Urednika / Editors / Andrej Bekeš Jelisava Dobovšek Sethna 30 LET SAMOSTOJNE SLOVENIJE Slovenske in japonske perspektive 30 YEARS OF INDEPENDENT SLOVENIA Slovene and Japanese Perspectives Tokio 2022 1 KAZALO • CONTENTS • UVODNI DEL INTRODUCTION 1 Predgovor urednikov 6 8 Editors’ foreword 10 2 V spomin: Profesor Shiba Nobuhiro (1946-2021) 12 In memoriam: Professor Shiba Nobuhiro (1946-2021) 16 I. DEL:POZDRAVNI NAGOVORI Part I: GREETINGS 1 Ana Polak Petrič, Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia to Japan 22 24 2 Helena Jaklitsch, Minister for Slovenians Abroad 26 28 3 Yasuhisa Shiozaki, Parliamentarian, Chairman of the Japan-Slovenia Parliamentary Friendship League 30 32 II. DEL: OKROGLA MIZA PART II: ROUND TABLE 1 Tinka Delakorda Kawashima Introductory words 34 36 2 Yasuhiro Nagasaki 38 42 3 Andrej Bekeš 46 52 4 Jelisava Dobovšek Sethna 58 62 5 Yukio Mori 66 68 6 Profiles of round table participants 70 3 III. DEL: SPOMINI NA SLOVENSKO SAMOSTOJNOST IN NA POT DO NJE 1 Janez Mihelčič (slovensko, English, ) 74 2 Jelisava Dobovšek Sethna (slovensko, ) 76 3 Igor Leiler (slovensko, ) 79 4 Miran Skender (slovensko, ) 83 5 Andrej Bekeš (slovensko, ) 86 6 Leon Terashima ( , slovensko) 92 7 Vladimir Kos (slovensko, ) 95 SPREMNA BESEDA Ana Polak Petrič: OBETAVNA PRIHODNOST ZA PRIJATELJSKO SODELOVANJE MED SLOVENIJO IN JAPONSKO 98 103 4 UVODNI DEL INTRODUCTION 1 Predgovor urednikov Editors’ foreword 2 V spomin: Profesor Shiba Nobuhiro (1946-2021) In memoriam: Professor Shiba Nobuhiro (1946-2021) 5 PREDGOVOR UREDNIKOV KAKO JE KNJIŽICA NASTALA V začetku marca 2021 smo se sestali predstavniki veleposlaništva Republike Slovenije v Tokiu, Japonsko-slovenskega poslovnega sveta in Slovensko-japonske skupine prijateljstva, da se pogovorimo, kako najbolje proslaviti prihajajočo 30. obletnico samostojne Slovenije. Ker se je pandemija COVID-19 nadaljevala, smo se na koncu odločili za virtualno praznovanje v obliki okrogle mize, na kateri bi sodelovali tako slovenski kot japonski udeleženci. Hibridni dogodek naj bi potekal na Univerzi Jōsai. Toda ko je sredi priprav nenadno umrl glavni govornik prof. Shiba, je bilo treba spremeniti načrte. Okrogla miza je bila prestavljena na slovensko veleposlaništvo in sčasoma zaradi napovedanega izrednega stanja povsem na splet. Kljub številnim spremembam in krčenju programa, je bila okrogla miza izredno uspešna. Vključevala je nagovore veleposlanice, Ane Polak Petrič, ministrice za Slovence v zamejstvu in po svetu, Helene Jaklitsch, in japonskega poslanca ter predsednika parlamentarne skupine slovensko-japonskega prijateljstva, Yasuhise Shiozakija. Na okroglo mizo so bili na podlagi svojih edinstvenih izkušenj o slovenski osamosvojitvi povabljeni štirje govorniki: dva Slovenca, dolgoletna prebivalca Japonske, jezikoslovca in pedagoga Andrej Bekeš in Jelisava Dobovšek Sethna, ter dva Japonca, novinar Yasuhiro Nagasaki in poslovnež Yukio Mori. Zagreto so se spominjali obdobja osamosvojitve in svojih prispevkov h gradnji slovensko-japonskih odnosov. Poleg tega so bili Slovenci, ki so leta 1991 živeli na Japonskem, že prej povabljeni, da zapišejo svoje izkušnje iz tistih nemirnih časov in jih delijo z nami. V to knjižico so vključeni tako njihovi spomini kot tudi razprave na okrogli mizi. Čeprav le virtualno, smo lahko Slovenci na Japonskem in njihovi japonski prijatelji in kolegi skupaj proslavili in se poklonili temu prelomnemu dogodku v zgodovini Slovenije. Dogodek je premišljeno vodila Tinka Delakorda Kawashima, izredna profesorica na Univerzi v Hirošimi in pogosta gostja na Univerzi v Ljubljani. Zaradi formata te knjižice je tu le njen povzetek dogodkov, ki so vodili do slovenske osamosvojitve. Posamezni deli besedila te knjižice so nastajali v slovenščini, japonščini in angleščini. Kolikor mogoče sva urednika poskušala besedila pripraviti poleg izvirnega jezika, v katerem so nastala, tudi v drugih dveh jezikih, vendar se 6 nama to zaradi omejenih možnosti ni vselej izšlo. Vseeno upava, da bo knjižica dovolj informativna tako za bralce v Sloveniji kot na Japonskem in tudi za vse, ki razumejo angleško. Domišlijski Triglav sredi kamnitega vrta v enem od zenovskih svetišč v Kiotu (Andrej Bekeš) 7 8 9 EDITORS’ FOREWORD BOOKLET BACKGROUND In early March 2021, representatives