The magazine of The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan

March 2020 Vol. 52 No. 3 ¥400

DISASTERTOURISM
9 YEARS AFTER

Bringing people—
and income—backto the areas hit by
the 3/11 tsunamiIn this issueVol. 52, Number 3

March 2020

contact the editors

no.1shimbun@fccj.or.jp
Publisher FCCJTHE FRONT PAGE

From the President by Khaldon Azhari
Freedom of the Press: China revokes press credentials
from three WSJ journalists
by Committee to Protect Journalists

4
4

FEATURES

The bright side of Dark Tourism
by Sonja Blaschke

6

The Emperor’s Filesby Eiichiro Tokumoto

10

Covering the coronavirus in Japanby Julian Ryall

14

RODRIGO REYES MARIN

Pages 14 and 18:
COVID 19—thenew corona virus—
and its effects in
Japan

The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan
Marunouchi Nijubashi Building 5F
Marunouchi 3-2-3 Chiyoda-ku Tokyo 100-0005
Tel: (03) 3211-3161 Fax: (03) 3211-3168 fccj.or.jp

FCCJ Exhibition; Join the Film Committee . . .;15
Hagi Night festivities; Membership Campaign; New Members;
New in the library

FCCJ

MARCH 2020

FCCJ COMMITTEE CHAIRSAssociate Members Liaison Keiko Packard,
Yuusuke Wada
Compliance Kunio Hamada, Yoshio Murakami
DeRoy Memorial Scholarship Abigail Leonard
Entertainment Sandra Mori
Exhibition Bruce Osborn
Film Karen Severns
Finance Mehdi Bassiri
Food & Beverage Robert Kirschenbaum,
Peter R. Tyksinski
Freedom of Press Abigail Leonard
House & Property Khaldon Azhari
Human Resources Khaldon Azhari
Information Technology Yuusuke Wada
Library, Archives & Workroom
Koichi Ishiyama, Suvendrini Kakuchi
Membership Andrew Horvat, Peter O’Connor
Membership Marketing Warren DevalierProfessional Activities Tetsuo Jimbo,
David McNeill
Public Relations Dan Sloan
Publications Geoff Tudor
Special Projects Haruko Watanabe

12CLUB NEWSLens craftby photographer Members

FCCJ BOARD OF DIRECTORS
President Khaldon Azhari, PanOrient News
1st Vice President Monzurul Huq, Daily
Prothom Alo
2nd Vice President Robert Whiting, Freelance
Treasurer Mehdi Bassiri, Associate Member
Secretary Takashi Kawachi, Freelance
Directors-at-Large
Mehdi Bassiri, Associate MemberPeter O’Connor, Freelance
Warren Devalier, Associate Member
Abigail Leonard, Freelance
Kanji Kazuo Abiko, Freelance
Associate Kanji Makoto Honjo,
Associate Member
Ex-officio Peter Langan, Freelance

Foreign Press in Japan Robin Harding

PROFILE

Yoshikazu Tsuno
Freelance photographer
by Gavin Blair

Editor Gregory Starr
Art Director Andrew Pothecarywww.itsumo-music.jp/design
Editorial Assistant Naomichi Iwamura
Photo Coordinator Michiyo Kobayashi
Publications Committee members
Geoffrey Tudor, Orient Aviation (chair)
Warren Devalier, Associate Member
Sonja Blaschke, Freelance
Marina Yoshimura, Student

Published by the FCCJ All opinions contained within
Number 1 Shimbun are those of the authors. As such,these opinions do not constitute an official positionof Number 1 Shimbun, the editor or the Foreign
Correspondents’ Club of Japan.
Please pitch and send articles and photographs, oraddress comments to no.1shimbun@fccj.or.jp
Read the Number 1 Shimbun online:
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18
Cover photo: Sonja Blaschke

3The Front Page

FROM THE PRESIDENTFREEDOM OF THE PRESS

series of mostly downbeat assessmentsfrom both journalist and associate
members speaking at the Club’s February
21 town hall meeting.
The general sense of that town hallmeeting was that the “club” atmosphereof the FCCJ has suffered as a result of
the move to new premises. “It no longer
feels like a club,” and the FCCJ has
lost its “family atmosphere,” members
complained. There were complaints
about the prices of food and drinks at theClub since the move. Members seemed
to be expressing as much sorrow asanger at the changes in the Club. There
was obvious concern about the current
state of FCCJ finances and anxiety about
whether current trends toward declining
membership will continue.
There was a feeling that the Clubshould come up with concrete measures
to woo back members who have resigned
Dear Members,
following the move as well as bringing in
The Diamond Princess cruise ship, after years of roaming the world toprovide rest andnew blood.
recreation to its passengers, was effectively placed under “port arrest” in Yokohama,
Widening membership categories tobecoming a news magnet for international media including FCCJ correspondents as aallow Japanese journalists working forresult of the coronavirus scare.
Japanese media in Tokyo to join the ClubOn February 27, I hired a boatman to take a news crew for a closer look at the ship
as Regular Members was one suggestion,from the Pacific side. The one way trip took about 20 minutes from Minato Mirai. Thea pet idea of long-term member Greg
wind was very cold, although it was a sunny and beautiful day.
Clark. (This would be practicable in many
I was joined by veteran FCCJ member cameraman Ito Tomoo and Dubai-based Al
cases under existing rules.)Arabiya News Channel reporter Laith Bazari. We did live TV grids of the ship, from up
There was also a view expressedclose, while Japanese Coast Guard personnel watched us and our vessel from anotherthat the FCCJ urgently needs to focus
small boat.
on generating more revenues fromAl Arabiya had dispatched my colleague Laith to join many reporters from around theprofessional activities rather
than relying so heavily on
initiation fees and donations.
As so often has been the case throughout our Club’s
On balance, members
history, bad news made FCCJ correspondents busier
in attendance seemedsatisfied that the current
board is fully committed to comingworld who flocked to Japan to cover the news of the Diamond Princess. A sudden surge
up with constructive solutions to thein demand for TV camerapersons, fixers, reporters, etc., revived the market in Japan for
FCCJ’s challenges. Members seemed
media personnel.
prepared to be patient while the Board
As so often has been the case throughout our Club’s history, bad news made FCCJ
and Committees do their best. That’s
correspondents busier even as it provided welcome introductions to parachuting
gratifying since, in fact, we are indeed
practitioners of our trade.
going all out to meet our responsibilities.
Laith visited the FCCJ during his one-week stay in Tokyo. He told me he was deeply
Back to the scare over coronavirus,
impressed by what he saw in the Club: high class location in Marounouchi, delightful
eventually it will wash away with theambience in the several dining facilities including the Bar, great library and newsPacific waves. I enjoyed riding in the small
gathering facilities and a big room for news events.
boat and having the occasion to reflect
He compared what he’d seen here with other press clubs he’d visited all overthat the big ship, the Diamond Princess,the world and told me our Club stands high in terms of status and quality. He thinks
sooner or later will return to creating
journalists are “lucky” to have such a facility in Tokyo.
happy memories for new passengers.
I badly needed to hear such enthusiastic remarks and to see the Club through the
Meanwhile, I hope and believe thateyes of a surprised and impressed journalist visiting it for the first time. What he said
our own big ship, the FCCJ, will sail on
made me feel very proud of being a member of the FCCJ and his words charged mewith its leading mission of supportingwith some extra positive energy of the sort that we could all use in order to look at our
all the media, local and international, in
Club through a wider lens.
reporting the real picture in Japan.
As it happened, the boat ride and those welcome compliments from Laith came at– Khaldon Azhari
the end of a seven-day period that other Board members and I had begun by hearing a
4

