Emperor Akihito & Empress Michiko Current Events Part 2: September 2006- January 2013


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Emperor, empress to visit disaster-hit Sendai in May

Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko will visit Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, on May 12-13 to speak with disaster victims in temporary housing, the Imperial Household Agency said Friday.

During their first trip to a disaster-hit area in the prefecture since April last year, the imperial couple will also attend the opening ceremony and reception of an international conference on chemistry, after visiting the temporary housing on the second day.
Mainichi Japan
 
Emperor plays tennis for first time since surgery

Emperor Akihito played tennis with Empress Michiko at the Imperial Palace on April 30, the first time the Emperor has played the sport since having coronary artery bypass surgery in February. The last time the two played tennis at the Imperial Palace was in June 2011.

At some time past 10:30 a.m., the Emperor arrived at the tennis court in a car he drove himself. After he and the Empress did warm-up stretching, they formed a pair and played two games against employees of the Imperial Household Agency. There were several times that rallies continued, and applause from employees when the Emperor and Empress hit the ball into the opponents' court. After their games, the Emperor and Empress watched matches between Imperial Household Agency employees, and at around 11:30 a.m. they returned home. [...]
Mainichi

Ollanta Humala, the president of Peru, will visit Japan on May 8-10 and is scheduled to also meet with the emperor. (Source)
 
Japan royals to mark Queen Elizabeth II's anniversary
Japan's emperor and empress will visit Britain for the anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's 60th year on the throne. [...] They will leave Japan on May 16 and return on May 20th.

Emperor, empress to visit Britain from May 16

On May 18, the couple will attend a luncheon hosted by the queen at Windsor Castle near London and a banquet hosted by Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace, according to the Imperial Household Agency. Heads of state from different countries have been invited, the agency said.

While in Britain, the couple will also meet with those who endeavored to support the victims of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster in Japan and with representatives of Japanese nationals living in Britain, the agency said.

Japan's royal couple to visit Britain in first trip overseas since 2009

Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko will attend a series of events while visiting the UK to mark the 60th anniversary of the Queen’s ascension to the throne. [...]

The five-day visit, endorsed today by the Japanese cabinet, marks the first occasion the Imperial couple have travelled on an official overseas trip since 2009 when they visited Hawaii and Canada. [...] The Japanese Imperial couple will be joined by a number of state heads during their visit to the UK to celebrate the passing of six decades since the Queen came to the throne in 1952. A string of events are scheduled to mark the occasion of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, culminating in a long weekend of concerts, festivals and pageants across the country in early June.
Emperor, empress could be buried on same premises: imperial agency
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko could be buried in separate mounds on the same premises, the Imperial Household Agency's deputy chief said Monday [...] Building mounds for each on the same premises "could be thought of as one" among multiple options, Vice Grand Steward Noriyuki Kazaoka said at a news conference. But he added the empress, who was a commoner before marrying into the dynastic family, appears to have reservations about being buried in the same manner as the emperor.

The agency intends to consider laying them to rest together in a wide sense of the meaning, while taking her feelings into account, Kazaoka said. It is customary to bury an emperor and empress in separate grounds after their death. But in the case of Emperor Hirohito, the current emperor's father and posthumously known as Emperor Showa, his burial ground and that of his wife Empress Nagako, posthumously known as Empress Kojun, lie side by side.
 
It is welcome news. I am looking forward to seeing photos of the visit.
 
Peruvian President Ollanta Humala and his wife Nadine Heredia were welcomed by Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko today at the Imperial Palace where the imperial couple hosted a luncheon for them. The crown prince attended.
Daylife Gallery
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(Peruvian President Ollanta Humala speaks with Japanese Empress Michiko while Japanese Crown Prince Naruhito speaks with an unidentified Peruvian delegate)
 
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Emperor's U.K. visit bolsters international good will
The tour will be the 16th foreign visit by the Emperor since he ascended the Chrysanthemum Throne, and the 39th including visits he made as Crown Prince. It will also be his eighth visit to Britain. "What stands out is the continuity of their visits to foreign states," an official of the Imperial Household Agency said, noting that it is "impossible" for countries with elected presidents to be represented for such a long time by the same person.

It is not unusual for people in countries the Emperor has visited since his accession, including Portugal and Brazil, to still remember his earlier visits when he was Crown Prince, according to a former official of the agency who accompanied the Imperial Couple to over 10 countries.

Emperor hopes to convey gratitude to Britons during upcoming trip


Emperor's thoughts ahead of visit to the United Kingdom
The Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was held soon after World War II, in June 1953, the year after the Treaty of Peace with Japan went into effect. At that time, being 19 years old, I attended the ceremony representing Emperor Showa, and taking that opportunity, visited quite a few countries in Europe and North America, a trip during which I learned and experienced so much.

