Thank you but I have had foreign (white) friends in Japan and I have sees them openly discriminated in housing, entrance to discos, etc. I know that this is getting less but it is still a great deal. There is also still a lot of discrimation on the basis of gender, age and sexual orientation. Yes, things are getting better but still we have a long way to go.
As for PR, it is much harder than citizenship in Japan. I for one do NOT think that those with PR should get voting rights in Japan. I think the whole thing is ridiculous. I also think that Minshuto will eventually abandon this idea. But you are right in that Japan is now easier to immigrate to than the US or UK, which, in my opinion, are two of the hardest countries in the world to move to.