[Saitama] A Turkish person living in Japan is furious at a Kurd who attacked a junior high school girl and went on a rampage: "I want the Japanese government to be stricter in immigration control!"

The man has been in Japan for nearly 10 years and is engaged in international business. He emailed Sankei Shimbun about the Kurds from a Turkish perspective, but agreed to an interview on the condition of anonymity, saying he wanted to "avoid friction with Kurdish society." This year marks the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Turkey and Japan, and he is very concerned that troubles among some Kurds could worsen relations between the two countries.

In the media, he is called a "Turkish citizen."

The man pointed out that one of the reasons for this is the media's reporting on the Kurds. When major media outlets report on crimes or troubles committed by Kurds, they often just say that they are "Turkish nationals." This has caused confusion in the Turkish community in Japan, who feel that "this is once again damaging our country's image."

"Of course, there are Turkish and Kurdish people who commit crimes. However, the current media coverage does not touch on the background of why Kurds are congregating in Japan, and reports them as if they are all Turkish nationals."

According to the Immigration Services Agency, there are approximately 6,000 Turkish nationals residing in Japan. Of these, more than 2,000 are believed to be Kurdish. Turkey and Japan do not require visas for short-term stays of up to three months, and there are cases of people repeatedly applying for refugee status three months after entering the country for tourism or other purposes. The majority of these people are Kurdish and are said to be facing "persecution from the Turkish government."