Crown Prince Naruhito & Crown Princess Masako Current Events 6: Ja.2016 - April 2019


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:previous: Aiko has really grown! It's nice to see her with her parents on the visit.
 
State Visit of President Trump to Japan | Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
The Honorable Donald John Trump, President of the United States of America and The First Lady, Mrs. Melania Trump, will pay a State Visit to Japan from May 25 to 28, 2019 as the first State Guests after the ascension of His Majesty the Emperor on 1st May 2019.

The parade route after the enthronement ceremony on October 22 may pass the National Diet Library and LDP Headquarters. Otherwise, the route will follow Emperor Akihito's parade route in 1990. It appears the government wishes to avoid an underpass or reduce the distance on a particular street.
Source: news.tbs.co.jp

Emperor Naruhito's first court ritual is scheduled for May 8. He will report the dates of the enthronement ceremony and Daijosai at the Imperial Palace sanctuaries. It'll be his first time wearing the yellow-brown sokutai, colors only an emperor can wear. Empress Masako, other Imperial family, and heads of 3 branches of government will also attend.
Source: Kyodo
 
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On April 24th, Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako visited the special exhibition "The 30th Anniversary of the Enthronement Cultural Exchanges of Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress: Sharing the Beauty of Japan" at Tokyo National Museum in Taito, Tokyo.

Kyodo reports this is their last public appearance until the abdication.

AP Images

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On April 25th, Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako visited the Imperial Palace for rehearsals of May 1 ceremonies. They arrived around 4pm and stayed an hour and a half. The couple practiced the Kenji-to-Shokei-no-gi (Imperial Regalia inheritance) and Sokui-go-Choken-no-gi (First Audience) ceremonies. CP Naruhito wore a morning suit and CP Masako wore a light blue court dress.

Photos: Asahi, Kyodo, Jiji
Japan's new emperor Naruhito: A cosmopolitan team player - The Mainichi
Japan's soon-to-be-anointed new emperor is a musician and historian, both mild-mannered and quietly tenacious, a team player and a loyal husband and friend who will bring an unusually global perspective to an ancient institution when he ascends the Chrysanthemum Throne on May 1.

Because Naruhito, 59, will be more distanced from the World War II shadows that his 85-year-old father, Akihito, labored under, he may also enjoy greater liberty in shaping the contours of his reign.

[...]

"He will be a fantastic emperor," said Keith George, 57, a friend of Naruhito's since their days at Oxford. "He is a caring person. He is a humble person. But he has never forgotten his duties as the crown prince, and he will never forget them as the emperor."

[...]

The crown prince's attentiveness and ability to play down his royal status made a strong impression. "He doesn't look at everything in terms of what it means for him. He looks at it in terms of what it means for the people around him," George, now a lawyer, said in a recent interview with The Associated Press at his office in Charleston, West Virginia.

Naruhito's memoir about his experience in Britain includes humorous accounts of his life away from home, including a mishap with an overflowing laundry machine.

[...]

In an annual news conference marking his Feb. 23 birthday, Naruhito said he was open to taking up a new role that "suits the times." But he said his father's work will be his guidepost.

"I hope to see him develop his own way of doing things in coming years," Toshio Shiraishi, a longtime friend of Naruhito, told the AP. "The crown prince has closely watched the work of the Showa Emperor and the current emperor and learned from them, while trying to figure out what his role could be."

Shiraishi, a gray-haired banker who plays the cello, says the crown prince's choice of instrument -- viola -- shows a lot about the kind of man he is.

In an essay he contributed for a concert brochure, Naruhito once wrote: "I'm starting to understand the role of viola, which doesn't stand out, but (is needed because the) harmony becomes lonesome without it. ... It's a joy to have chosen the viola as a friend through which I could meet people and play music together."

Naruhito is likewise both a good listener and conversationalist, Shiraishi said.

"He encourages people to talk and helps enrich a conversation," he said. "He doesn't want to be a star; instead he wants to be with people and work together."