MARCH 2020

FCCJ

China revokes press credentials
from three WSJ journalists
TAIPEI, FEB. 19, 2020 — Chinese
authorities should immediately
restore the press credentials of three
Wall Street Journal journalists andallow the media to report freely in the
country, the Committee To Protect
Journalists said today.
Chinese Foreign Ministry
spokesperson Geng Shuang said ata daily news briefing today that the
government was revoking the press
credentials of three Wall Street Journal
journalists in retaliation for what hecalled a racist headline on an opinion
piece titled “China Is the Real Sick
Man of Asia.”
Deputy bureau chief Josh Chin andreporters Chao Deng and Philip Wen
are required to leave the country
within the next five days, according to
the newspaper. The column, written
by Hudson Institute scholar Walter
Russell Mead, was about the impact of
the coronavirus outbreak on China’s
economy, and was published on Feb. 3.
“China’s expulsion of threeaccredited correspondents in reaction
to what it sees as an offensive
headline in the opinion section of theWall Street Journal makes the country
appear less like a confident rising
power than a thin-skinned bully,” said
Steven Butler, CPJ’s Asia program
coordinator, in Washington, D.C.
“During a global health emergency, it
is counterproductive for the Chinese
authorities to be limiting the flowof news and information. The press
credentials of Josh Chin, Chao Deng,and Philip Wen should be restored
immediately.”
In a statement, Wall Street Journal
parent company Dow Jones said
that the organization was “deeply
disappointed” by the decision, andnoted that the newspaper’s opinion
section publishes separately fromits newsroom, and that none of
the expelled journalists had “anyinvolvement” in the column sparking
their expulsion. The statement called
for the journalists to be allowed to

FCCJMARCH 2020

stay in the country.
Chin and Deng, both American
citizens, and Wen, an Australiannational, are all based in Beijing,according to the newspaper. Deng
has been reporting from Wuhan, thecity where the coronavirus outbreakoriginated, according to that report.
In a statement posted on
Twitter, the Beijing-based Foreign
Correspondents Club of China said
that the government had not expelled
an accredited journalist since 1998.
CPJ has documented previous
instances of Chinese authorities
refusing to grant or renew journalists’press visas, as happened with
BuzzFeed News reporter Megha
Rajagopalan in August 2018, Agence
France-Presse reporter Bethany
Allen-Ebrahimian in June 2019, andWall Street Journal reporter Chun Han
Wong in August 2019.

CITIZEN JOURNALISTDISAPPEARSTAIPEI, FEB. 10, 2020 — Chinese
authorities must immediately accountfor the whereabouts of journalist
Chen Qiushi, and ensure that themedia can cover the coronavirus
outbreak in Wuhan without fearof retribution, the Committee to
Protect Journalists said today.
Chen, a freelance video journalist,
traveled to the city of Wuhan in Hubei
province from Beijing on Jan. 24 andbegan filming and reporting on thehealth crisis in the city, according to
his posts on YouTube, where he has
440,000 followers, and Twitter, where
he has more than 250,000 followers.
His videos reported that local
hospitals were short of resources andwere struggling to handle the numberof patients who needed treatment.
On Feb. 6, he told his family thathe planned to report on a temporary
hospital, and has not been seen since,
according to news reports and a video
message from Chen’s mother.
“Authorities in Wuhan must disclose
whether they are holding journalist
Chen Qiushi. If they are, then heshould be released immediately,” said
Steven Butler, CPJ’s Asia program
coordinator, in Washington, D.C.
“China does not seem to have learned
the clear lesson that bottling up thetruth about a spreading illness will
only make matters worse.”
On Feb. 1, Chen uploaded avideo from journalist Fang Bin,
depicting Fang’s encounter withlocal authorities who claimed to be
conducting virus inspections. Wuhan
police briefly detained Fang and asked
him to stop uploading videos about
the outbreak after he filmed his visits
to local hospitals, according to news
reports.
When CPJ messaged Chen’s Twitter
account, which has continued postingsince the journalist disappeared, theperson running the account identified
themselves as Chen’s friend and said
they wanted to maintain anonymity.
They told CPJ yesterday that they hadreceived no information on Chen’s
whereabouts since he disappeared.
In August 2019, Chen flew toHong Kong to report on the antigovernment protests taking place
there, and authorities summoned him
back to the mainland for questioning,
he said in a video posted in October.
CPJ called the Wuhan Public
Security Bureau for comment, but noone answered.

