TOKYO: Japan’s Oxford-educated crown prince, Naruhito, looks set to bring a more global outlook to the ancient imperial institution while carrying on Emperor Akihito’s legacy of promoting peace and reconciliation with Asia when he ascends the throne in 2019.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s cabinet on Friday signed off on an April 30, 2019 date for the octogenarian Akihito’s retirement — the first abdication by a Japanese monarch in two centuries.
Akihito, who turns 84 on December 23, has spent much of his nearly three decades on the throne trying to heal the wounds of a war fought in his father Hirohito’s name and highlighting the needs of the vulnerable in society. He said in August 2016 that he feared age would make it hard to fulfill his duties.
“As an Oxford-educated scholar and well traveled crown prince, Naruhito can draw on a wealth of international experience in carrying out the duties his father pioneered,” said Jeffrey Kingston, director of Asian studies at Temple University Japan.
Naruhito, 57, is an advocate for environmental causes, and has taken part in international conferences on clean water.
“Certainly, on environmental issues, he’s very passionate,” said Shihoko Goto, a senior associate for Northeast Asia at the Washington-based Wilson Center.
“He is also very concerned about women’s rights ... the idea of empowering women and giving them a position of dignity that goes beyond their place in the traditional world.”
Naruhito defied palace officials to marry Masako Owada, a Harvard- and Oxford-educated diplomat who has suffered from stress-related illness brought on by the demands of palace life and pressure to bear a royal heir.
At one point, he shocked the public with his blunt defense of his wife from criticism and pressure, drawing a rebuke from his younger brother and sorrowful remarks from his father.
Masako’s daughter, 16-year-old Aiko, cannot inherit the males-only throne. A one-off law allowing Akihito to abdicate was enacted in June, but did not address the controversial issue of female succession — a matter that is becoming increasingly pressing as the royal family shrinks and ages.
Akihito has only one grandson, 11-year-old Prince Hisahito.
How Masako, 53, copes with the role of empress will be closely watched. “My hope is that ... she will be able to express herself and embrace some of the things she wants to do and be at the forefront of imperial diplomacy,” the Wilson Center’s Goto said.
Japan’s Oxford-educated crown prince to bring global view to Chrysanthemum Throne
Japan’s Oxford-educated crown prince to bring global view to Chrysanthemum Throne
Cambodia takes back looted historic artifacts handled by British art dealer
- The objects were returned under a 2020 agreement between the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and the family of the late Douglas Latchford, a British art collector and dealer who allegedly had the items smuggled out of Cambodia
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia: Cambodian officials on Friday received more than six dozen historic artifacts described as part of the country’s cultural heritage that had been looted during decades of war and instability.
At a ceremony attended by Deputy Prime Minister Hun Many, the 74 items were unveiled at the National Museum in Phnom Penh after their repatriation from the United Kingdom.
The objects were returned under a 2020 agreement between the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and the family of the late Douglas Latchford, a British art collector and dealer who allegedly had the items smuggled out of Cambodia.
“This substantial restitution represents one of the most important returns of Khmer cultural heritage in recent years, following major repatriations in 2021 and 2023 from the same collection,” the Culture Ministry said in a statement. “It marks a significant step forward in Cambodia’s continued efforts to recover, preserve, and restore its ancestral legacy for future generations.”
The artifacts were described as dating from the pre-Angkorian period through the height of the Angkor Empire, including “monumental sandstone sculptures, refined bronze works, and significant ritual objects.” The Angkor Empire, which extended from the ninth to the 15th century, is best known for the Angkor Wat archaeological site, the nation’s biggest tourist attraction.
Latchford was a prominent antiquities dealer who allegedly orchestrated an operation to sell looted Cambodian sculptures on the international market.
From 1970 to the 1980s, during Cambodia’s civil wars and the communist Khmer Rouge ‘s brutal reign, organized looting networks sent artifacts to Latchford, who then sold them to Western collectors, dealers, and institutions. These pieces were often physically damaged, having been pried off temple walls or other structures by the looters.
Latchford was indicted in a New York federal court in 2019 on charges including wire fraud and conspiracy. He died in 2020, aged 88, before he could be extradited to face charges.
Cambodia, like neighboring Thailand, has benefited from a trend in recent decades involving the repatriation of art and archaeological treasures. These include ancient Asian artworks as well as pieces lost or stolen during turmoil in places such as Syria, Iraq and Nazi-occupied Europe. New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of the prominent institutions that has been returning illegally smuggled art, including to Cambodia.
“The ancient artifacts created and preserved by our ancestors are now being returned to Cambodia, bringing warmth and joy, following the country’s return to peace,” said Hun Many, who is the younger brother of Prime Minister Hun Manet.
