Hi!

Here's a message from my friend Farrell Cleary. He asked me to post it on
his behalf.

Kirk Masden

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Hello everybody. Thanks to Kirk, it is now much easier than before to get
messages out to people living in Kumamoto. We were frustrated at how
difficult it was to inform people about Professor Mushakouji's lecture in
October and that frustration inspired Kirk to start the kumamoto-i list. I
am happy to use the list to tell you about the next activity that we are
organizing. I hope you will be able to join us in Shimotori on Sunday. We
did it just before Christmas last year and it was a great experience. We
had support from a number of local people including Hirano Midori, a member
of the Prefectural Assembly, who led a group of people who have direct
experience of the discrimination faced by those with disabilities. Hope to
see you there.

Farrell Cleary.

PETITION TO SUPPORT CYNTHIA AND SANDRA.

Date : Sunday, 12 Dec. 1999
Time: 1 p.m. -- 4 p.m.
Place: Shimotori (Between Ginza-dori and Sun Road-Shinshigai.)

Activity: Gathering signatures in support of the two foreign teachers at
the Prefectural University of Kumamoto whose employment is being terminated
at the end of March, 2000. The petition calls for an end to discrimination
on the basis of nationality at the university. The two teachers, Dr.
Cynthia Worthington and Ms. Sandra Mitchell, have been leading members of
the campaign of the foreign teachers against discrimination. (All of the
foreign teachers at the university are employed on one or three year
contracts while their Japanese colleagues have no term limits.)

Dr. Worthington is the President and Ms. Mitchell the Vice-President of the
Kumamoto General Union, the labor union formed by ten foreign teachers at
the university in July 1997. Why should the university wish to get rid of
these two teachers? The need for English teachers is as great as ever and
the university has shown every satisfaction with their work over the years
they have worked at the university. It would appear that they are being
punished for revealing unpleasant truths. Apart from opposing
discrimination, the KGU has exposed the discrepancies between official
documents and the actual situation at the university. In 1993 the
Prefecture and the university asked the foreign teachers to accept
employment as "sennin koushi" i.e. regular, full-time assistant professors
(U.S.)/ lecturers (U.K.). Reports were submitted to the Ministry stating
that the teachers were being so employed. In fact, the university refused
to employ them as they had promised and imposed "part-time, special
irregular" contracts on them. Last year, the university, without consulting
the foreign teachers or their union, announced it was eliminating the six
one-year posts. Three regular posts were created and these were filled by
three of the six teachers. A fourth found work elsewhere. Two remained and
the university was adamant that it would not rehire them--the President and
Vice-President of the union and the only two women among the six. However,
more than six thousand people from Kumamoto and from all over the world
signed a petition supporting the PUK teachers. Last April, in the face of
this and other support, the university and the Prefecture were compelled to
re-employ the two teachers for a one year period and to agree to talks with
the union.

However, the university has shown no willingness to contemplate the
continued employment of the two teachers. In a repeat of its stance last
year, the two teachers have been invited to apply for a single vacant post.
In other words, at least one and possibly both teachers will be unemployed
by April. The continued support of all people living in Kumamoto can
ensure that the university stops its discriminatory policies and enables
these two teachers to continue contributing to the university and to the
local community.

This activity is sponsored by:
* The Kumamoto Kenritsu Daigaku no Gaikokujin kyouin wo Mamoru Kai (Support
Group for the Foreign Staff at the Prefectural University of Kumamoto )
Representative: Prof. Masanori Hanada.
* The Kumamoto General Union (Affiliated to the National Union of General
Workers).
President: Dr. Cynthia Worthington.
Contact: Dr. Worthington (Tel: 096-245-3419). E-mail: mango@...
or Farrell Cleary (Tel: 096-364-8694).

E-mail: clear@...