Ambassador Hanada finds Timor-Leste in a critical stage of transition to sustainable development, while Crown Agent staff Ms. Saito advocates the result based financing (RBF).
Mr. Shigeki Takizaki, Deputy Director-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan made an informative presentation on territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Both island and maritime claims are made by several states including the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of China (Taiwan), Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. Their disputes concern in particular both the Spratly and the Paracel islands. The interests of different nations include securing fishing areas around the archipelagos; the potential exploitation of crude oil and natural gas under the waters of various parts of the South China Sea.
Ambassador Oshima in his one-hour presentation to the participants of a peacebuilding seminar held at Hosei University on May 30, 2015 appraised some important achievements made in the ‘Outcome Document’ of September 2005, on the occasion of the summit meeting commemorating the UN 50th anniversary. They included the establishment of Peace-building Commission (PBC), the Human Rights Council (UNHRC), and the formal launching of new concepts such as ‘Responsibility to Protect’ and ‘Human Security’. (Click here for the rest.)
Moderated by Professors Kurosawa and Yonekawa, Emmi Okada and Raymond Yamamoto made presentations on “Religion and Peacebuilding” and “Proactive Pacifism” on 14th March 2015 in the seminar of the Peacebuilding Research Association of Japan (PRAJ) held at Hosei University Graduate School Building. Valuable comments were made by Professors Higashi, Sakurai, and so forth. This seminar was organized by Professor Katsumi Ishizuka, Secretary-General of the PRAJ.
At the seminar held at Hosei University on 31 January 2015 and participated by about 30 scholars, researchers and students, three experts. Professor Takaaki Mizuno of the Kanda University of International Studies, Assistant Professor Naoko Kumagai of the International University and Ms. Momoyo Ise, former Executive Director of the Asian Women’s Fund, presented their views on issues related to “comfort women” engaged by Japanese soldiers during the World War II. (Ishizuka)