This paper examines Japan's immigration policies during the Abe government. Japan has maintained its very restrictive immigration policies, especially for unskilled foreign workers, since the early 1990s. But despite Japan's reluctance to open its doors to unskilled foreign workers, the Abe government drastically shifted its policy position toward expanding the employment of unskilled foreign workers through the revision of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law in 2018. This paper argues that while Japan's demographic crisis and the strong business demand for the foreign workforce are important in explaining this change, Prime Minister Abe's political leadership is another key factor accounting for Japan's recent policy choice.

中文翻译：

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安倍政府时期日本移民政策的政治动向*

本文考察了安倍政府时期日本的移民政策。自1990年代初以来，日本一直实行非常严格的移民政策，特别是针对不熟练的外国工人。但是，尽管日本不愿向非熟练的外国工人敞开大门，但安倍晋三政府还是通过2018年的《移民控制和难民识别法》，将其政策立场朝着扩大非熟练的外国工人的就业方向进行了大刀阔斧的转变。本文认为，尽管日本人口众多危机和对外国劳动力的强劲商业需求对于解释这一变化很重要，安倍首相的政治领导力是解释日本近期政策选择的另一个关键因素。