TOKYO: Japan’s Emperor Akihito urged his country to be open to the outside world at a ceremony marking 30 years of his reign on Sunday, ahead of his abdication later this year.
Akihito will abdicate from the Chrysanthemum Throne on April 30, making way for Crown Prince Naruhito to replace him the following day.
“Our country has cultivated its own culture as an island nation,” he said at the ceremony in Tokyo.
“As the world has been globalised, I think we are now required to be more open to the outside, establish our own position with wisdom and build relations with other countries sincerely,” he said.
Akihito also described his difficulties defining his role as emperor in the post-war era, and said he hoped his successors would think carefully about their symbolic status.
“Since I was enthroned as emperor, I have spent time pondering how I am supposed to be as a symbol,” the 85-year-old emperor said, describing the process as “endlessly long”.
The status of the emperor is sensitive in Japan given its 20th-century history of war waged in the name of Akihito’s father Hirohito, who died in 1989.
Akihito has keenly embraced the more modern role as a symbol of the state — imposed after World War II ended. Previous emperors including his father were treated as semi-divine.
He also expanded his role by actively travelling across Japan, particularly to meet with victims of natural disasters and visit sites that had been affected by World War II.
His son Crown Prince Naruhito has indicated he plans to follow in his father’s footsteps.
Marking his 59th birthday, Naruhito pledged last week to maintain the royal household’s close ties to the public and “fulfil my duty as a symbol of the state.”
Akihito shocked the country in 2016 when he signalled his desire to take a back seat, citing his age and health problems.
Meanwhile, Japan held a ceremony on Sunday to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the reign of Emperor Akihito, whose planned abdication in April will be the first of its kind in nearly two centuries.
The 85-year-old emperor attended the ceremony at the National Theatre, expressing gratitude to “the people — in whom I take pride and for whom I feel joy in being ‘the symbol of the state’ — and the civilisation of this country built over the long period.”
During his 30-year reign, Japan suffered major natural disasters and the nation’s worst nuclear accident, he said.
Those affected by such disasters “endured many hardships and those from other parts of Japan who stood by them and offered support in various ways have become an unforgettable memory,” the emperor said.
In 1995, a magnitude-7.3 earthquake rocked the major western city of Kobe, killing more than 6,400 people.
In 2011, Japan’s north-east was struck by a magnitude-9 quake and subsequent tsunami that killed about 18,500 and caused a triple melt down at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station.
The emperor also expressed appreciation for the much-needed support provided by the international community and global organisations when Japan found itself “in the middle of suffering and sorrow” after these disasters.
Akihito succeeded the Chrysanthemum throne on January 7, 1989, following the death of his father, Emperor Hirohito, in whose name Japan fought World War II. He is set to relinquish the throne on April 30 — the first such abdication in about 200 years. Crown Prince Naruhito is due to ascend the throne on May 1. — Agencies
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