Buraku Liberation and Human Rights Research Institute Celebrates 35th Anniversary

The Buraku Liberation and Human Rights Research Institute held the 58th General Assembly, a symposium and a reception to celebrate its 35th anniversary on June 27.

The symposium, entitled "Studying the Buraku issue from an international perspective", revealed the outcomes of research carried out by the Study Group on International Social Status, which was established within BLHRRI in 1995.

Mr. Nobuaki Teraki, a professor of Momoyama Gakuin University and also a BLHRRI board member, compared the history of Buraku with that of caste groups that face discrimination in India, and highlighted similarities and differences between them.

Mr. Kenzo Tomonaga, director of BLHRRI, discussed the trends of how international organizations such as the United Nations have addressed descent-based discrimination.

Mr. Kazuteru Okiura, Professor Emeritus of Momoyama Gakuin University, explored two major theoretical roots of discrimination based on social status in Asia. One was the perception of lord and loon in ancient China and another was the idea of purity and defilement in India.