Internet cafe refugees of Recent Article

What is Internet cafe?

The term "Internet cafe refugees" refers to people who don't have a fixed dwelling place and constantly stay in Internet cafes.

It began to appear in the media from early 2007, and now is used to show one of Japan's social problems.

Before we consider the issue, perhaps we'd better explain what the Internet cafes are like in Japan.

Internet cafes in Japan are not just a place to connect to the Internet.

They also have a massive amount of comic books and magazines, and some are equipped with comfortable reclining chairs, video games, or even shower rooms.

The personal privacy is defended because there are a lot of private rooms.	The reclining chair and PC are put on each private room.
Here is a free drink bar. There are various drinks such as the juice and coffee.	There are a cake and a cup instant noodle, etc. though it is charged, too. There is an ice cream, too.
In the Internet cafe of Japan, there is a large amount of magazine.	In the Internet cafe of Japan, there are abundantly DVD and game software, too.
This is a menu of the meal, various meals can be ordered.	This is a rough sketch that shows the structure of the Internet cafe of Japan.

People can enjoy reading comics, netsurfing, playing video games or just relaxing very cheaply, while taking advantage of a wide variety of free drinks.

During the night is especially reasonable, you can use a small compartment all night for only about 10-15 dollars.

 

What is internet cafe refugees?

It may be no wonder that people use the Internet cafes almost as their dwelling place.

But you may also be wondering why those people don't rent a cheap apartment instead.
Actually, renting an apartment in Japan costs a lot.
With all kinds of fees, gratuities and deposits, you usually need the equivalent of six times your monthly rent just to pay for moving.
That means you need to have about 3,600 dollars to move into an apartment that costs 600 dollars a month.

So it can take some people a long time to save enough money to be added to move.

Actually, people who are staying in Internet cafe can hardly save up money.
It is because their work is "Daily employment labor".
They who is homeless cannot have a steady employment.
They always only have only a little money because the income is unstable.

All their incomes disappear by the room charge of Internet cafe and their food costs.

 

The deterioration in Japanese economy increases the number of net cafe refugees.

It might not be so bad if it was only young people staying in the Internet cafes temporarily, but among Internet cafe refugees are also people in their 30's, 40's or even their 50's and above.

It is said that many of them work part-time, but some don't have a job, while some others have steady jobs and still stay in Internet cafes.
Japan has been known as a "rich" country for a long time, but when you talk about the quality of people's lives, maybe the richness is relative.

The cause of the decline of Japan is misgovernment of Japan.