5

The brightside of
Dark Tourism

the creeps second-hand from the safety of their own sofa,
through the documentary series “Dark Tourist.” Protagonist
and journalist David Farrier started off the series by booking a tour to the area close to the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, packing a nervously beeping Geiger
counter. Further episodes promised Farrier would travel tomeet with murderers, or to experience being tortured.
Dark tourism does not have to be along such sensationalist lines. Conducted with care, empathy and ethics, it canmake visitors better people, and give them the emotional
impulse to reduce prejudices and traumas, explained tourism
researcher Professor Dorina-Maria Buda from Leeds Beckett
University in a TED talk.

Increasing numbers of travelers are unsatisfied
with simply going to distant, exotic destinations.
As this visit to tsunami-battered Iwate prefectureattests, Disaster Tourism done well can be an
opportunity for visitors and the visited.

Never a tourist magnet

Exactly 1,759 people lost their lives in Rikuzentakata in the 3/11
tsunami, and Sasaki relates the precise figure on purpose tohonor each person. Sasaki is young, with shoulder-length black
hair, her fringe falling over her eyes. She is wearing a black
down jacket, black jeans and black sneakers on this cold winterday. She is one of a number of young people who left after thedisaster, later returning to help rebuild and breathe new life
into their ravaged regions. Sasaki’s Disaster Tour, organizedby the start-up Marugoto Rikuzentakata which she co-founded, is one of several new tourism products. I was invited toexperience the itinerary by Iwate prefecture, together withseveral other foreigners, to test
and give feedback.
In country . . .
Even before the disaster, that
A former Rikuzentakata
corner of Japan had been anythinghigh school that was
but a tourist magnet, far fromfully submerged in thethe “golden route” from Tokyo totsunami; a beautiful inlet
Kyoto and Hiroshima. The onlyin Miyako; Otsuchi fromreason people went to northeast
above; Rikuzentakata’s sea
Japan was for some specific purwalls. Top right, a clock inpose—like visiting friends, or if

By Sonja Blaschke“No access for unauthorized persons,” read the big red
letters on the sign. In our white helmets, we walk past,ignoring the warning as we follow our tour leader
Kanako Sasaki. We are on a guided tour and have permission
to enter the yard of this former high school on the outskirtsof Rikuzentakata in Iwate prefecture, just a few hundred
meters away from the Pacific coast.
The high winter grass is rustling under our steps as we crossthe grounds. For years, there has been no laughter of children
echoing through the hallways, no chalk screeching acrossblack boards, no words of admonishment from impatientteachers. Instead, cables hang like curtains from the sagging
ceiling paneling, a broken keyboard sticks out of a shatteredwindow on the upper floor, below are piles of rubbish.
On March 11, 2011, all of the students at this particularschool safely escaped to nearby hills before the tsunami swept
through the town. The fact that nobody died here was the only
reason why the ruined school building was kept, to serve asa memorial. The results of the incredible force of nature arestill visible, shocking and fascinating at the same time. “Incase you are ever near a tsunami,” says Sasaki, “don’t just run
as far as possible.” Instead she recommends finding a solid,
high place—even one nearby, like the former roadside information station called Tapic 45 that stands right next to theshore. Three people survived there, she recounts, because thebuilding was made from reinforced concrete and tall enough.
Today it serves as the Iwate Tsunami Memorial Museum.
Some might feel uneasy about visiting disaster-struck
regions as tourists, wondering whether such trips are ethically acceptable, morally questionable, or simply too depressing.
Others argue to the contrary, saying it can bring meaningfulreconstruction aid. Disaster Tourism—a variety of Dark Tourism, which involves travel to places associated with deathand suffering—is an increasingly popular trend in the travelindustry. Whether it’s about visiting the damaged nuclear
power plant in Chernobyl or the Tuol Sleng genocide museumin Cambodia, the more authentic it feels, the better.
The streaming service Netflix has been catering to such
desires: Since 2018, dark tourists to-be can enjoy getting
6

the school, stopped at theminute of the earthquake.

they wanted to experience nothing but nature in solitude. Forestry, agriculture, fishing, oyster and kelp cultivation are thedefining characteristics of this rural region, then and now.
Since the disaster, new offerings for tourists have popped
up here and there, but mostly only for Japanese speakers.
However, with high-level events like the recent Rugby World
Cup in 2019 and the up-coming summer Olympics in Tokyo,
the affected regions are hoping to “divert” some of the
expected foreign tourist streams to northern Japan.
Sasaki and an American participant climb onto a wall

Miracle Pine
Possibly the most
famous tree in Japan,
the reconstructedpine that survived
the tsunami
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MARCH 2020

between the river and the derelict
school. The American has offered to takepictures for us, and is juggling our cameras and phones, trying to get the perfectshot, as Sasaki holds tight so she doesn’tfall off. “The things I do for you guys!“,
she says laughing. Her effort pays off:She gets a shot of a clock on the wall in
one of the former classrooms. The hands
are stopped at 14:46—the time of the 9.0 quake offshore, and35 minutes before the deadly tsunami arrived. A sign on theroof of the high school indicates the height of the tsunami:
14.20 meters, which is actually higher than the school.
Across the recently fortified banks of the Kesengawa riverand between a turquoise-colored crane and the monstrous
slab of concrete that makes up the new tsunami wall, we cansee what is possibly the most famous tree in Japan. There
were once 70,000 pine trees along the shore, a sight for which
Rikuzentakata was famous. This 200-year-old tree, standing
27 meters tall, is the only to remain after the tsunami. Knownas the “Miracle Pine,” it has become a symbol of tenacity andthe power of endurance.
The high salt content of the sea water, however, damaged
its roots so much that the tree was at risk of dying. It cost¥150 million to preserve it, Sasaki explains as we return tothe heated bus. “There’s been lots of fighting about this,” shesays. “It’s so much money, so shouldn’t that be given to thepeople affected by the disaster instead?” The issue almost
cost mayor Futoshi Toba his re-election. Only five votes madethe difference, according to Sasaki. But she believes that thetree helps people remember her town. “Visitors make a difference to us,” the mayor said in an interview. “In many ways,
you are our sustenance—economically, morally and socially.”

