e-ShortNews

Reiko Kato, President of Meguro UNESCO Association

The sun rises and time passes equally for everyone, as we greet a new year. I sincerely wish you all peace in this year.

Meguro UNESCO Association, established in 1954, has its 55th anniversary this year fulfilling the aspiration of our predecessors for a UNESCO movement. In connection with this, we have set up the "Meguro UNESCO Action Award" and are now calling for candidates. The award is to honor young people in Meguro who have been actively devoted to the UNESCO spirit and its activities, directly or indirectly, in the hope for their healthy growth and the expansion of the activities. Specifically, private and public schools in Meguro City that are engaged in volunteer activities to protect the local environment, international cooperation and exchanges, and so on, have been invited to apply for the award. It is true that we have some concern about how well young people and school officials understand the project because this is a new initiative, and the application period is short. But we have proceeded with the project anyway, receiving support from local government, the local institutions concerned, and various other organizations. The closing date for application is January 25th. I would like to ask for everyone's cooperation. (Please visit the website of Meguro UNESCO Association for more details)

On November 20th, ten organizations were accepted to enter the first "Future Heritage Project" organized by the National Federation of UNESCO Associations in Japan. In the Tokyo district, the project called "Let's Enhance IKI* Culture in Kagura-zaka" has been registered.
On the same day, "Father Sadaharu Oh and His Daughter Rie's Super Talk Show" was held at the Persimmon Hall in Meguro where a lot of local residents gathered. Together with the Mayor of Meguro City, I appeared on the stage representing Meguro UNESCO Association and Meguro International Friendship Association (as seen in the picture). The theme of the show was environmental issues. In line with the theme, I made a speech about the "UNESCO World Terakoya Movement", making a point that the Terakoya Movement will produce environmentally conscious people in the long-run, and that people living in Meguro are contributing to making the earth sustainable through various activities such as "Miswritten Postcard Collections", a bazaar, and a concert.

The guests of the show were Mr. Sadaharu Oh (the chairman of the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks) and Rie (who acts as Meguro City’s Ecology and Health Messenger). That evening, I felt a deep respect for Mr. Oh's sincere way of life. I was also attracted by Rie's charming and likable personality.

I encountered a phrase "Earth, Environment, and Peace" along a street in Marunouchi. I would like to add "Hope and Dream" to that phrase. We will proceed with the movement with tomorrow in mind. Fifty-five years have passed since its foundation and as the organization grows, there will be more challenges. There is a tremendous amount of administrative work and I am most grateful to those who manage the organization. This year, I hope we can share the happiness of working hand in hand based on the common UNESCO spirit, participating in enjoyable, energetic, if at times challenging and hard, activities.

* IKI culture was developed in the late Edo period. IKI can be translated as urbane, chic, or stylish.
-translated by Hiroko Minowa

Sponsored by Meguro Board of Education / Organized by NPO Meguro UNESCO Association
Sept. 2 (Wed.) 10:00 - / Nakameguro Square / Approx. 50 attendees
Lecturer: Ms. Yoko Yamamura, Kanze School Noh performer

On a chilly and cloudy day for early September I headed for the lecture venue wondering about the unfamiliar words “voice dojo” and what “Japanese voice is in danger” meant.
The lecturer, a Noh performer, spoke in a voice loud enough to reach every corner of the room without a microphone.

When Ms Yamamura started a “voice dojo”, she assumed her students would be readers, theater people, and so on. However, many of her students are now ordinary people who have voice problems, since in modern Japanese society neighbor relations are weak and one can lead a social life, like shopping at a supermarket, without saying a word. Japanese people, whose way of moving their jaws is different from that of Westerners, can talk using only the tip of their mouths. So, if they aren’t breathing abdominally, they are unaware that they aren’t. Very often men talk, for example, in a forced low voice to emphasize their manliness, and women purr like a cat on purpose.