Coming from a country devastated by war, it pained me to observe the affluent lifestyles of the people in those countries, which was in such contrast with the situation then in Japan where people were still suffering from poverty. This left a deep impression on my mind.

I had been told that anti-Japanese feelings were quite strong in the United Kingdom in those days, and, in fact, there was a certain part of the country where my visit was not accepted. However, thanks to the efforts of many people, including Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill, British people who were friends of Japan for years, and members of the Japanese Embassy in London, I personally did not encounter the situation in which such sentiments were manifested openly. For that I am grateful to the considerations of the people then concerned. [...]

I am told that the only foreign representative who attended the Coronation then and who is again attending this commemorative event, as I am, is His Majesty Albert II, the King of the Belgians. At that time, His Majesty was an 18-year old representing King Baudouin, and I was 19 years old. We two were among the youngest of those attending the Coronation.
 
Emperor, empress visit Sendai
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko visited Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture on Saturday to show their support for the recovery effort in the tsunami-hit region. The emperor asked prefectural government officials about measures to evacuate elderly people and whether schools conduct anti-disaster drills.
Emperor, Empress Console Disaster-Affected Residents In Sendai
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko on Sunday visited Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, and consoled people affected by the March 2011 earthquake-tsunami disaster who are still living in temporary housing.
Imperial couple encourage tsunami-affected people
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko walked through the Sendai City complex on Sunday to talk to residents one by one. Nearly 400 people live there. The Emperor told an 87-year-old woman who lost her son and daughter in the tsunami to take good care of herself. The Empress asked an 85-year-old woman about her life, acknowledging her strength to endure the hardships.
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How wonderful that the Emperor and Empress have been able to come over for this special occasion. I have no doubt that the Queen is very touched that they chose to make the journey.

Artemisia, I agree the Kyoto garden looks beautiful.
 
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko toured the Kyoto Japanese Garden, in Holland Park West London, Thursday May 17, 2012. The royal couple are in Britain to attend part of Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee celebrations.
- The Emperor and Empress touring the Kyoto Garden (a rather sweet picture)
- The Emperor and Empress in the Gardens
- The Emperor and Empress
Gallery from Daylife

I must say, the Kyoto Garden looks really beautiful and the Imperial couple appears to enjoy the stroll. :)

How wonderful that the Emperor and Empress have been able to come over for this special occasion. I have no doubt that the Queen is very touched that they chose to make the journey.

Artemisia, I agree the Kyoto garden looks beautiful.

I agree, it is a lovely gesture for the Japanese royal couple to make the journey.

The Kyoto Garden in HP is indeed a lovely, peaceful and much loved garden. We visit it often.
 
I agree with you, EIIR and muriel. Given the Emperor's recent health issues, it would have been more than understandable if the Imperial couple chose to stay behind. That they decided to attend the celebrations shows respect for the queen - and I'm sure Her Majesty appreciates it.

On another note, this picture of the Empress is really beautiful; she looks frail, yet at the same time dignified.
 
It us a very great honour to have the Emperor and Empress visit the Queen. I think the photos above are enchanting.
 
Love the pictures from the garden. They look as if they are having a great time just being tourists. And what a tribute to the Queen that this couple is attending, I was betting that they would not, because of his recent surgery. So, so glad to see them.
 
Emperor, empress leave for Queen Elizabeth's jubilee celebrations

Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko departed Wednesday for a five-day visit to Britain to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's diamond jubilee, their first overseas trip since 2009 when they visited Canada and Hawaii.

"I am very happy to have an opportunity to express my congratulations to Her Majesty, who is still well performing her duty as the queen," said the emperor at Haneda airport in Tokyo, where he was sent off by Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako, as well as Prince Akishino and his wife Princess Kiko, and Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda.
Imperial Couple leave for British queen's jubilee

Emperor, empress arrive in London to celebrate Queen's diamond jubilee

Book depicts Emperor's 1953 trip

The book "Taikan Kiko" ("Coronation Journal") was based on a diary kept by Shigekuni Kikkawa, then master of ceremonies at the Imperial Household Agency, who accompanied the Crown Prince. Kikkawa sent his writings as personal letters to his home in Tokyo every week or so. His wife provided copies of the letters to Emperor Hirohito, the Emperor's father, posthumously called Emperor Showa, his brother, Prince Takamatsu, and other Imperial family members. [...]

