52人が会場で、11人の方がズームで参加をしてくださいました。今回の記念会で、長年ご支援頂いた方々と一緒にこの30年を振り返り、JFCネットワークの今後のさらなる活動を考えることが目的でした。

まず最初に、理事長の鈴木雅子からの挨拶があり、理事で映像ディレクターの太田直子が30年間撮りためた映像を観ながらこれまでの活動を振り返りました。

映像の後は、初代事務局の大友麻子さんが、1994年4月の設立当時、「JFCネットワーク」という名称を考案した時のこと、初代代表だった松井やよりさんのことなどを話しました。

次に、マリガヤハウス事務局を長年務めた高橋みづほさんが、当時のJFC達やクライアントのお母さんたちとの関りについての思い出を話してくれました。

その他、JFCネットワークと協働してきた歩みをカラカサン代表の山岸素子さんからお話頂き、弁護士の大川秀史先生からは、故尚子さんとの思い出などを語って頂きました。マリガヤハウスを長年支えた故河野尚子さんの存在は、30年の歴史の中でも大きかったことを皆さんのお話や映像の中で改めて感じました。その他、JFC支援の先駆けとも言えるMasayang Tahananのコーディネーターの森木和美さんからもメッセージを頂きました。「JFCが日本の国籍をもらえないのはなぜか、日本に住んでいる外国人が制度の面でも社会の中でも不平等な立場に置かれるのはなぜか」を解決したかったのがはじまりだとおっしゃっていました。

そしてこの後は、近藤博徳弁護士が「国籍訴訟から16年」というテーマで、国籍法3条1項の準正要件を一部無効とした、2008年6月4日の最高裁判所大法廷判決について、講演を行いました。

裁判を起こすきっかけの一つが「うちの子どもは日本国籍が取れないの？」「父親が日本人なのに、なんで日本国籍がないの？」「おかしいじゃん、私と彼が結婚するのは絶対無理だけど、結婚しようがしまいが、子どもの父親は日本人なんだよ」と言う母親たちからの率直な問いかけが、裁判に踏み出す第一歩だったこと、また一審判決の直前に裁判所から電話がかかってきたエピソード、大法廷が開かれた際に、上告人本人が傍聴席ではなく、弁護士と一緒に「柵の中」に座った画期的な出来事など、ここでしか聞けない話を聞くことができました。そして判決の日を迎え違憲判決が出て、近藤弁護士が母親たちに大きくうなずいた瞬間に裁判官がまだ法廷を出ないうちに、母親たちは歓声を上げて喜んだというその当時のことが語られました。

画期的な違憲判決で国籍法が改正されたその後の課題としては、偽装認知を疑う行政側が任意認知での国籍取得に過剰に厳しくなっか事、また認知を得たり、日本国籍を取得したJFC達が多く来日し、そこで人身取引の被害にあう場合もあることなどが話されました。

そして、講演は、以下の言葉で締めくくられました。「国籍法違憲判決は法律的にも社会的にも、またJFCにとっても大きな変革をもたらした事件であり、それはすでに16年も経過しているにも拘わらず、なお社会への影響を及ぼし続けている事件です。JFCネットワークは、この判決を大きな成果としつつ、それによって生じた社会の変化を見逃さず、これからも対応をしていきたいと思います」

次に、原告団の母親たちだったロレタさん、ロサーナさんが当時の闘いのことを力強く語りました。

そしてこの後は、原告団の子どもだった2人が彼女たちの人生の中での国籍確認訴訟の意味、そこから得たことを話してくれました。この道は本当に平たんではなかったと思います。当時は「フィリピン⼈であるということは、⽇本で住んでいく中で⾔わない⽅がいいと思っていた」こと、差別やいじめのこと、母親とは喧嘩ばかりだったこと、でも日本国籍を取得してほっとしたこと、今だからこそ言える母への感謝を笑顔で語ってくれました。そして今では、JFCとして、日本人としてもフィリピン人としても自分はアイデンティティを持っていると語ってくれました。今でこそ笑顔で語っていましたが、その陰には本当に大変なことがたくさんあった事を見ていた私達としては、本当に本当に、その姿に涙が出て、また誇らしく感じました。

