Participation in the International Summit on the Legal Needs of Street Youth

by Yasuharu Tsutsui (IFCA Japan Alumni Team-Adult Supporter)

On June 16-17 I participated in an international summit for street youth in London as a representative for IFCA [International Foster Care Alliance].

Experts and the youth in question gathered from around the world sharing the issues that each country has, discussing the nature of support and rights advocacy with regards to street youth, and searching for a problem-solving method. I gave a speech on Japan’s foster care system, the low rate of advancement into higher education in terms of money, and the problems one has after leaving [foster care].

Many things were gained throughout this summit and, I feel, became the guidelines in helping to face Japan’s foster care problem.

First, many of the youth of every nation have cited “needing an adult to take care of them” as required support. The problems that the youth of every nation have are different. However, their rising voices are the same. Even though there are a variety of issues that Japanese youth have after leaving [foster care], they must attempt to problem solve for each one, but the presence of a reliable adult and a continuous relationship with an adult have become critical as a foundation. Although that’s what’s to be expected, I think such a relationship is natural and therefore is the part that tends to be overlooked. Also, there are many youth who do not have an adult to rely on and I feel that Japan must make a dent in this issue.

Furthermore, the view that “street youth haven’t been properly recognized/have been perceived inaccurately” is also abundant and, as it is, even in Japan there is an incorrect perception, prejudice and societal unawareness of “foster care”. It is extremely difficult for the youth to talk about their personal experiences in their surroundings and this interferes with their livelihood after leaving [foster care]. I think it is imperative that many of the people of the world are cognizant of foster care.

The importance of the voices of the persons concerned was touched on by both youth/experts. The observation cited by every nation, through the experts, was the importance of listening carefully to the youth and making a policy that reflects the voice of the youth though not in a top-down approach. The youth brought up not having a place to speak for themselves, stating, “We want a place where we can speak up”, “We want to be heard”, that the problems the youth of each nation has is different, etc. The interested parties spoke and saw the importance of disseminating information about the nature of required support and rights in a new light. Through participating in this summit, even though the circumstances surrounding the youth vary from country to country they are the youths’ needs and I think, based on what I learned at this summit, if we are working on this issue this has become a good opportunity to understand the present condition of each country along with reevaluating Japan’s foster care issue.

(English Translation: Lindsay Anderson-University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign)

Related Link: International Summit on the Legal Needs of Street Youth