Message from Dr. Kuniko Inoguchi, Member of the Japanese Diet
On the occasion of the Opening Ceremony in the 31st Black Ships FestivalJuly 18, 2014
Newport, Rhode Island, USSpencer Viner, President, Japan-America Society of Rhode Island,
The Honorable Lincoln Chafee, Governor, State of Rhode Island,Rear Admiral P. Gardner Howe, III, President of U.S. Naval War College
The Honorable Harry Winthrop, Mayor of Newport
Members of the City Council,
I am truly honored to have this opportunity to deliver a few remarkson the occasion of the Opening Ceremony of the 31st Black Ships Festival.
I am a member of the Upper House of the Japanese Parliament, and I
am here to express my wholehearted gratitude to all of you for yourcontinuing efforts to deepen and refresh Japan-US bilateral friendship.
It has been more than 160 years since Commodore Matthew Perryarrived in Japan, seeking a diplomatic relationship with Japan.
Commodore Perry was courageous and brilliant. He had the patience towait for the right timing. He had a strategic mind to choose an appropriate
location for negotiation, and he was deeply aware of the importance of theblack ship in expressing his determination to make a new history. I am very
excited to be with you today at this place where such a brilliant andforward-looking mind was nurtured.
The relationship between the state of Rhode Island and Japan has
been deepened at various levels over its long history. With 31 Black Ships
Festivals in Newport, and 75 Black Ships Festivals in Shimoda held so far,
we have accumulated many wonderful practical accomplishments.
Recently, a student exchange between the University of Shizuoka andRoger Williams University has been put into operation. The cooperative
friendship between Japan and the state of Rhode Island is a treasure forJapan.

The government and people of Japan strongly support the Black Ship
Festival. It is important that Japan and the US, both of which arecommitted to the values of democracy, freedom, the rule of law, andeconomic growth and innovation, will continue to remember the origin ofour diplomatic ties and friendship, and communicate to the generations tocome of the importance of our relationship. And we all know that excellent
diplomatic ties start at the local community level. The efforts of the city ofShimoda and Newport is an excellent case in point. This year, 11 people
from Japan, including Mr. Shinobu Tsuchiya, the Chairman of Shimoda
City Assembly, are attending this festival. Last year, Mr. Takashi
Sasagawa, former Minister of State, made a speech at the festival.
I myself have been closely connected with the United States atvarious levels of education. I was an exchange student in Massachusetts,
where I attended a high school called Concord Academy, from which
Ambassador Caroline Kennedy graduated. I had a fulfilling experience atConcord Academy thanks to my very warm host family, and I still keep incontact with them. I obtained a Ph.D. in Political Science from Yale
University. I also served as a Fulbright research fellow at Harvard
University. The education I received in the United States prepared me formy professional career. I became a professor of political science at Sophia
University in Tokyo, and later served as Ambassador of Japan in Geneva
on disarmament affairs. Most recently, I served as Gender Equality
Minister in Prime Minister Koizumi’s Cabinet.
I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude
to all the participants of this ceremony, including the US Navy participants
for the help you have extended to our people in the disaster of the Great
East Japan Earthquake in March 2011. Operation Tomodachi was mosteffective and saved thousands of lives. It also inspired the rest of theworld to come to Japan and help the affected. We shall never forget yourswift and decisive relief operations, and the following continuous
commitment to help our recovery.
I thank you, and wish all the best. Thank you.