Tears for a friend

We are on our way back to the newly built town center, a smallcollection of less-than-charming buildings close to a new bus
and coach stop. The ground of the floodplain had been raisedby a few meters in a massive project that razed nearby hills
and transported that earth via huge conveyor belts to theplain. Theoretically, everything is set: “However, for about 80
percent of the area there are no plans for rebuilding,” Sasaki
says. “Many people could not wait any longer and in rebuilt
on higher ground elsewhere”.
Passing the area where the old town hall used to be, her eyessuddenly fill with tears. “This happens every time,” she says,
7

ALL PHOTOS: SONJA BLASCHKE

Disaster tourism

Disaster tourism

apologizing. A friend of hers used to work there. On the day ofthe disaster, his job was to give instructions to residents who
had just arrived at the emergency shelter next door.
Dozens of people died in the building which was too low
to protect them from the waves. “He put his own life on theline because he wanted to save the lives of the residents,” shemanages to squeeze out, her eyes red. To this day, she says
she has kept in touch with her deceased friend’s parents:“They have gotten older, of course, but since then, time has
stopped for them.”
Sasaki tears are real, her sorrow raw, so many years later.
“Only you can save your own lives,” she goes on to warn her
guests. “Make yourself the priority! After that, you can proceed to help others,” she says while wiping away more tears.
Her emotions stay with me long after we have left the region.

Share lessons, save lives

Operators of such tours of course need profitability to sustain their business, but that is obviously not the most important goal. The team of Marugoto Rikuzentakata want to
inform, to share lessons, to save lives, to reinvigorate theirhometown, to effect change. A former nurse, Mio Kamitaniin Otsuchi, 60 kilometres north of Rikuzentakata, agrees.
She also organizes disaster tours, but in combination withworkshops, whose goal is to increase disaster awareness andproblem-solving.
We start off on the ground floor of the rebuilt town hallin Otsuchi, a two-story building of wood and glass. Standing next to a three-by-three-meter model of the former townwith little houses made from colored paper, all of them withsigns indicating the former owners, Kamitani shows thehigh-water mark where the tsunami
wreaked havoc.
Touring
An exhibition on the second floor
The area is famed for itsof the town hall chronicles whatshellfish; tour operator
happened in Otsuchi on March 11

Kanako Sasaki; hills, thesea, and fishingexcellent English skills acquired in the US, she says she has
been frustrated by watching how decision-making processes
have been dragging on forever, as residents are put in frontof insolvable dilemmas. “If you had to decide between building a playground for children and temporary housing, which
would you choose?” she asks us, and a quick survey shows theanswer is far from straight-forward.
Kamitani says that there have been too many such “eitheror” decisions. Instead, she suggests that residents shouldhave been given several options. She wants to sensitize visitors to such issues for them to take these lessons home, but
at the same time hopes that such outside input might effectchange in the village itself: “Sometimes you not only have tochange the hardware, but also the software.”
In her talk, Professor Buda said her research confirms the
positive effects such types of tourism can have on both sides.
While tourists leave such places with a higher emotionalawareness, improved cultural understanding and empathy
for the people affected, the locals enjoy having their reality
witnessed and validated by visitors. “It gives residents the
chance to tell their side of the story, and a platform to maketheir voices heard,” she said.
Sasaki and her Marugoto Rikuzentakata team combine
their mission of passing on the lessons of 2011 with unrelated, entertaining activities. In addition to tsunami area
tours, they organize homestays with local fishermen or farmers. Guests are invited to participate in field work, splitting
wood, or trying their hand at traditional woodcarving. So
far, both Sasaki and Kamitani have not only had Japanese on
their tours, but also groups from abroad, including students
of elite US universities like Harvard and Princeton, and corporate employees.
Only between 12 and 14 percent of the world’s population
can afford to travel just for pleasure, and most of them arepeople from developed countries. “Tourism is a privilege,”
Buda said. This increases the responsibility to build bridges

THE FCCJ ONLINE: www.fccj.or.jp

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with time-stamped photos. It took less than a minute for thewater to swallow everything, including the old town hall, mostof its employees, and the mayor. They had ignored disasterplans which had directed them to run to a nearby hill, where agraveyard escaped the disaster unscathed.
Kamitani, a lively 40-year old in short black hair, Jeans anda ripped black sweater, came to Otsuchi via a charity organization to help people during the immediate aftermath.
Now, years later, she has put down roots and founded a family, much to her own surprise. A former globe trotter with8

and make connections through empathic tourism. “Nexttime you travel, do not only open your eyes and cameras, butalso your hearts.” Tour leader Sasaki agrees: Everybody in
Rikuzentakata was affected personally by the disaster, having lost friends, family, colleagues. “There are so many different stories,” she says. “Get in touch, learn, and take what
you have learned home with you.” ❶No. 1 SHIMBUN ONLINEFREEDOM OF THE PRESS INFO

Sonja Blaschke is a Japan-based German freelance journalist and TV

producer. Her travel to Iwate was sponsored by the prefecture.

MARCH 2020

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MARCH 20209

Royal insights

AP PHOTOS

Telling scenes . . .
Emperor Hirohito meets the UK’s Queen Elizabeth II who told
the emperor that monarchy is a difficult thing to deal with;and Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew who told him heconsidered Japan open to the world while China was closed.

