A group of Japanese citizens launches lawsuit against police to stop alleged ‘racial profiling’

By YURI KAGEYAMA
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — A group of Japanese citizens, including a man of Pakistani descent, is suing the country’s police, accusing authorities of racial profiling and discrimination. The case, launched on Monday, is to be heard in Tokyo District Court. It comes as Japan has seen an influx of workers from abroad in recent years. The number of non-Japanese living in Japan reached a record high last year, at nearly 3 million people. One of the three plaintiffs, Syed Zain, a 26-year-old Japanese citizen of Pakistani descent, says he’s been repeatedly stopped by police, including getting searched in front of his home simply because he is not seen as Japanese. He says: “From the first moment, they think I’m a criminal.”