When you vocalize with abdominal breath support, however, your voice becomes a normal one. Then you can make yourself really understood. You need to vocalize with breath support in order to express yourself. When you greet, reply, say thank you, or even when you scold your child, your very normal voice makes your message get across. Even a pet dog did “wait” for the first time when his owner said “Wait!” with abdominal breath support, Ms. Yamamura reported.

We later practiced abdominal breathing, maintaining a correct posture under her direction. Ms. Yamamura demonstrated various different voices to show how the use of the breath makes a difference. In admiration I was convinced of the validity of her theory. Because of many concrete examples she cited and her humorous tone, the lecture was over before we knew it.

On the way home, I found myself in an unusually beautiful posture, with my back straight, hoping to take this occasion to master how to use my normal voice for better communication. It was certainly a very useful and instructive lecture.
-written by Atsuko Shimizu and translated by Michiko Miyamoto

Discussion: Ms. Yoshino Oishi and Prof. Eiji Hattori
Sponsored by NPO Meguro UNESCO Association, Meguro Board of Education
Lecturers: Ms. Yoshino Oishi, Photojournalist, recipient of many prizes including the Domon Ken Award;
Prof. Eiji Hattori, Scholar of the Comparative Study of Civilizations, Adviser to Meguro UNESCO Association
October 23(Fri), 2009 18:30- / Meguro City Office Main Conference Room / 120 participants

Part 1: Slideshow of 60 photographs (commentary by Ms. Oishi)
“I want you to take a look at those children, driven to the very bottom of society by government violence, and imagine how they feel everyday. I want you to know that there are children who are deeply hurt and still have to live in despair under the same sun that is peacefully enjoyed by the Japanese. Can you really accept this reality, that those weakest of the weak, babies and babies in mothers’ wombs, are the victims of misgovernment?” Ms. Oishi calmly stated the situation with her photos which explained the despair even more vividly.

Tears never cease to flow. The tragic inheritance from the war 30 years ago left incalculable misery among the people. A mother who lost her daughter through an accident with an unexploded shell, a boy who lost his father who had been shot seven times in his face yet still tried to save his family, and a young girl whose fingers were deformed by an accident. All the faces in the photos were telling us not only their actual losses but also the incurable wounds deep in their hearts. We are asked to take time to think about those people in Vietnam, Laos, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Chernobyl, etc. who were on the other side of her lens.

Part 2: A talk by Prof. Eiji Hattori
Prof. Hattori first commented that the photos of Ms. Oishi were peaceful and calm. Supported by his worldwide activities and experiences, he talked about how this world has been moving, and stated his historical views.

What took place in Asia in 1979? After the Vietnam War, the US troops were withdrawn from Asia, and Vietnam defeated the Pol Pot regime in Cambodia, the truth about which none in the world had known. And the Soviet Union, which had been supporting Vietnam, invaded Afghanistan. The Islamic revolution in Iran also started then. The National Federation of UNESCO Associations in Japan started an educational support, which later led to the Terakoya movement, at Cambodian refugee camps in Thailand. At Afghan refugee camps in Pakistan, schools of the Koran were started by the support of Saudi Arabia, and the Islamic theology students, the Taliban, that later on became very controversial, were born.

Histories are linked to one another in certain aspects. A rotten structure is inherent in power, and the power steers to a tragic massacre of war once the instinct of destruction awakes. In order to realize a peaceful world there are so many things left for us to deal with as a grass-root UNESCO movement.

At the end, Ms. Oishi concluded the discussion by saying that as a thrown pebble makes ripples spread, through her photos she wants to make ripples in people’s heart and wishes to have a peaceful world where all the children can talk about their own dreams.

