Since the Islamist Taliban seized power in Afghanistan two years ago, universities across Japan have been accepting former international students who had evacuated.
At Miyazaki University, one of them got a job at a farm in the prefecture, and the prospect of continuing to live in Japan with his family has been set.
The person who got the job was a man in his 30s who worked as a lecturer at a national university in Afghanistan until two years ago and evacuated to Miyazaki Prefecture with his wife and children last May.
On the 2nd of this month, the man visited an agricultural corporation in Miyakonojo City for a final interview, and was expected to have expertise in plant cultivation and pesticides, and will work as a farm manager from April this year.
The man had been studying at the Faculty of Agriculture at Miyazaki University until six years ago, and his supervisor at the time, Lecturer Mitsuhiro Matsuo, was present at the interview.
Years ago, after the Taliban seized power, the man lost his job due to non-payment of wages, and began to feel that his life was in danger. I sent you a message.
The University of Miyazaki has accepted seven former international students from Afghanistan and their families, and is supporting them by preparing jobs for researchers and housing where they can live with their families.
However, necessary expenses such as a monthly salary of 200,000 yen are covered by university funds and the research expenses of the professor in charge, and one year is the limit for preparing a post for a researcher.
If he could not find a new job, he would not be able to extend his visa, and there was a risk that he would not be able to continue living in Japan.
The man said, ``I had no freedom or rights in my home country, and I lost all hope. I'm happy to be able to stay and work in Japan. .
Sho Katayama, manager of the agricultural corporation "Agrimochinaga", which decided to hire, said, "We were looking for people with enthusiasm and expertise in order to get the cultivation of wheat, which we will enter from this year, on track. We also want to support housing and language. I was talking.
Of the seven former international students accepted by the University of Miyazaki, this is the first male to find a job. I look forward to it," he said.
Former international students from Afghanistan at universities around the country
According to NHK, former international students from Afghanistan have been accepted by Hiroshima University, Kyushu University, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, and Shimane University.
Miyazaki University has many international students from Afghanistan because of its extensive education on agriculture, which is in high demand locally. It means that there are many among these universities.
In addition, former international students believed that they might become targets of the Taliban because of their ties to foreign countries. Universities are increasingly accepting students.
However, while it has been pointed out that Japan's standards for refugee recognition are stricter than those in Europe and the United States, the reality is that universities and researchers in each region support them with "lunchboxes", and they accepted them despite their limited funds. The problem is how to support people in the long term.
Mr. Matsuo, a lecturer at Miyazaki University, said, "We especially need support for Japanese language education. I want more people to know about the current situation in Afghanistan and think about how to provide support."