The Japanese Embassy in London described the Crown Prince's visit, at a time when sentiment toward Japan was at a low because of the war, as "opening a door for fostering friendly relations with Britain," Kikkawa said.
I would not have thought either that they would attend, simply because I was afraid that the emperor would be physically unable to endure the stress of a trip abroad. But I am not amazed that he would have preferred to go instead of resting at home when given a choice. Maybe he had been the first to fear that he would never make another trip from home. At least, this is what comes to mind when you take a look at his beaming face: 1, 2
 
I agree, it is a lovely gesture for the Japanese royal couple to make the journey.

The Kyoto Garden in HP is indeed a lovely, peaceful and much loved garden. We visit it often.

I love Holland Park, but I am always amazed when I think that until the early 50s it was a private park, really the backgarden of Holland House ,owned by the Earls if Ilchester, that was destroyed in the war. My parents told me about going to parties there before the war and of course when I was a child I played in the park.
 
There is something magnificently regal about this couple -- no need for them to be decked in extravagant clothing or jewelry to reveal that innate spark. Lovely, and here's to their long lives and good health.
 
:previous: Yes, and there's also something bittersweet about these pictures. The Imperial couple are elderly now and frail, and they walk arm-in-arm smiling in this beautiful garden. They seem to be genuinely enjoying themselves, and yet the specter of the Emperor's ill health is hovering.
 
Emperor, empress convey gratitude to Britons for help after tsunami

Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko chatted with about 100 people, many of them British, at a reception at the Japanese Embassy in London on Thursday, thanking them for their contribution to rescue efforts and donation drives after the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

The emperor, who is in Britain for the 60th anniversary celebration of Queen Elizabeth II's reign, told the gathering that he was deeply moved by the relief efforts undertaken by British people.

''It was truly heartening that so many people in this country not only expressed their profound sympathy for the victims of the calamity but also promptly organized a wide range of valuable relief activities to help those in need,'' he said in English. [...]

Roy Wilsher, a firefighter who led British rescuers in Kamaishi, Iwate Prefecture, in the immediate aftermath of the natural disasters, said the emperor thanked him at the event for helping Japan rebuild itself quickly.
Mainichi

The emperor and empress attended a luncheon hosted by the queen at Windsor Castle.
Daylife Gallery
 
Japan imperial couple returns home from London
Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko returned from Britain on Sunday, ending a visit to attend celebrations for Queen Elizabeth II's diamond jubilee. [...] The emperor is scheduled to take part in official duties at home from Monday, including a tree-planting ceremony in Yamaguchi Prefecture in western Japan on May 27.
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko wave before departing London's Heathrow airport on May 19, 2012

Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko return to Tokyo's Haneda airport on May 20, 2012
 
Paraguay president to visit Japan next week
Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo will make a four-day visit to Japan next week to strengthen bilateral economic ties [...] Lugo is scheduled to meet with Emperor Akihito and Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, both on May 30 [...]
Mainichi
 
Imperial visit to U.K. is a mark of dedication
The Emperor and Empress managed a tight schedule during their recent visit to Britain, which included attending events to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the throne and expressing gratitude for Britain's help following last year's March 11 disaster. [...] "The Emperor and the queen share a friendship that has lasted for about 60 years. They both seemed nostalgic," Grand Chamberlain Yutaka Kawashima said.

On Thursday, the Imperial couple met with British people who participated in relief efforts following the earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011. [...]

On Saturday, the Emperor attended a meeting with Japanese citizens and talked with Keiko Holmes, who works to support British veterans who were prisoners of war of the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. "The relationship between the two countries has changed, hasn't it," the Emperor said to Holmes.
The Emperor experienced a protest by former POWs during his first visit to Britain after his enthronement in 1998. In a comment released on May 11 ahead of his latest official visit, he referred to the harsh antipathy toward Japan he experienced 59 years ago. "Only a few people link the Emperor and World War II these days. Most British people accept the Emperor without special feelings," Holmes said. During Saturday's meeting with Japanese citizens, the Emperor said: "When I attended the [queen's] coronation ceremony, Britain's feeling toward Japan was not good. I am filled with deep emotion regarding the strong bond established between Japan and Britain today."

Visit highlights Emperor's will


The Emperor followed a rigorous schedule during his trip to London, even though it has only been three months since he underwent cardiac surgery. [...] On the day of the luncheon, the Emperor traveled one hour by car from London to Windsor Castle. After returning to the hotel and changing clothes, he attended a banquet at Buckingham Palace until late in the evening. [...] Dr. Ghillean Prance of the University of Oxford, who accompanied the Emperor and the Empress during a garden walk, said he thinks the Emperor is a brave man and that his visit to Britain was an honor.

