TOKYO -- A Myanmar man who fled a farm in Hokkaido, where he was employed under Japan's Specified Skilled Worker status, said at a news conference in Tokyo on Sept. 7 that he had been subjected to violence and harassment by individuals linked to the farm's operator, including a local assembly member believed to be its de facto manager.

According to the man in his 30s and a lawyer representing him, he came to Japan in May and had been working at a farm in Kyogoku, Hokkaido. At the news conference, the man said that when he made mistakes at work or could not communicate in Japanese, he was grabbed by the collar or beaten with a stick.

"I had wanted to study in Japan while also sending money to my family, but after being assaulted, I could not sleep well and I still have nightmares," he said.  
The man also said he plans to file criminal complaints against two people, including the town assembly member, on suspicion of assault.

Apart from the man, six other Myanmar nationals, both men and women, have been taken in by the Sapporo General Union in connection with the same farm. One of the men filed a criminal complaint with Hokkaido Prefectural Police in late August against two people connected to the agricultural corporation on suspicion of assault and causing injury.

According to an investigation by the union, the men and women were subjected to violence and verbal abuse, including being hit on the back with metal rods and slapped on the head. The agricultural corporation had accepted a total of about 30 Myanmar employees since May. There is a possibility that assault and harassment were rampant, and the Sapporo Regional Immigration Services Bureau appears to be investigating to determine the actual situation.

The town assembly member has avoided giving an explanation in public and has been absent from the regular September session of the assembly, which opened Sept. 3, citing "personal reasons."

In March 2022, a company at the same address as the agricultural corporation now at issue received an administrative penalty from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare and other authorities revoking its certification as a technical intern training planned facility, a prerequisite for accepting trainees, on the grounds that it had "committed acts that seriously violated the human rights of technical interns." 

Myanmar worker claims he was beaten with stick at Hokkaido farm