Fingerprinting Gaijin!

So, Japan seems to be following the lead (under pressure ???) of Big Brother, America by approving plans to fingerprint and photograph ALL foreign visitors to the country.

This legislation still needs to be approved by the Japanese Parliament and has already caused controversy, as the Human Rights v (apparent) National Security issues raise their heads.

The Japan Federation of Bar Associations said in a statement, " Not all terrorists are foreigners, and even if such a foreigner tries to enter Japan, we may not have physical information about the person in advance,".

Justice Minister, Seiken Sugiura argued on Tuesday that the controversy was worth it.

"There may be a problem [with human rights] I think. But domestic policies to reduce illegal immigrants and anti-terrorism measures are more important," he told reporters.

Full story here - HTTP://NEWS.BBC.CO.UK/1/HI/WORLD/ASIA-PACIFIC/4781260.STM