Palace watchers say that as emperor, Naruhito might focus on global issues, including disaster prevention and water conservation. He has researched such topics since his 1987 visit to Nepal, where he saw women and young children traveling long distances to fetch water.

Naruhito's wife, the future Empress Masako, is a Harvard-educated former diplomat who may prove an adept partner in his overseas travels and activities. But much will depend on her health, since she has been recovering from what the palace describes as stress-induced depression for about 15 years.

[...]

Whatever happens, Naruhito will need "a strong will" similar to his father's if he's to pursue his own path as emperor, said Takeshi Hara, a Meiji Gakuin University professor and expert on Japan's monarchy.

George, the friend from Oxford, says he is confident Naruhito can handle his future duties. While at Oxford, where they often went out for drinks and dinners, the crown prince admitted how much he enjoyed the freedom of being a student. Still, he never lamented his destiny, George said.

"Never once did I ever see or feel that he had felt that as a burden," he said.
Incoming imperial couple offers the nation something new: The Asahi Shimbun
[...]

"I think there's opportunities for this newest generation of imperial family members to embrace causes that push the envelope a little," said Shihoko Goto, an analyst at the Wilson Center, citing the 55-year-old Masako's experience as a diplomat.

[...]

Though Naruhito, 59, intends to carry on his parents' work, he also says the monarchy needs to adapt. Observers said that could mean speaking up and reaching out more, leveraging the family's value as part of Japan's identity.

[...]

Masako's frequent expressions in birthday messages of concern for impoverished or troubled children suggest those are likely to be causes she will pursue.

Naruhito, who studied medieval river transport, is interested in water issues and conservation, and has hinted he may take up climate change as well.

"It plays to his interests, also the national interest, and a cross-border interest too. There are many issues like that ... they have a unique platform they could really use," Goto said.

"Things like the environment, or reaching across borders for greater understanding and dialogue at a time when the world is becoming myopic and insular."

Patience will be needed in change-averse Japan, however.

"Even the current emperor and empress came in for lots of criticism at the start--for example, when Michiko got on her knees to console people and took their hands, she was criticized for 'damaging the authority of the Emperor,'" Kawanishi said.

"So they'll move gradually to put their imprint on things. They'll change something, wait, then change again."
 
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On April 28th, the Crown Prince family visited the Imperial Palace for lunch with Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko. They stayed about 2 hours.

Source: news.tbs.co.jp

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D5QlT2QUcAA2pCz.jpg


Personnel news: Togu Palace's Chief Physician Satoru Inoue will become Chief Physician to the new emperor and empress.

Yukiko Nishimiya, Crown Princess Masako's Chief Lady-in-Waiting will continue as Chief Lady-in-Waiting to the new empress.

She's the widow of Shinichi Nishimiya, a Japanese diplomat who died suddenly in 2012 shortly after his appointment as Ambassador to China. She has overseas experience as her husband served as Japanese Consul-General in New York City.
The U.S.-Japan Council Remembers Ambassador Shinichi Nishimiya - U.S.-Japan Council

Mrs. Nishimiya graduated from Tsuda University and worked at a bank before marriage. Her children are independent already. She was appointed as CP Masako's Chief Lady-in-Waiting in July 2015 apparently after a careful search; the position was vacant for 4+ years since January 2011. It was noted she had experience handling activities such as receptions, tea ceremonies and such but no experience in public service related to the Imperial family. Yukiko has been credited in Masako's steady recovery.

Sources: dailyshincho.jp, dot.asahi, retsugaiha blog which copied TBS’ article

Yukiko Nishimiya (IHA file photo, she was 58 in July 2015)
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Is there a description somewhere of the duties of the Chief Lady in Waiting to the Empress? I have always wondered about the ladies that attend the formal ceremonies and are pictured behind the family. I assumed that they had important roles, but was unsure exactly how much influence and importance they have in the Imperial court. In European courts we know quite a bit about the ladies in waiting, but there doesn't seem to be as much readily available information for the Japanese court.
 
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Time to close this thread, the new one can be found here.
 
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