The Emperor’s
Files
Diaries kept by the imperialtranslator of the Showaemperor offer insight
his post-war thoughts,
personal and political

By Eiichiro TokumotoT

his story began with a chance encounter in the spring 13
years ago. On Apr. 10, 2007, I was at the FCCJ to attend
a professional luncheon for Asia Development Bank
President Haruhiko Kuroda. During the meal, I exchanged
courtesies with an American gentleman who happened to beseated on my left. He appeared to be in his early 70s, with apiercing look, and wore black-rimmed eyeglasses. His business card read “Publisher, Cambodia Daily.” Seeing his name,
I did a double-take.
He was Bernard Krisher, the former Tokyo bureau chief ofNewsweek magazine, and I was very aware of his reputation.
In September 1975, he had achieved a rare, one-on-one interview with the Emperor Hirohito, who was about to embark on
his first visit to the United States.
At the time of our meeting, I was about to publish a bookabout Emperor Hirohito, known posthumously as the Showa
Emperor. Krisher kindly invited me to lunch at a café nearhis home in Hiroo on several occasions, during which one of
the main topics of our conversations was anecdotes about the
postwar US-Japan relationship.
One day, Krisher mentioned offhand that he had a collection of audio cassette recordings of interviews with Hideki
Masaki, Emperor Hirohito’s long-serving interpreter. Masaki
had a stellar career. Following his graduation from the Tokyo
Imperial University, he entered the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs in the early 1930s. Following postings to the UK and
10

US, he served as ambassador to Afghanistan.
From 1959, he served as interpreter for the emperor for two
and a half decades. During this period, Masaki kept a diary inEnglish, in which he wrote down the contents of conversations between the emperor and foreign guests.
In January 1989, just after the emperor’s death, Masaki sat
down with Krisher for a series of interviews, during which heread out the contents of his diaries. It was enough to fill 20
cassette tapes. I was surprised to learn that the tape’s contents had yet to be published, and Krisher was kind enough tolend me the tapes for my own use. The “Masaki Tapes” turned
out to provide fascinating insight into the Showa Emperor’sthoughts and beliefs.
Some of the emperor’s conversations with foreign leadersand dignitaries were deeply personal.
On May 28, 1963, for example, King Bhumibol Adulyadej ofThailand, accompanied by Queen Sirikit, visited Japan andmet with the emperor at the palace. According to Masaki,
Thailand’s monarch aired concerns about the education of
his children.
King Bhumibol told the emperor, “I believe it is importantto give education to my children as members of the royalfamily. But they are very idle and lazy and don’t like studying.
But my 12-year-old eldest daughter is a hard worker and she
likes science. Thailand will need scientists in the future . . .
and she wants to be one herself.”
The weight of royalty seems to have concerned Britain’s
Queen Elizabeth II on a visit to Tokyo. On May 7, 1975, when
she and her husband Prince Philip visited Tokyo, the queen
told the emperor, with what may have been a sigh, that monarchy is a difficult thing to deal with. “You’ve been Emperor
for 59 [sic] years. I’ve been Queen for 23 years.”
At that time, the queen was making plans to visit the US thefollowing next year, in observation of America’s bicentennialcelebrating its independence from Great Britain.
According to Masaki, she said to the emperor, “It seems
funny for me to visit the US that rebelled against us.” But she
seemed resigned to it, however, stating, “After 200 years, itwill be all right.”
Thailand’s King and Great Britain’s Queen, known for charismatic presence and widely respected by their subjects, both
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voiced largely private concerns, which can be perceived as
putting themselves in the same boat as Japan’s emperor.
Among the guests the emperor received from abroad werea few with whom the subject matter touched upon extremely delicate political topics. One such person was Singapore
Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who met with the emperor on
Oct. 22, 1979.
Masaki, who interpreted the exchange, told Krisher in thetapes: “Lee Kuan Yew mentioned the effect of Japanese andChinese civilization on the Korean peninsula. He consideredJapanese civilization is open to the outside world and Chinese is closed, and said it was better for Korea to be occupied by Japan.”
According to Masaki,”[His Majesty] was entirely silent, as
he didn’t say anything. He couldn’t say yes or no. The Lytton
Commission Report (which investigated the causes of theJapanese invasion of Manchuria) [mentioned] Japan’s successful efforts for reforestation in Korea but we can’t say
that. They [South Korea] dislike whatever we may say about
Japan’s contribution.”a detailed explanation of the US policy toward Thailand andCambodia.
As events were to transpire, 1962 turned out to be an eventful year. Construction of the Berlin Wall had begun the previous August. Then in October came the Cuban missile crisis, during which the US and Soviet Union narrowly avoided
nuclear conflict.
Amid the escalating tension of the Cold War, Japan’s emperor, relegated to being a “symbol of the State” with no role inpolitics, nevertheless harbored a sense of crisis, and encouraged foreign visitors to discuss the international situation
with him, while energetically conveying his own message inreturn. None of these exchanges were ever divulged by theImperial Household Agency.

THE EMPEROR’S VIEWS, AS recorded by Masaki, turned out tobe consistent with information I chanced upon earlier. At the
National Archives in London, I accessed a declassified British Foreign Office document that underscored the emperor’s
personal views.
In June 1952, the British embassy in Tokyo dispatched areport to London concerning the defense minister’s audience
with the emperor. According to the document, “after enquiring after the health of the Queen and the Royal family, [theemperor] asked a number of questions about the international situation which included China, the Soviet Union, Malaya,
Persia and Egypt. We returned suitable replies. Grand Masterof Ceremonies explained afterwards, that while the Emperor
is very interested in international affairs, under the present
BUT WITH OTHER GUESTS, the subjects of conversation took
constitution he is not kept informed by the Government andon more political tones. According to Article 1 of the Japaneseis consequently unable to express any views of his own.”
Constitution, which was drafted by the Allied occupation justBut it is clear that he had his own views, and equally clear
after WWII, the emperor of Japan is defined as “symbol of thethat he was interested in world affairs despite his distance.
State.” His role is ceremonial, and he is not allowed to influence
He could surely recall the 1930s, when the Japanese military
the government. Based on the contents of the Masaki tapes,
and government had failed to provide the young emperor
however, that did not negate Emperor Hirohito’s deep interest
with full and accurate information, while the conflict between
in world affairs, particularly the threat of communism.
Japan and China stalemated, and relations deteriorated withFor example, on Oct. 18, 1962, in an audience with the UK’s
the Western powers.
Commissioner for Singapore and Commissioner General for
After the war’s end, the drawing up of a new constitution
South-East Asia, the Earl of Selkirk, one of the main topics ofby the Americans made little difference in the information
discussion was communism in Asia.
blackout, effectively making the imperial palace akin to an
The emperor asked, “I understand the communist party of
isolated island. It’s highly possible that the emperor, who was
Malaya has generally been suppressed. What is the present
deeply concerned about risk of repeating the mistakes of thesituation?” To which Selkirk explained that the communists
1930s, was not content to rely only on the government’s briefwere scattered in the jungle or border areas and suppressed
ing, but resorted to gathering whatever information he could
by troops of Malaya, Australia and New Zealand.
glean from foreign guests.
The commissioner also touched on the situation in Laos
According to Masaki, while Hirohito was known to theand Vietnam, and the emperor was said to have responded,world as a marine biologist, from his various comments, it’s
“It is good that people of these countries are conscious of theclear that the emperor’s worldview was based on his study ofperil of international communists.”
history, including that of the Roman Empire. After observing
On March 9 of the same year, the emperor was visited bycoups that took place in Iran and Afghanistan in the 1970s,
David Rockefeller, president of Chase Manhattan Bank, who
the emperor cautioned imperial family members, saying “Itwas on a world tour. Rockefeller is said to have remarked, “If
was always the people surrounding a monarch who brought
the US, Europe and Japan should closely cooperate, then we canabout downfall.”contain the advance of the Soviet Union and China,” to which
Thanks to the dedicated record keeping by these two men,the emperor showed his wholehearted agreement by respondI was able to get a look at somethinging, “I also believe so.”Eiichiro Tokumoto is an authorthat is rarely shared with the public:
Two months earlier, on Jan. 11, Dean
and investigative journalist.
the emperor’s discussions with foreign
Acheson, former US Secretary of StateThe “Masaki Tapes” and Hideki
dignitaries, and his thoughts on world
and advisor to President John F. KenMasaki’s diary are included inpolitics. Hideki Masaki passed away innedy, called at the palace. Acheson said
his new book The Emperors’
2001. Bernard Krisher died last year at
he would be meeting Prince Norodom
Files, which was published by
the age of 87. ❶Sihanouk in Cambodia, and provided
Bungeishunju-sha in February.
FCCJ