We thanked the lecturers who had given us a couple of impressive and intensive hours on this vital subject and gave them a big round of applause at the end.
-written by Masumi Saito and translated by Nobuko Matsushita

Sponsored by Meguro UNESCO Association
Co-sponsored by Meguro Board of Education,
Meguro Foundation of Art and Culture
November 7(Sat.), 2009 14:00- / Meguro Persimmon Main Hall

Ms. Mari Kumamoto, a pianist, is well known on TV as a versatile artist. In this concert, she won a very favorable reaction from the audience with her enjoyable talks and marvelous piano performances.

In the first half of the concert, she played masterpieces of Romantic composers such as Chopin, Schuman and Brahms. Each of them was a musical piece which everyone had heard at least once in their lives. Between the performances, with a microphone in her hand, she talked about various episodes such as her experiences at the Chopin Museum on the island of Majorca in her childhood days, relationships between Schuman and Brahms, etc. The musicians’ inside stories always draw people’s curiosity. Because of the good tempo of her talks combined with her piano performances, a wonderful time enjoying the eight pieces passed so quickly.

In the second half of the concert, she played some numbers by composers of Spain, which she calls her second home country. The lineup of exotic and enthusiastic pieces was from her most favorite works by Mompou, Rodrigo, etc. When she played “The Beautiful Blue Danube” arranged for piano, which was so gorgeous yet rarely heard, it overwhelmed the audience in the hall! For an encore, “Ritual Fire Dance” composed by Falla was played as is usual at her concerts. Introducing it as a “torment for a piano tuner”, drew smiles from the audience.

The peace concert this year was planned to be enjoyed by a broader range of people, from young to old, as well as those who had little chance to hear classical music. Because of Mari’s speedy talks and performance, the beautiful time seemed to pass so quickly. ---Music crosses national borders and reaches to people’s hearts. Everywhere on earth, each place has its music which makes us feel happy and peaceful. --- Those are the words by Mari. Now, her thoughts for music reached to people’s minds as “A Message of Peace and Culture to the Next Generation”.

After the concert, Mari, who is also a professor at Osaka University of Arts, held a public lesson on the stage. Three young artists - elementary school, high school, and college students - were fortunate to receive her lessons. In spite of the limited time, her instructions covered important points, and we saw her other face as an educator. It was a very interesting and valuable moment even for the audience, too.

Program
Liszt: “Dream of Love”, Bizet: from “Carmen”, Granados: “Spanish Dance”, Debussy: “Moonlight”, and others.
-written by Takako Hayashi and translated by Keiko Matsuura

Nov. 21 (sat.), 2009 12:00 - / Lunchroom of Gohongi Elementary School

It was a joyful and fruitful Bazaar. Thank you all for your cooperation. This year, there were three policies at the beginning: to hold a bazaar organized and managed by our association members as usual, to invite outside vendors to run a booth rich in international flavor, and to collect small contributions. After argent discussions, it was decided that the proceeds from the bazaar should be used for Terakoya movement in Afghanistan. Unexpectedly the place was changed from the gym to the lunchroom under the influence of flu, and the start time was moved forward corresponding to the school festival of Gohongi Elementary School. However, some 30 volunteers cooperated with one another, earnestly discussing what was needed, what was lacking, what was the best way for customers, until the opening of the bazaar. Flags of various nations were arranged beautifully from the gate to the lunchroom, which was not included in the original plan either. It was a heartwarming bazaar with a rich international flavor and abundant donated goods as well as others hand made by the members. I can say this bazaar was a success. Just before this event, some people involved in Terakoya movement in Afghanistan came to the National Convention of UNESCO Movement to report on their work. When I told them, “Meguro UNESCO will hold a charity bazaar for you,” they were very pleased and said, “Please come to visit us when the battle is over. We will welcome you sincerely”. I’m convinced that our bazaar will contribute to world peace, which seems far from reality, almost evaporating. Again, I would like to say thanks to all people who cooperated for this event.
-written by Yukio Okusawa and translated by Mami Kawaguchi

Proceeds from the bazaar: 163,825 yen
Total of small contributions: 34,070 yen