Two Sri Lankan students in Japan accused of illegal abortion

(This story has originally been reported by Japanese media 'The Mainichi')

MITO -- Two Sri Lankan students in Japan were arrested over an illegal abortion, and an expert points out that international students' unstable resident status may be a factor behind the incident.

Ibaraki Prefectural Police on May 23 announced the arrests of Rubasing Liyanage Udeshika Ayomi Jayalath of Toride, Ibaraki Prefecture, for allegedly aborting her baby when she was about nine months pregnant, and her boyfriend Munasingha Sudesh Dilshan De Soysa of Utsunomiya in the neighboring prefecture of Tochigi, for allegedly aiding the abortion.

According to the police, Jayalath used a drug to abort her baby at De Soysa's home around April 29. The suspects, both 30, have admitted to the allegations. Jayalath had visited an obstetrician in Tochigi Prefecture in late March to ask for an abortion, but the doctor refused as she was beyond the period allowed for an abortion under Japan's Maternal Health Act.

Jayalath reportedly wanted to study IT. Sources close to the investigation called the case a crime they don't often see, comparable to the abandonment of dead newborns. What happened to the woman before the arrest?

According to sources including the Japanese language school in Toride that Jayalath attended, she had obtained an IT-related qualification in Sri Lanka and entered the school in April 2023 to study for two years, and was living in the school's dorm.

Although she had occasionally become ill over the past month or so, she attended school as usual until May 20. Just the week before that, she paid her tuition fees for the period until June. While there were rumors among students that she was pregnant, her former roommate apparently denied it, saying that Jayalath had a stomach problem.

The school said that in the past, some students who became pregnant and gave birth returned home, while others left their babies with family members in their home countries and continued their studies.

Meanwhile, Yoshihiro Yokota, president of the Ibaraki NPO Center Commons, which supports the employment and schooling of foreign residents in Ibaraki Prefecture, pointed out that the unstable position of international students, whose resident status depends on their schooling, may have contributed to the latest incident.

There have been incidents in which foreign technical intern trainees were arrested on suspicion of corpse abandonment after giving birth at home. Yokota explained that if a foreign student is absent from school or their grades deteriorate due to childbirth or child care, "their status of residence may not be renewed on the grounds that they have not fulfilled the purpose of studying abroad." He added that since the immigration system does not foresee foreign students giving birth, it is difficult for them to access medical care for fear of being sent back to their home countries.

There is a support system in the prefecture, but it apparently lacks simple, multilingual materials. Yokota stressed, "It is important for the government to make the system known earlier and for schools and other institutions to establish a system to support international students when they're in trouble."(Mainichi)

Article