MARCH 202011

Series: Profile

Yoshikazu Tsuno
Freelance photographer
By Gavin Blair

ANDREW POTHECARY

W

12

MARCH 2020

FCCJ

Korea that the fire was to warm up theatching old Hollywood movies
oil in the truck. When I started taking
at cheap screenings as a junior“I’M CURIOUS ABOUT
pictures, they all ran away. The samehigh school student, Yoshikazu
EVERYTHING. I WANT TO
thing happened when I started shootTsuno had dreams of becoming a film
SEE SOMETHING BEFORE
ing a young man marching militarydirector. But his fascination with news
style over a bridge, he ran off as soon hepushed him to choose a career behind a
EVERYONE ELSE DOES.”
spotted me shooting him,” says Tsuno.
different kind of camera.
However, most of his 31-year career
Born in Dogenzaka in the heart ofat AFP was spent covering nearly every
Shibuya in 1959, Tsuno went to Chiba
major event in Japan during that time,
University to study photo technology
from politics to sport, including thein the faculty of engineering. Although
World Athletics Championships andmany on the course went to work forthe 2002 Japan-South Korea football
Japan’s many camera makers, it also
World Cup.
produced a number of notable photogBut his real passion has always beenraphers, including the controversial
seeking out the new, particularly inNobuyoshi Araki, known for his prolificscience and technology. “I’m curious
output of photo books which are variabout everything. I want to see someously seen as either high-art erotica orthing before everyone else does, new
exploitative pornography.
products or robots,” he explains.
Working as a freelancer for magaFrom 1995 until 2016, he managed
zines while still a student, Tsuno was
the Tokyo AFP photo bureau as theoffered a job as a staff photographer inchief photographer, but became disil1984 at the newly-formed international
lusioned with changes at the agency.
photo section of Agence France-Presse“AFP used to be very good for photog(AFP), the world’s oldest news agency.
raphers; we could make suggestions
Although he had also taken the test for
about something we wanted to shootTokyo Shimbun, the young Tsuno was
and were often able to go and do it. But
excited by the potential of AFP’s newthen everything was just assigned to us
venture. However, despite the offer toand we had no choice,” rues Tsuno.
begin immediately, he decided to wait
He left to join another Paris-headquartered agency,
until graduation, starting work there in March 1985, straight
Gamma Presse Images, a dedicated photo agency, where hefrom university.
remains. Although he says there are fewer assignments than
In February 1986, he was given his first overseas assignhis days at AFP, there is enough work to keep Tsuno as busy
ment: covering Pope John Paul II’s visit to India. His firstas he would like to be. “Yesterday morning I was at Mitsubiexperience of the world outside his native Japan other thanshi Electric to cover some new product launches, then in thea two-week family vacation to visit an uncle in Hawaii, Tsuafternoon off to that ship [the quarantined Diamond Princess]no recalls being shocked at the stench of Kolkata when hein Yokohama,” he says.
wound down the window of the taxi he was traveling in. “I
Even with a reduced workload, Tsuno says the work of a
could see Kolkata was one of the worst cities in the world andnews photographer is more frenetic than it used to be in the
I understood why Mother Theresa had chosen to work there,”pre-digitization days. “You used to shoot the pictures, thensays Tsuno.
go back to the office to develop and after that transmit the
Other assignments around Asia took him to China, theimages. There was time to rest, have some food and relax aPhilippines, Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korea. But it was
little. Now you don’t have that kind of time when you’re on
a trip to North Korea in 1995 that left the biggest impresassignment,” he says.
sion. “North Korea was inviting a lot of Japanese people there
Nevertheless, he appears to have found a work style thatat that time because they wanted Japanese yen. It was verysuits him after three and a half decades in the business. “I caninteresting to photograph what I thought was ordinary life
decide what I want to do. I look at the newspaper and choose
there, but I realized it was like Disneyland, everything was awhat I want to go and shoot,” says Tsuno. “I’m happy with myperformance,” he recalls.
life now.” ❶Slipping away from his handlers one morning, he was surprised to see a group of people who had built a fire underneath a truck. “Can you imagine why? It was so cold in North
Gavin Blair writes for publications in Asia, Europe and the US.
FCCJ

MARCH 202013

Corona virus

Club news

YOSHIKAZU TSUNO

Not at the Club
Kentaro Iwata
held a press
conference at
the Club fromself-isolation

