Her native language is Japanese, and says she is able to communicate in English, Chinese, Uzbek, Turkish and Uyghur with considerable fluency, plus basic level Arabic.

[2][3] Arfiya previously spent time as an official for the Bank of Japan and the United Nations.

[4] She ran as an LDP candidate during the 2022 Japanese House of Councillors election.

[5] In April 2023, she was elected to the Japanese House of Representatives in a by-election for Chiba's 5th district.

"[3] Eri is strongly anti-authoritarian, a position she says is shaped by China's human rights abuses against Uyghurs in Xinjiang.