from the Embassy of Slovenia in Tokyo, Japan-Slovenia Business Council, and Slovenian-Japanese Friendship Group met to discuss how to best celebrate the upcoming 30th anniversary of independent Slovenia. As the COVID-19 pandemic persisted, we eventually decided on a virtual celebration in the form of a roundtable discussion, which would include both Slovene and Japanese participants. The hybrid event was to take place at Jōsai University. However, with the sudden passing of Prof. Shiba, the leading panelist, in the middle of our preparations, plans had to be changed. The roundtable was moved to the Slovene Embassy and eventually, due to an imminent state of emergency, online. In spite of undergoing down-sizing and several metamorphoses, the roundtable event was an unqualified success. It included addresses by Ambassador Ana Polak Petrič, Minister for Slovenes Abroad Helena Jaklitsch, and Yasuhisa Shiozaki, the Japanese parliamentarian who is chairman of the Japan-Slovenia Parliamentary Friendship League. The four panelists, two Slovene long time residents of Japan, linguists and educators Andrej Bekeš and Jelisava Dobovšek Sethna, and two Japanese, a journalist Yasuhiro Nagasaki and a businessman Yukio Mori, were invited to participate based on their unique experiences regarding Slovene independence. They shared with gusto their memories of Slovene independence and their contributions to Slovene-Japan relationships. Furthermore, Slovenes who lived in Japan in 1991 were invited beforehand to write down their experiences of those turbulent times and to share them with us. Both their memoirs as well as the roundtable discussions are included in this booklet. Although only virtually, Slovenes in Japan and their Japanese friends and colleagues together were able to celebrate and pay tribute to this pivotal event in the history of Slovenia. The event was expertly moderated by Tinka Delakorda Kawashima, an associate professor at Hiroshima University and visiting professor at the University of Ljubljana. Because of the format of this booklet, only her concise depiction of events leading to Slovene independence is included here. Individual pieces in this booklet were written in Slovene, Japanese, and English. As much as possible, we tried to present each piece in the original language in which it was written as well as in the two other languages, but this was not always possible due to time constraints. Nevertheless, we hope that the 10 booklet will be informative enough for readers in Slovenia and Japan, as well as for anyone who understands English. Triglav, as imagined in the stone garden of a Zen temple in Kyoto (Andrej Bekeš) 11 V SPOMIN Profesor Shiba Nobuhiro (1946-2021) znanstvenik, sodelavec, prijatelj1 28. maja letos nas je v starosti 74 let nenadoma zapustil Shiba Nobuhiro, ugledni zgodovinar Jugoslavije, Balkana in širše Vzhodne Evrope, zaslužni profesor na univerzi v Tokiu in profesor na Mednarodni univerzi Jōsai. S Shiba-sanom sva se prvič srečala leta 1978, ko se je vrnil z dveletnega študija na Univerzi v Beogradu. Sam sem tedaj na Univerzi za tuje študije v Osaki študiral japonsko jezikoslovje. Zelo hitro sva se spoprijateljila. Po končanem študiju v Osaki sem nadaljeval na doktorskem programu na Univerzi v Tsukubi. Ker sva s Shiba-sanom v osemdesetih oba živela v Tokiu, sva se pogosto srečevala. To je bil čas, ko je med naprednimi japonskimi intelektualci vladalo precejšnje zanimanje za jugoslovanski samoupravni sistem. Vseeno Shiba-sanovo izbrano področje, sodobna jugoslovanska zgodovina, ni bilo nekaj, kar bi imelo v takratnem japonskem akademskem svetu veliko tržno vrednost. Zlasti po Titovi smrti leta 1980, ko so se pojavile gospodarske težave, so mnogi Japonci na Jugoslavijo gledali le kot na še eno vzhodnoevropsko komunistično državo, ki jo pestijo problemi. Tudi Shiba-san je močno občutil to spremembo. Kljub takim okoliščinam ni obupal, vztrajno je nadaljeval s poglo-bljenim raziskovanjem ter z objavljanjem del, povezanih z jugoslovansko zgodovino, družbo in kulturo. Po končanem doktorskem študiju v Tsukubi sem zadnjih nekaj let osemdesetih let prejšnjega stoletja zopet preživel v Sloveniji, kjer sem se podobno kot Shiba-san v Tokiu trudil najti varen akademski položaj na svojem izbranem področju. V tem času je Shiba-san redno obiskoval Jugoslavijo, katere del je takrat bila tudi Slovenija. Zelo mu je bila všeč alpska pokrajina okrog Bohinjskega jezera. Če je le imel čas, je nekaj dni preživel na eni od tamkajšnjih turističnih kmetij. Poleti 1988 sem se med počitnicami tam srečal z njegovo družino. Konec osemdesetih let prejšnjega stoletja je zaznamovala naraščajoča notranja nestabilnost v Jugoslaviji. V tujini objavljena poročila o dogodkih v Jugoslaviji so bila precej nejasna, saj so bile črte delitve preveč zapletene, da bi jih lahko razumeli večinoma pomanjkljivo informirani poročevalci. 