Covering thecoronavirus in Japan
By Julian Ryall
THE DEEPENING CRISIS OVER the over
COVID-19 outbreak—including its
inexorable spread around the world
and the apparent inability of healthauthorities to get to grips with the
problem—has dominated the news cycle
since early January and, as of the time ofwriting, shows no sign of slowing down.
And while the vast majority of
infections and fatalities are still in
China, Japan found itself very muchin the spotlight after the virus was
confirmed among a handful of the
3,700 passengers and crew aboard thecruise ship the Diamond Princess.
In order to help journalists grasp thesituation and learn about the virus, theForeign Correspondents’ Club of Japan
hosted three press conferences withmedical professionals in February, withcomments by each of the professors
sufficient bombshells to grab the
global headlines.
Hiroshi Nishiura, a professor in
Hokkaido University’s Graduate Schoolof Medicine, spoke at the FCCJ on
Feb. 4—relatively early in the crisis,
when there were fewer than 10,000
confirmed cases and around 200
deaths. His message, however, wasfar from optimistic and he warned
that simply isolating people who had
recently traveled to China might not be
sufficient to stop the spread of the virus
in its tracks. Three weeks later, it isclear that prediction was on the mark.
“WE MAY FIND THAT containment is not
feasible,” said Nishiura, who heads ateam set up quickly at the university
14

to study the path of the virus.
“Countries may have to switch fromcontainment to mitigation.” Part of the
problem, he said, is that it was alreadybecoming apparent that people withno symptoms of the illness but who
had been infected were passing it on
to those they came into close contact
with.
Nishiura’s studies indicated that riskof death in confirmed cases at the time
was between 3 percent and 6 percent,but that as many as half may not haveany symptoms of being infected andmay not even become sufficiently
unwell to require hospital treatment.
He did warn, however, that the peakof the disease may not come until
April and called on health authorities
to prepare more hospital beds andventilators for people who develop
pneumonia.
Fifteen days later, concern aroundthe illness had become significantly
more acute and Hitoshi Oshitani,a professor of virology in Tohoku
University’s Graduate School of
Medicine, set the cat among the
Olympic pigeons by suggesting that theupcoming summer Games are under
threat from the rapidly spreading virus.
“We need to find the best way to havea safe Olympics,” he said. “Right now,
we don’t have an effective strategy andI think it may be difficult to have theOlympics. But by the end of July, we
may be in a different situation.”
The organizers of the Tokyo games,
the Japanese government and the Tokyo
Metropolitan Government had then all
been at pains to reassure the world thatthe city will be completely ready forthe occasion by the time the opening
ceremony takes place on July 24.
Oshitani, who previously served as anadviser to the World Health Organizationand helped combat the outbreak of SARS
in 2003, said his greatest concern wasa “Wuhan-type” outbreak elsewherein Asia or Africa that would lead tomore cases coming into Japan. In that
scenario, he said, “It may be difficult
to have” the Olympics in Tokyo.
“What we have to do is try to prevent
such a thing from happening,” Oshitani
said. “Nobody can predict whether we
can contain the virus or put an end
to this outbreak before the Olympics
starts—that’s anybody’s guess.”
PERHAPS THE BIGGEST BOMBSHELL
came from Kentaro Iwata, a professorof infectious diseases at Kobe
University, who was only able toaddress members of the club through avideo link as he had voluntarily placed
himself in quarantine after goingaboard the Diamond Princess—where
he had previously described infection
control efforts as shambolic.
On Feb. 19, Iwata uploaded two
YouTube videos, in Japanese and English,
which quickly attracted attention for
his first-hand account of what he saw
on a visit to the vessel. He said thesituation on the ship was “chaotic,”
with bureaucrats in charge instead ofexperts in viral diseases. He added that
there was no distinction between “red,”or infected areas, and “green” zones
that were free of the virus.
The day of the FCCJ press conference,
Iwata took the videos off the site,
saying the situation aboard the cruise
ship had improved. “The post became
so viral and viewed by many people
and yesterday I was informed thatsignificant improvement was done
inside the cruise ship,” he said. Iwata
denied that he had been pressured by
the government to remove the clips as
they were so critical of the response to
the situation on board.
Iwata insisted that the YouTube
clips had achieved their aim, includingemphasizing that bureaucrats haveno experience in how to prevent
infections from spreading. “We have tobe prepared,” he added. “We have to be
extremely cautious, but we should not
panic. That is my opinion.” ❶Julian Ryall is the Japan correspondent for
the Daily Telegraph.
MARCH 2020

FCCJ

FCCJ EXHIBITION

A bond with Tomodachi
Exhibition by Japan Disaster
Recovery Support

To commemorate the ninth anniversary of the Great
East Japan Earthquake, Japan Disaster Recovery Support(JDRS) is exhibiting photographs selected from over
2,000 images from the relief activities records of Japan
Self-Defense Forces and U.S. Forces in Japan taken in thedevastated areas.
Through this exhibition, we would like to express
our gratitude to those who joined the relief efforts andalso remind ourselves of the importance of disaster
preparation in hopes of saving future lives.
We would like to thank the US Embassy Tokyo,
Reconstruction Agency, Cabinet Office, Ministry ofForeign Affairs, and Ministry of Defense for supporting
this exhibition.