そして次は最近来日したり、海外で活躍するJFC達が日本で暮らし始めたときの苦労、父や母と自分との関係、日本社会について率直に語ってくれました。

設立当時は幼かった子どもたちが、今、青年期になり、自分の言葉で自分のJFCとしての人生を語り始める姿に、参加者はとても感銘を受けたと思います。

その後、長年お支えくださった方々へ感謝状が贈られました。感謝の部では1994年の設立当初から30年間会員としてサポートをして下さった方々8名のご紹介をし、お一人の大脇雅子さんからメッセージを頂きました。1993年のJFC弁護団設立当初からケースを受任下さっている弁護士さん4名のご紹介、ボランティアとして長くサポート頂いた斎藤美子さんには理事長の鈴木雅子より感謝状が授与されました。スタディツアーのリピーターとして一番多く参加して下さっている稲塚由美子さんからもメッセージを頂きました。

懇親会では長谷川大知さんのドキュメンタリーフィルムを上映しつつ会食を楽しみました。そして、「父親捜し」をテーマに映画上映中の武内剛さんに「パドレプロジェクト」をご紹介頂きました。

この30年間、本当に皆様からのご支援でこの活動は支えられてきました。改めて感謝いたします。

最後に、ご参加くださった会員のお一人から翌日いただいたメールの言葉をここに載せさせていただきたいと思います。

「30周年記念会にお邪魔できてよかったです。昨日は、30年間の振り返りができて、阿蘇さん(注：初代事務局長　阿蘇敏文さん）のグループと日本大使館にロビー活動したり、河野尚子さんとケースマネジメントや母親の対応について意見交換した思い出がよみがえりました。

JFCもそれぞれの歩みをして、成長している姿を見て、頼もしく思いました。他方、自分のアイデンティテインに苦しんだり、父親に対する複雑な思いをもったままのJFCもいることを忘れてはいけないと思いました。朝の来ない夜はなく、一人ひとりが、闇から光を見ることができることを願っています。」

皆さま　ありがとうございました。そして今後もどうぞよろしくお願いいたします。

JFCネットワーク　事務局一同

（写真提供：佐藤兼永さん）

We held a 30th anniversary celebration for the founding of the JFC Network at JICA Global Plaza on Sunday, November 10th. 52 people attended the event in person, and 11 people joined via Zoom. The purpose of this anniversary event was to look back on the past 30 years with those who have supported us over the years, and to think about the future activities of the JFC Network.

First, there was an opening greeting from the chairperson of the board of directors, Masako Suzuki, and then we looked back on the activities of the past 30 years while watching the video that Naoko Ota, a board member and video director, had compiled over the years.

After the video, the first JFC Network staff member, Ms. Asako Otomo, talked about the time when the name “JFC Network” was first decided upon at the time of the organization’s establishment in April 1994, and about Ms. Yayori Matsui, the first representative of the organization.

Next, Ms. Mizuho Takahashi, who worked at the Marigaya House for many years, talked about her memories of the time she spent with the mothers of JFC members and clients.

Also, Ms. Motoko Yamagishi, the representative of the Kalakasan organization, spoke about the collaboration with the JFC network, and Atty. Hideshi Okawa, talked about his memories of the late Ms. Naoko Kono. Through the stories and images, we were reminded of the great impact that the late Ms. Naoko Kawano, who supported Maligaya House for many years, had on the 30-year history of the organization. We also received a message from Ms. Kazumi Moriki, the coordinator of Masayang Tahanan, who can be said to have pioneered JFC support. She said that the reason she started this was because she wanted to solve the question of why JFC could not obtain Japanese nationality and why foreigners living in Japan were placed in an unequal position both in terms of the system and in society.

After this, Atty. Hironori Kondo, gave a lecture on the theme of “16 years since the nationality lawsuit”, about the Supreme Court’s Grand Bench decision on June 4th 2008, which partially invalidated the requirements for naturalization in Article 3, Paragraph 1 of the Nationality Act.