The Emperor's visit highlights the long history between him and Queen Elizabeth II, as well as his strong will in which he cherishes opportunities to meet people.
(The Yomiuri Shimbun, May. 24, 2012)

Emperor, empress meet with Pacific island leaders ahead of summit
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko met with leaders of Pacific island nations at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Thursday, just a day ahead of a two-day summit in Okinawa. Crown Prince Naruhito, the imperial couple's eldest son, also attended the meeting with the leaders of 12 Pacific nations.
May 25, 2012(Mainichi Japan)

Imperial couple lay out pine seedlings in Yamaguchi park ceremony
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko laid out a range of red pine, camellia and other seedlings during a tree-planting ceremony in a park in the city of Yamaguchi in western Japan on Sunday.

Since the Yamaguchi Kirara Expo Memorial Park is situated on reclaimed land facing the Seto Inland Sea, seedlings suited to coastal areas were chosen for the occasion. The seedlings are expected to form parts of a wood to provide coastal protection, the Yamaguchi prefectural government said.

The local government presented 1,000 black pine trees grown in the prefecture to each of the northeastern Japan prefectures of Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima hard hit in the March 2011 earthquake and subsequent tsunami, it added.
May 28, 2012(Mainichi Japan)
 
Emperor meets Paraguay president
Emperor Akihito on Wednesday met with visiting Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, the Imperial Household Agency said. During the meeting, the emperor expressed gratitude for the Paraguayan government's financial support for the activities of Japanese-Paraguayans, who sent 1 million blocks of tofu made using Paraguayan soybeans to the March 2011 disaster-hit regions in Japan, the agency said.

The emperor also referred to his 1978 visit to Paraguay with Empress Michiko as saying, "I remember fondly the meetings with immigrant Japanese-Paraguayans," according to the agency.
Mainichi

Daylife Gallery
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Serzh Sargsyan met Japanese Kaiser Akihito
President of the Republic of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan on June 7 in Tokyo held a meeting with Japanese Kaiser Akihito. During the talk with Japanese Kaiser issues relating to Armenian-Japanese friendship and cooperation have been discussed.
YEREVAN, JUNE 7, ARMENPRESS

Tenorio wants monument for Japanese monarchs
REPRESENTATIVE Froilan C. Tenorio says Saipan should have a monument to commemorate the June 27-28, 2005 visit of the Japanese emperor and empress.Tenorio, Covenant-Saipan, will pre-file a resolution requesting that the Marianas Visitors Authority to erect a “suitable monument.” In an interview, the governor noted that the trip was the first taken by Emperor Akihito to a World War II battlefield abroad. He said the emperor visited other countries because they were invited to do so. “But in our case, they decided on their own to come over here. That, to me, means a lot,” Tenorio said. [...]

He said the emperor was so moved by his visit to Saipan that Akihito even wrote a poem about it. The English translation is as follows:
At Saipan
An old man who had fought there
Just as it had been
Lying down on the sea-shore
Told us the whole sad story.
Down below this cliff
Multitudinous the lives
That people lost here
Where the ocean is so deep
And the seas are blue and clear.


[...] Tenorio said the Japanese businessmen who visited Pagan recently pledged to pay for the construction, as well as the long-term maintenance, of the monument. He said they are going to establish a non-profit foundation on Saipan. The Japanese will collect money from their countrymen, put the money into a foundation and turn it over to the MVA.
June 01 2012

House OKs resolutions on Japan emperor monument, Marianas Trench
THE House of Representatives on Thursday adopted two resolutions: one that seeks gains from the Marianas Trench dives and the other to build a monument in honor of the 2005 visit of the Japanese emperor and empress. [...] Rep. Froilan C. Tenorio, Covenant-Saipan, introduced House Resolution 17-103 which urges the Marianas Visitors Authority to build a monument commemorating the visit to Saipan of Japan Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko seven years ago.

Tenorio said “we were the only U.S. soil that the Japanese emperor and the empress decided on their own to visit.
June 06 2012
 
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Thanks, Chiara :flowers:

I know of course that a very fierce battle was fought on Saipan during WWII, however it seems to me that there is more in this story than "just" a monument for the visit.
Can you enlighten us about the significance of this?
 