Japan Disaster Recovery Support (JDRS) was set up
in the prefectures of Shimane, Osaka and Hiroshima
eight years ago for the purpose of holding photo
exhibitions showcasing the relief activities and volunteer
support for people living in the disaster-stricken areas.
The JDRS has held 42 exhibitions at various venues,
including prefectural and municipal governmentbuildings, department stores and cultural facilities
mainly in Osaka, Fukuoka, Hiroshima, and Ehime
prefectures, alongside other cities in western Japan.
At each venue, volunteer groups and local fire
departments provided photos of their activities so people
in the community could learn about their support.
Contributions for the disaster-stricken areas recovery
left in the donation boxes at the exhibitions were given
to Japanese Red Cross.
In March 2019, JDRS was authorized as a non-profit
organization and opened its headquarters in Osaka. It
currently has 25 members, ranging in age from 22 to 84,
living in areas from Tokyo and Kyushu and planning theexhibitions. In addition, we have the support of over
500 volunteers.
This exhibition at the FCCJ is our first show in easternJapan. Members of the Tokyo Junior Chamber anduniversity students helped to prepare the exhibition.
FCCJ

MARCH 202015

Club news

. . . on Tues., March 17 at 7:00 pm for a sneak preview
of Mishima: The Last Debate, a documentary featuringlong-lost footage of Yukio Mishima’s controversial
appearance at the University of Tokyo in 1969, as headdressed 1,000 revolution-minded students who had
come to “see him get beat up.” Instead, the acclaimed
writer-actor-director engaged his audience withthe mental agility of a gold-medal gymnast, nearly
pulsating with intellectual energy and wit, beating backeach counterargument with poetic logic, never once
condescending, antagonizing, or treating the students
with disrespect. Director Keisuke Toyoshima surrounds
the centerpiece of his film with heartbreaking imagesof Tokyo under siege and interviews with former
Todai students, former Shield Society members andothers, andreminds us thatwords, wielded
judiciously andmeaningfully, will
always triumphover swords; that
there is always acommon groundeven whenarguing political
ideologies
at opposite
extremes.
Toyoshima and award-winning novelist Keiichiro Hirano
will join us for the Q&A session.
(Japan, 2020; 108 minutes; in Japanese with English
subtitles)— Karen Severns

NEW LOCAL MEMBERSHIP CAMPAIGN

Save ¥100,000s!
For a limited period in 2020, the FCCJ
will be offering very attractive special
discounts on new individual
Associate Members working in
our home, the Marunouchi
Nijubashi Building, as well as
in the neighboring Meiji Life
Insurance, Marunouchi Park,and Shin-Tokyo buildings.
New individual applicants for
Associate Membership will
receive a one-time discount on
the existing ¥400,000 joining
fee. With the one-time discount,the joining fee would be ¥200,000
for those over 40 and ¥100,000
for those between the ages of 35 to 40.
Monthly dues of ¥17,500 and the relocation levyof ¥1,000 for Associates over 35 years of age willremain unchanged.

NEW IN THE LIBRARY
Creating a Public:
People and Press in
Meiji Japan
James L. Huffman
University of Hawai’i
Press

REGULAR MEMBERThe Korean War: An
International History
Updated Edition
Haruki Wada
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Sustainable Investment – Impact in Asia
Asia Asset Management
Asia-Pacific Media
Gift from Anthony Rowley
Forty-Seven Samurai:
A Tale of Vengeance& Death in Haiku andLetters
Hiroaki Sato
Stone Bridge Press

Kana Nishizawa is Bloomberg’s new Tokyo bureau
chief, driving coverage of Japan’s biggest stories in a
global context. She studied broadcast journalism in
Canada after completing a degree in political science,philosophy and religion at the University of Toronto.
Kana joined Bloomberg in 2009, covering the rise of
Abenomics and its impact on markets as well as the
March 2011 earthquake. Later, she was based in Hong
Kong for eight years, spearheading news including
China’s opening of its capital markets, the burst of the equity bubble, andwas reporting during the umbrella protests that rocked the city state in 2014.
REGULAR MEMBER, REINSTATEMENTJames Rocky Swift covers healthcare andpharmaceutical companies in Japan for Reuters. A
native of Florida, Rocky first came to Japan with the
JET Program in 2000 to teach English in Nagano
Prefecture. After getting an MBA at the University of
Hawaii, he worked at Bloomberg News in Tokyo and
New York for eight years covering financial markets.
In 2014, he joined the U.S. State Department and did
stints in West Africa, Washington DC and Tokyo. He
made his return to journalism with Reuters in 2019.

ASSOCIATE MEMBER
Tsuyoshi Takemura, Burson Cohn & Wolfe Japan Inc.

Existing members who introduce an accepted Associate applicant
who joins the FCCJ will receive a credit of up to ¥25,000.

CLUB EVENT

Hagi Night festivities
The Club played host to somefascinating visitors from thecity of Hagi in Yamaguchi
prefecture on the evening
of Friday, Feb. 7. Hagi is aformer castle town on the
coast, known for cherry
blossoms and quaint narrow
streets. Joining a large groupof Members was Mayor Kenji
Fujimichi, who introduced us
to Hagi’s local food delicacies,
such as Kenran beef, red tile
fish and Mutsumi pork, alongwith local brews to washthem down. Guests were also
given live demonstrationsof some of Hagi’s traditional
folk handicrafts. Tomoaki
Kaneda, a ceramic artist,gave a Hagi pottery throwing
demonstration, while Yoshiko
Okano, a local doll maker,
showed her skills at making
Hagi-style traditional dolls.

16

NEW MEMBERS

FCCJMARCH 2020

WHICH TWOCOUNTRIES’FLAGS ARE
EXACTLY
THE SAME?
That was one of
the questions fromFebruary’s FCCJ News
Quiz Night. If you think
you know the answer tosimilar questions, join
in—prizes are awarded
and there is a Happy
Hour at the bar. QUIZNIGHTS ARE THE
FIRST THURSDAY OF
EVERY MONTH!
Answer: Romania and Chad

JOIN THE FILM COMMITTEE . . .

17

Photographer members

Lens craft
Departed
People look out from a bus
carrying US passengers
from the quarantined
Diamond Princess cruise
ship at Haneda airport on
Feb. 17.
by Tomohiro Ohsumi

Extinguished
Participants put out a fire during theDisaster Preparedness Drill for Foreign
Residents in Musashino, Tokyo on Jan. 28.
About 369 people were instructed on
how to protect themselves in a disasterby the Tokyo Fire Department with theassistance of volunteer interpreters.
by Rodrigo Reyes Marin

MauledMeiji and Waseda Universities compete in the
National University Rugby Championship at
the new National Stadium in Tokyo, Jan. 11.
by Yoshikazu Tsuno
18

MARCH 2020

FCCJ

FCCJ

MARCH 202019

Wish you were here