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Japan immigration

Hunger strikes spread in Japan's migrant detention centers

Deportees resort to extreme measures as more are held over six months

A Tokyo detention center run by the regional immigration bureau: More than half of the 1,253 detainees awaiting deportation have been held in such facilities for at least six months.   © Reuters

TOKYO -- While Japan opens its arms to foreign workers to alleviate a labor shortage, a quiet crisis is brewing at its detention centers for those facing deportation.

A growing number of detainees have been held half a year or longer, and many are resorting to hunger strikes in a desperate attempt to escape limbo.

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