One of the reasons for taking the case to court was the frank questions from mothers such as “Can my child get Japanese nationality?”, “Why doesn’t my child have Japanese nationality even though their father is Japanese?”, and “That’s not right, it’s impossible for me to marry him, but whether we get married or not, the father of my child is Japanese”, and the episode of the court calling the appellant on the phone just before the first trial judgment, and the groundbreaking event of the appellant sitting in the “fence” with their lawyer, rather than in the public seats, when the full court was in session. we were able to hear stories that could only be heard here, such as the episode of the court calling them on the phone just before the first trial, and the groundbreaking event of the appellant himself sitting in the “fence” with his lawyer, rather than in the spectator seats, when the grand court was held. Then, on the day of the judgment, when the unconstitutionality of the law was ruled, the moment when Atty. Kondo nodded to the mothers, and before the judge had even left the courtroom, the mothers cheered and were overjoyed. This was the story of that time.

The issues that have arisen since the landmark ruling that the Nationality Act was unconstitutional include the fact that the government, which suspects cases of fake recognition, has become overly strict about the acquisition of nationality through voluntary recognition, and the fact that many JFCs who have obtained recognition or Japanese nationality have come to Japan and have been victims of human trafficking.

The lecture concluded with the following words: “The judgment that the Nationality Act was unconstitutional was an event that brought about major changes, both legally and socially, and also for JFC. The JFC Network regards this judgment as a major achievement, and we will continue to respond to the changes in society that have arisen as a result of it.”

Next, Loreta and Rosana, who were the mothers of the plaintiffs, spoke powerfully about the struggle they had at the time.

After that, two of the plaintiffs, who were children at the time, spoke about the meaning of the nationality confirmation lawsuit in their lives and what they gained from it. I think this road was not really smooth. They told us with a smile that at the time they thought it would be better not to say they were Filipino while living in Japan, that they had experienced discrimination and bullying, that they had always been fighting with their mother, but that they were relieved when they acquired Japanese nationality, and that they could now say how grateful they were to their mother. They also told us that now, as JFC, they have an identity as both Japanese and Filipino. Although she was smiling as she spoke, we who had seen the many hardships she had been through could not help but shed tears of pride at her strength of character.

Next, the JFCs who had recently come to Japan or who were active overseas talked openly about the difficulties they had when they first started living in Japan, their relationships with their fathers and mothers, and Japanese society.

I think the participants were very impressed to see the children, who were so young when the organization was first established, now in their teens, starting to talk about their lives as JFCs in their own words.

In the thank-you section, we introduced eight members who have supported us as members for 30 years since the foundation in 1994, and we received a message from one of them, Ms. Masako Owaki. We also introduced four lawyers who have accepted cases since the foundation of the JFC Lawyers’ Group in 1993, and Ms. Yoshiko Saito, who has supported us as a volunteer for a long time, was presented with a thank-you letter by Masako Suzuki, the chairperson of the board of directors. We also received a message from Ms. Yumiko Inazuka, who has participated in the study tour the most as a repeat participant.

Afterwards, we presented thank-you letters to those who had supported us over the years, and the get-together continued.

For the past 30 years, we have been able to carry out our activities thanks to the support of everyone. We would like to express our gratitude once again.

At the buffet party, we enjoyed a meal while watching a documentary film by Mr. Daichi Hasegawa. Then, Mr. Takeshi Takeuchi, who was screening a film on the theme of “searching for a father”, introduced us to the ‘Padre Project’ .

Finally, we would like to share with you the words of one of the members who attended the event, which we received in an email the following day.

“I’m glad I was able to attend the 30th anniversary event.

Yesterday, I was able to look back over the past 30 years, and I was able to recall memories of lobbying with Mr. Aso’s (Note: Mr. Toshifumi Aso, the first Secretary General) group and the Japanese Embassy, and exchanging opinions with Ms. Naoko Kono about case management and how to deal with mothers.

I was reassured to see how JFC has grown and developed over the years. On the other hand, I also thought that we must not forget that there are still some JFC who are struggling with their own identities or who still have mixed feelings about their fathers. I hope that there will be no more nights without morning, and that each and every one of them will be able to see the light from the darkness.

Thank you very much, and please continue to support us as always.

JFC Network Staff Members

（photo by Mr. Kenei SATO)