Love Letter from Brussels
“150th Anniversary News” Part One: the logo has been decided! (No.8)
26th January 2014
As mentioned in the previous LFB, the “150th Anniversary of the Belgian-Japanese Diplomatic Relations and Friendship”, which is to be held in 2016, is less than a year away. Before long a webpage concerning the 150th anniversary will be created on the website of the Embassy, but occasionally this LFB corner will feature news about these events as well. Now, the first part.
On the 20th of January, at last, the logo for the 150th anniversary was decided! A public competition was held in both Belgium and Japan, and including the applications on this homepage, we received close to 200 applications. Thank you very much. The selection board, composed of both Japanese and Belgian representatives, made a thorough selection, and by vote, the logo featured on our website has been chosen as the winning logo. Can you tell that both the Belgian and Japanese flag are part of the design? It is a simple yet easy to understand design that symbolizes the strong ties between Belgium and Japan, making it an excellent logo in my opinion.
Just then, on the 19th and 20th of January, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Kishida visited Brussels and had meetings with officials from Belgium, the EU and NATO. On this occasion, Foreign Minister Kishida, together with the Foreign Minister of Belgium, Didier Reynders, unveiled the logo for the first time at the start of their meeting. This event can be viewed not only on this website, but also on the homepage of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Belgium (http://vimeo.com/117258371).
From now on, based on certain standards, this logo can be used for events related with the 150th anniversary. Those who would like to organize such events, by all means, please check the applications guidelines on our special homepage for the 150th anniversary and send your application to us. Although modest, from now on we plan to start making goodies such as pin badges, posters, etc. for the 150th anniversary, so please stay tuned.
In connection with this 150 years anniversary, there is one more thing I would like to talk about. It is the powerful bond, transcending generations, between the Japanese Imperial Household and the Belgian Royal Family.
Last year in December, former Queen Fabiola, widow of the late King Baudouin passed away. She left a deep impression on not only the Belgian people, but on all those who had the chance to meet Queen Fabiola and the beloved queen’s death left a deep sadness. She passed away on Friday January 5th and on Saturday January 6th it was decided that on Friday 12th a state funeral would be held. Two days later, on Monday January 8th, it was decided that the Japanese Empress would attend the funeral service. The Empress arrived in Belgium three days later on the 11th, attended the service and related events the next day and returned to Japan immediately.
From a protocol point of view, the attendance of the Empress at the funeral was exceptional. Then why was the attendance of the Empress decided so suddenly, with an extremely short preparation time and for a very short length of stay?Below, I will explain about the visit of the Empress along the lines of the statement made by the Imperial Household Agency. As a matter of fact, on the 8th, shortly after Queen Fabiola passed away, King Philippe made a conference call to the Emperor and Empress, and the three of them had the opportunity to talk with each other for about 30 minutes. From an early age King Philippe was often at the side of King Baudouin and Queen Fabiola when they met with the Emperor and Empress, so he wanted to inform them personally and directly by telephone about the demise of Queen Fabiola. During this exchange, the Emperor presented the idea that it would be most suitable for the Empress to attend the state funeral. Taking into consideration their deep friendship for more than 50 years with the queen, the Empress decided to attend the state funeral.In this regard, the Belgian Royal Household showed the utmost hospitality. The Empress, who is always first in the order of protocol, was taken by the hand and led by their Majesties the King and Queen on almost every occasion. Furthermore, on this occasion, the Empress also had the opportunity to meet King Philippe’s children. Although tired, the Empress always acted in a kind and warm manner. Many of the Belgian officials involved, expressed feelings of gratefulness and deep respect for the Empress’ attendance to the funeral, and I too, felt proud.
In this way, the relation between the Japanese Imperial Household and the Belgian Royal Family is of a very deep and close nature. Having had the opportunity and honor to attend the funeral, I am convinced that this bond will continue for future generations to come. In some way or another, I'm sure there will be opportunities for further exchange between the Imperial Household and the Royal Family on the occasion of next year’s 150th anniversary. As for me, I think it would be wonderful if in the year of the commemorative 150th anniversary, the strong ties between Belgium and Japan, which were reaffirmed during the visit of the Empress, could be an opportunity for people from both countries to come closer to one another. Thank you for your continuous cooperation everyone.
