Japanese House of Representatives Vice-Speaker Seishiro Eto paid a visit to President Ma Ying-jeou on the morning of May 5 to personally thank the government and people of Taiwan for their generosity to Japan in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami that ravaged parts of northeastern Honshu in March. President Ma reiterated the deep friendship between Taiwan and Japan, and on behalf of the government and people of the ROC expressed his condolences while conveying his wishes for a speedy reconstruction of the disaster-hit areas.
The president stated that he previously met with Vice-Speaker Eto in August 2005 when he was still serving as Taipei City mayor. The two met again in 2007 when he visited Japan during his campaign for the presidency. President Ma said he is delighted to have this opportunity to see an old friend once again.
The president specially expressed his appreciation to Vice-Speaker Eto for taking time out of his busy schedule to visit Taiwan when Japan's Diet is in session. President Ma also noted that the House of Representatives recently passed legislation that will prevent the impounding of overseas artwork on display in Japan, and said he hopes this will pave the way for a long-awaited exhibit in Japan of treasures from Taiwan's National Palace Museum.
President Ma stated that the people of Taiwan felt both shock and sorrow at the devastating earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear crisis in Japan. Immediately upon hearing the news he instructed the ROC's representative to Japan to express condolences to Prime Minister Naoto Kan. At the same time, the ROC government announced a donation of NT$100 million (about 270 million yen) in the wake of the disaster. President Ma commented that he and his wife personally took part in a private fundraising telethon, and that to date the donations have reached nearly NT$5.7 billion, the largest amount of foreign aid donations in the history of the ROC. In addition, Legislative Yuan President Wang Jin-pyng led a delegation last month to Japan to express the condolences and concern of the government and people of the ROC in the wake of the disaster. At the same time, it was announced that the ROC travel advisory for Hokkaido had been downgraded to "grey." The president said he hopes that this will encourage Taiwanese to resume travel to Hokkaido and help the tourism industry there recover.
The president recalled that Japan immediately came to the assistance of Taiwan following the September 21, 1999 earthquake as well as the landslides and flooding following Typhoon Morakot in August 2009. He said that private citizens initiated many fundraising activities after the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, and while Taiwan's donations are only a drop in the bucket compared with what is needed for post-disaster reconstruction, the funds represent the deep concern from the people of Taiwan.
Turning to relations between Japan and Taiwan, the president stated that considerable progress has been seen in recent years, including the signing of a youth working holiday agreement, the opening of a Taiwan representative office in Sapporo, the commencement of direct flights between Taipei's Songshan Airport and Tokyo's Haneda Airport, and the signing of a memorandum of understanding aimed at promoting exchanges. All of these steps constitute concrete action highlighting the special partnership between Taiwan and Japan, he said, and prove the profound friendship referred to by Prime Minister Kan in an open letter to thank Taiwan for its assistance.
Lastly, the president mentioned the contributions made by Japanese engineer Yoichi Hatta in the design and construction of southern Taiwan’s Jianan irrigation system during the Japanese colonial era. This coming weekend, the Yoichi Hatta Memorial Park will be formally inaugurated at the Wushantou Reservoir in Tainan City, the president stated. Besides symbolizing the friendship between the people of the two countries, this also documents the close historical and cultural relationship between the two sides, he said. The president commented that he will personally preside over the ceremonies and will take part in a run to commemorate the event, thereby showing the importance he places on the creation of the park.
Vice-Speaker Eto was accompanied to the Presidential Office by Tadashi Imai, Chief Representative of the Japan Interchange Association Taipei Office, to meet President Ma. Also attending the meeting was National Security Council Secretary-General Hu Wei-jen.