Hi Muhler! :) Thank your for your trust in my knowledge. :flowers: ;)
Actually, I am not into all the details concerning Saipan´s history. But it seems that something similar happened there as with Okinawa, at least in some respects.
The Japanese Okinawa islands, one has to know, had, until the end of the 19th century, been the kingdom Liu-chiu under King Shotai. It was a peaceful group of small islands as one of King Shotai’s predecessors, the wise ruler King Shoshin, had in 1507 decided to abolish all weapons and military in his tiny Pacific state, as he said: “We are too weak to win against an inimical attack, the only result would be a tremendous bloodshed without use.” […]

Japan had been claiming Liu-chiu as their possession already for a long time, but by diplomacy and by tribute-paying to China as well as to Japan, Liu-chiu managed to remain practically independent until the late 19th century. But then, during the complicated political negotiations that were taking place at the time between China and Japan, China finally signalled that it would not protect the little island state if Japan should choose to occupy it. And so, Japanese military entered the royal castle of Shuri and King Shotai had to abdicate in favour of Japanese governor Narahara Kogoro who, in the following, was to become famous for his cruelty. He and his successors tried to force the people of Liu-chiu, now Okinawa, to forget their native language, they imposed land reforms on them that led to the impoverishment of local farmers, and they persecuted, tortured and killed those who tried to resist. Later, at the end of World War II, Okinawa became the only prefecture in Japan where ground battle was fought. Japanese military used the Okinawan civilian population as human shields to protect the lives of the soldiers. As a result, one third of the Okinawan people perished.
(This is from a blog I have written about the story of Okinawa, for more details see here.)

Saipan had been seized by Japan after World War I and was considered key to Japan's defense. A large number of Japanese civilians lived there. During the war, the U.S. erected a civilian prisoner encampment where life conditions seemed rather luxurious compared to that of the starving population. Obviously, there was a risk that the people of Saipan would surrender to the US troops and maybe undermine the fighting spirit of the Japanese nation by informing their countrymen via radio broadcasts that the US troops were treating them rather generously. Accordingly, Emperor Hirohito sent out an imperial order encouraging the civilians of Saipan to commit suicide. 1,000 Japanese civilians committed suicide in the last days of the battle, some jumping from "Suicide Cliff" and "Banzai Cliff". In all, about 12,000 to 22,000 civilians died. (The first being the official Japanese government figure, the other an estimation of some historians. Japan Times)

But the story gets even more complicated by the fact that not all the people subsumed as “Japanese” were actually Japanese. First, there were the natives of Saipan, the Chamorros, then there were a lot of people from Okinawa and finally there were about 1000 Koreans who were brought to Saipan before the war as conscripts in the Japanese military and as forced laborers. (Juan B. Blanco, a Chamorro who was educated in a Japanese school, told “The Times”, “We were taught that the Emperor was descended from the Sun Goddess and that we have to treat him like a god. We were learning how to become Japanese.”)

However, when Emperor Akihito visited Saipan in 2005, he emphasized that he and the empress were mourning all those who lost their lives, not just Japanese nationals. He said that his heart "ached" at the suffering experienced on Saipan: „This time on soil beyond our shores, we will once again mourn and pay tribute to all those who lost their lives in the war, and we will remember the difficult path that bereaved families had to follow, and we wish to pray for world peace.“

Originally, the emperor and the empress were scheduled to visit two war memorials. The first was the Monument of the War Dead in the Mid-Pacific, which contains victims' belongings and was built in 1974 by the Japanese government and the local government. Second, at the American Memorial Park, the imperial couple laid flowers at monuments built in memory of islanders and American soldiers who lost their lives. Besides, they also visited two cliffs from which hundreds of Japanese soldiers and civilians jumped to their deaths after refusing to surrender. But after complaints from the Korean Association of Saipan who asked them to acknowledge the thousands of Koreans who died during the war, the emperor and empress changed their schedule last minute to stop briefly at the Korean war dead memorial. (It was the first time the emperor has paid tribute at a monument specifically dedicated to Koreans killed in World War II.) On the same stop, Akihito and Michiko also spontaneously visited the Okinawan memorial to pay tribute to the Okinawan people who died on Saipan during the war. Saipan Tribune

I think it is clear now why the visit is memorable. Why the initiative to erect a monument is happening exactly at this moment in time, however, I do not know. I have no clue who the Japanese businessmen are who will pay for it and what their intentions are. But, at least, judging from the information that is available to me now, it seems to me that they could do worse.


At the time of the imperial couple´s visit to Saipan, there was growing anger in China and the Koreas over what many there saw as Japan's failure to make amends and over repeated visits by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to Yasukuni shrine (that is a powerful symbol of Japan's pre-1945 militarism). The peace offer from the emperor certainly had a soothing effect.
Both political tendencies are still significant today – there are many Japanese who want to live in peace with their neighbours but there are also those who are fond of Toru Hashimoto´s populist anti-foreigner stance. His political platform has not been called „Hashism“ for nothing...
 
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