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Japan envoy confers awards on 2 Filipinos

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<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Lawyer Josue Sim Zuniega and judo advocate David Carter receive awards from Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Kazuhiko Koshikawa on April 21, 2023. Ronron Calunsod, ABS-CBN News" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/04/21/josue-sim-zuniega.jpg"/><figcaption>Lawyer Josue Sim Zuniega and judo advocate David Carter receive awards from Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Kazuhiko Koshikawa on April 21, 2023. <em>Ronron Calunsod, ABS-CBN News</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA <strong>(UPDATE)</strong> — Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Kazuhiko Koshikawa on Friday conferred Japanese decorations on lawyer Josue Sim Zuniega and judo advocate David Carter for their respective roles in strengthening ties between Manila and Tokyo.</p><p>Koshikawa awarded The Order of the Rising Sun, Silver Rays to Zuniega, 55, while Carter, 52, received The Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Rays distinction.</p><p>The awards, first announced last November, were given at the Japanese ambassador&#x27;s residence in North Forbes Park, Makati City.</p><p>Japan, as it announced the award last year, said Zuniega was given the sixth class in the Order for his tireless contribution &quot;to improving the status of Nikkei-jin in the Philippines and enhancing mutual understanding between Japan and the Philippines through his activities at the Philippine Nikkei-jin Legal Support Center.&quot;</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/spotlight/08/10/22/war-displaced-japanese-in-philippines-stand-up-to-claim-roots">War-displaced Japanese on Philippine island stand up to claim roots</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/12/22/envoy-hails-4-individuals-for-contribution-to-ph-japan-ties">Envoy hails 4 individuals for contribution to Philippines-Japan ties</a></li></ul><p>&quot;His consultations with the Department of Justice and Department of Foreign Affairs helped pave the way for stateless Filipino Nikkeijin to recover their identities. With his support, almost 1,500 Filipino Nikkeijin were able to reintegrate as Japanese citizens and improve their living status,&quot; Koshikawa said during the awarding ceremony.</p><p>Meanwhile, Carter, a key figure in the promotion and development of judo in the Philippines and awarded with the fifth honor in the Order, &quot;has paved [the] way for the deepening and broadening of Japan-Philippine relations, especially in the field of sports cooperation,&quot; according to Japan.</p><p>&quot;While he was President of the Philippine Judo Federation, several exchanges for instructors were held that have significantly energized our sports cooperation project including together with the Japan Foundation and Kodokan Judo Institute,&quot; Koshikawa said of Carter.</p><div class="media-content"><div class="slider-for"><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/04/21/zuniega.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/04/21/20230421-japan-envoy-confers-awards-on-2-filipinos-3.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/04/21/20230421-japan-envoy-confers-awards-on-2-filipinos-1.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/04/21/20230421-japan-envoy-confers-awards-on-2-filipinos-2.jpg"/></div><div><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/04/21/carter.jpg"/></div></div><div class="slider-desc"><div class="item-desc"><p>Lawyer Josue Sim Zuniega receives a certificate for his award. <em>Ronron Calunsod</em><cite>, ABS-CBN News</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>Lawyer Josue Sim Zuniega receives a certificate for his award. <em>Ronron Calunsod</em><cite>, ABS-CBN News</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>Order of the Rising Sun recipient Josue Sim Zuniega talks to Philippine Nikkei-Jin Legal Support Center Secretary General Norihiro Inomata after the awarding ceremony at the Japanese ambassador&#x27;s residence in Makati City on April 21, 2023. <em>Ronron Calunsod</em><cite>, ABS-CBN News</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>David Carter receives his Order of the Rising Sun award from Japanese Ambassador Kazuhiko Koshikawa on April 21, 2023. <em>Ronron Calunsod</em><cite>, ABS-CBN News</cite></p></div><div class="item-desc"><p>David Carter receives his Order of the Rising Sun award from Japanese Ambassador Kazuhiko Koshikawa on April 21, 2023. <em>Ronron Calunsod</em><cite>, ABS-CBN News</cite></p></div></div></div><div><strong>RESPONSES</strong></div><p>Zuniega, who studied in Japan and speaks the Japanese language, said his journey with the Japanese descendants in the Philippines started in 2005.</p><p>It has been a challenging endeavor as important documents were missing, and issues related to Immigration rules surfaced when the Nikkeijins embark on &quot;homecoming&quot; trips to Japan.</p><p>Thankfully, the Japanese embassy, Japan foreign ministry, DFA, Bureau of Immigration, DOJ&#x27;s Refugees and Stateless Person Protection Unit, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees provide assistance, Zuniega said.</p><p>&quot;Maraming salamat po. Now, the words &#x27;Philippine-Japan&#x27; relations have taken another meaning. It is not just friendship, but it is finding solutions for legal problems, which can be actually solved if only the parties are willing to understand,&quot; he said.</p><p>The Order of the Rising Sun is the most important among the awards he has received and is &quot;very special&quot; because it had been conferred as well on judo legend Hitoshi Saito and International Judo Federation treasurer Naser Al Tamimi, said Carter.</p><p>Carter shared he was in his early teens when he tried judo to &quot;escape basketball&quot; after he was teased for repeatedly committing traveling violation. </p><p>&quot;I tried it, I liked it,&quot; he said of the sport, highlighting the value of discipline that one learns from it.</p><p>Carter said that at present, he continues to engage with his Japanese friends for the promotion and development of the sport.</p><p>&quot;There are many conflicts - government, policies, et cetera - between countries. But when you speak of sports, despite for example a neighboring country being under military rule and then it participates in the Southeast Asian Games, we are together,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;Not only judo, but (all) sports encourage camaraderie, brotherhood,&quot; he added.</p><div><strong>OTHER AWARDEES IN THE BATCH</strong></div><p>In November, former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario and former Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III were awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun in formal ceremonies in Tokyo.</p><p>Former Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade was also given the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold, and Silver Star.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/11/09/22/japan-confers-awards-on-ex-dfa-chief-del-rosario-2-duterte-aides">Japan confers awards on ex-DFA chief Del Rosario, 2 Duterte-era officials</a></li></ul><p>Sakai Michiko was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Silver Rays for supporting children of Japanese descendants in Cotabato.</p><p>The Order of the Rising Sun has been conferred on several Filipinos in the past, including former President Jose Laurel and several Philippine ambassadors to Japan, according to the Official Gazette.</p><p>The Japanese embassy in Manila previously said that the awarding of honors, including decorations and medals, is an act performed by the Emperor with the advice and approval of the Cabinet, based on Article 7 of the Constitution of Japan.</p><div><strong>— with reports from Ronron Calunsod and Rowegie Abanto, ABS-CBN News</strong></div>

Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Kazuhiko Koshikawa on Friday conferred The Order of the Rising Sun, Silver Rays on lawyer Josue Sim Zuniega.