyo High Court dismissed the application for refugee status of Filipino immigrant and current Migrante Japan spokesperson Edsel Villena.

The court said Villena lacks enough evidence to prove his persecution in the Philippines and did not acknowledge him as an activist.

Villena was a former union member and had organized workers in Laguna.

He decided to seek refuge in Japan in 2005 after being red-tagged, following the consecutive killings of activists and labor leaders, including his colleagues, and the Arroyo regime’s fascist persecution. He sought refuge in Japan because he has relatives there and where national democratic Filipino organizations have chapters that could help him.

He went through the process of filing a petition for refugee status starting 2016. After almost ten years, the court ultimately dismissed his petition on July 9.

“The court said the evidence I submitted was false. But how can I prove it? The documents I submitted clearly show that I was being persecuted and harassed before coming to Japan,” Villena explained.

Atty. Jun Sasamoto, Villena’s lawyer, said the court did not recognize the he was active in criticizing the Philippine government since he arrived in Japan. “In lawsuits over refugee status, the plaintiff is often burdened with an excessive burden of proof. However, refugees are people who flee for their lives. They do not come to Japan after gathering enough evidence to prove that they are refugees.”

“In my opinion, this is a completely unacceptable verdict. It does not meet international standards. The fact that refugees arrive with only the clothes on their backs is something that should be taken into consideration, as stated in the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). This is written in the guidelines for refugee recognition criteria. But even this is not being followed,” Sasamoto explained.

“If the Japanese government turns away people like us, it can be considered complicit with the fascist government we fled from,” Villena explained.

Sasamoto is considering filing an appeal at the Supreme Court of Japan.

Villena does not expect Japan to respond to his request. “Japan is known for not recognizing refugees. This decision will force me to go home. If something were to happen to me, the responsibility lies with the Japanese immigration bureau and with the Japanese government. Please don’t forget that,” he said.