Aquino to visit tsunami-hit area in Japan trip

TOKYO – President Aquino is putting a sentimental touch on his official working visit here by visiting Sendai, the place worst hit by the tsunami following the powerful earthquake rocked this country last March.

Aquino arrives here today on the first day of his visit and tomorrow, he will make time to visit residents who are currently taking refuge at an evacuation center in Ishinomaki City at Miyagi Prefecture.

Aquino will also attend a gathering of the Filipino community there and have a brief meeting with Miyagi Prefecture and city officials.

Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary for Asian and Pacific Affairs Maria Theresa Lazaro said Aquino would be bringing a “gift” for the people of Japan.

Sendai is the capital of Miyagi Prefecture and the largest city in the Tohoku region.

In his interview with Japanese media in Manila as a prelude for this visit, Aquino said he would like to visit the Filipinos who were affected by the tragedies and “demonstrate solidarity with the Japanese people.”

“There is also another package of assistance, the exact form is still being handled by the (Philippine) embassy, it’s something we decided to give. There’s an amount that we have set aside that is quite substantial by our standards but not too substantial as far as Japan is concerned, but basically it’s a significant indication of the expression of our solidarity with the Japanese people,” Aquino said.

“Are there any trade agreements or any agreement that will be signed? There is no agreement being contemplated for signing at this point in time. But again, we’d like to get to know Japan better in this changing atmosphere so as to be able to further solidify the ties that exist between our countries,” he said.

Aquino said Japan has been very good to the Philippines, being the largest source of official development assistance.

“Japan has undergone quite a tremendous job that they have recovered very quickly, (despite) the continuing issue of radioactivity. We really want first to express our solidarity with the Japanese people, in our culture there is a phrase ‘utang na loob’(debt of gratitude) and the closest to the Japanese concept called giri,” he said.

“As good friends, allies and good neighbors, when one is in need we should do what we can to ease the suffering and to help build up confidence,” Aquino added.

“You have a new prime minister (Yoshihiko Noda), we want to be able to continue strong relationships that are existing between our two countries,” Aquino said.

Aquino said the Philippines had sent a team of psychologists and psychiatrists to assist those suffering depression after the trauma from the earthquake and tsunami.

“You had trauma from tsunami and you had also trauma from radiation leaks. I understand there is a request that this particular team be sent back. There are various items of relief, food stuff, water and salt which they needed immediately after,” he said.

Aquino said he would also like to learn from Japan on the use of nuclear energy and how the country coped with the disaster.

“Seeing it on the ground is a lot different from reading reports about it,” Aquino said.

Aquino said the report he got was that the Japanese side was very pleased with the performance of the medical teams that they were requesting for the same.

“One of the things that really inspired me is the sense of civic consciousness of the Japanese people,” Aquino noted.

He said he was impressed by the Japanese people dutifully lining up to pay their taxes even before looking for basic foodstuffs and commodities following the tragedy.

“Even after that, they managed to have strength of character, their national identity that, in the past, had already lifted them up from similar disasters. Thus we are sure that they will undergo the same thing given enough time, and their sense of being one is really something that has to be admired and that will get them out of the current crisis,” he said.

Some Filipinos interviewed by Radio TV Malacañang in Ishinomaki City said they had a very difficult time when the tragedies struck but reconstruction had begun and Japan was already recovering.

Aquino said he was very honored by the invitation to visit Japan. He would be the second foreign head of state that Noda would be talking to.

“We want to apprise him of the things that have been happening in the Philippines. Perhaps they would want to apprise us also of things that are happening in Japan and see if it’s possible if we could be of any assistance with the end of view of trying to get to normal as much as possible,” he said.

Aquino noted Japan is always among the top three trading partners of the Philippines.

“And any downturn in the Japanese economy has a corresponding effect on us. So those things are on top of our agenda,” he said.

Aquino said the Philippines and Japan also share security concerns in the West Philippine Sea.

“The idea of unhampered trade and freedom of navigation in this particular area will also be discussed and how we can perhaps have complimentary efforts to ensure safety there,” Aquino said.