In 2010, Japan became the first Asian country to launch a refugee resettlement programme. The programme continues today, and the government expanded the scheme to accept more refugees through the resettlement channel in 2020. How Japan, a country known for its reluctance to accept refugees, has strengthened its commitment to its refugee resettlement programme has been insufficiently investigated. Based on surveys of literature that mainly involved primary resources and interviews with key stakeholders of the programmes, this study reveals that the development of a policy network that mediates local constraints on refugee protection processes is a key determinant of the state’s capability to accept refugees as well as how well the refugee protection programme functions. Retracing the decade-long history of Japan’s resettlement programme, this study argues that the performance of the programme has hinged on local actors and in part on a non-governmental organisation that acts as an intermediary between the state and municipalities, whereas institutional settings in Japan remain the greatest hindrance to the effective participation of NGOs in national humanitarian initiatives.

中文翻译：

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政策网络对难民保护的重要性：日本难民安置计划的案例研究

2010年，日本成为第一个启动难民安置计划的亚洲国家。该计划今天仍在继续，政府在 2020 年通过重新安置渠道扩大了该计划以接受更多难民。以不愿接受难民而闻名的日本如何加强其对难民安置计划的承诺尚未得到充分调查。基于主要涉及主要资源的文献调查和对项目主要利益相关者的采访，本研究表明，发展一个能够调解当地对难民保护过程的限制的政策网络也是国家接受难民能力的关键决定因素。以及难民保护计划的运作情况。追溯日本十年的重新安置计划历史，