1 Zgodnejša verzija tega sestavka je bila objavljena v Electronic Journal of Central Euro- pe an Studies in Japan, No. 6 (September 2021). 12 Shiba-sanove zdrave in uravnotežene razlage jugoslovanskega političnega sistema so v tistih kaotičnih časih veliko prispevale k ustreznemu informiranju japonskih strokovnjakov in širše javnosti. Njegova dela o dogajanju v Jugoslaviji vključujejo tudi nekaj del izdanih v seriji ‘Iwanami Booklets” ugledne založbe Iwanami, namenjene laičnemu bralstvu, medtem ko je bilo njegovo pronicljivo delo o jugoslovanskem socialističnem političnem sistemu in narodnostnem vprašanju namenjeno strokovnjakom. V tistih polariziranih časih, ko je bilo zelo malo tehtnih komentarjev o tekočih dogajanjih v Jugoslaviji, se je Shiba-san v svojem delu uspel izogniti pristranskim pogledom na podlagi nostalgije po letih, ki jih je kot študent prebil v Beogradu ali na morebitnih ideoloških predsodkih. Z osamosvojitvijo Slovenije se je l. 1991 začel razpad Jugoslavije. Balkan je nenadoma postal tema resne zunanjepolitične razprave, zaradi česar je končno postalo cenjeno tudi strokovno znanje, ki ga je s trudom pridobil Shiba-san. Leta 1992 se je zaposlil na Univerzi v Tokiu, kjer je ostal do upokojitve. V novem, bolje opremljenem akademskem okolju in z razvijajočimi se razmerami v nekdanji Jugoslaviji, ki so še naprej vzbujale veliko pozornost, je Shiba-sanov prispevek, namenjen tako znanstvenemu kot splošnemu občinstvu, dobil nov zagon. Seznam Shiba-sanovih objav je res občudovanja vreden. V letih 1990-1995, ko sem poučeval na Univerzi v Tsukubi, sem se s Shiba-sanom veliko pogovarjal o dogajanju v Jugoslaviji. Nisva se vedno strinjala o vsem, kar je povsem naravno, vendar je Shiba-san pokazal svoje široko in globoko razumevanje kompleksnosti Jugoslavije in ohranil skladen pogled na celotno dogajanje. Shiba-san je konec 90-ih let na Univerzi v Tokiu pomagal prvič vzpostaviti tečaj slovenščine in tečaje jezikov drugih držav nekdanjega vzhodnega bloka. Sredi 90. let prejšnjega stoletja je Shiba-san izdal tudi svoji osrednji deli, Yūgosuravia gendaishi ( Sodobna zgodovina Jugo- slavije, Iwanami-Shoten, Tokio, 1996) in Barukan no minzokushugi ( Nacionalizem na Balkanu, Yamakawa-shuppansha, Tokio, 1996). Shiba-san je obe deli redno posodabljal. Leta 2015 je izšla 13. izdaja Naciona-lizma na Balkanu, leta 2016 pa 18. izdaja Sodobne zgodovine Jugoslavije. 19. izdaja zadnjega dela pa je izšla jeseni 2021, že po njegovi smrti. Kot vedno je Shiba-san poskušal znanje o svojem področju specializacije približati tudi širši javnosti. Rezultat njegovih prizadevanj je bil Zusetsu Barukan no rekishi ( Ilustrirana zgodovina Balkana, Kawade shobō-shinsha, 2001, dopolnjena l. 2015). Drugo področje, kjer se je Shiba-san aktivno angažiral, je bilo vprašanje, kako priti do »skupne zgodovine«, ki bi presegla regionalne zgodovinske konflikte. Eden od prvih poskusov pisanja »skupne zgodovine« je bil projekt »skupnega 13 francosko-nemškega učbenika zgodovine«, ki se je začel s procesom sprave med Francijo in Nemčijo. Ta model je bil tudi navdih za iskanje skupne zgodovine na dveh drugih konfliktnih območjih, na Balkanu in v Vzhodni Aziji. Shiba-sanov prispevek k pisanju skupne zgodovine v obeh regijah je mogoče najti v organi-zaciji mednarodnega simpozija In Search of a Common Regional History: the Balkans and East Asia in History Textbooks (Univerza v Tokiu, 2006) in v urejanju tematske sekcije How to Construct Regional Histories in the Balkans and East Asia: From Historiography toward History Education v 7. številki revije European Studies ( , Univerza v Tokiu, 2008). Od začetka svojega dela kot raziskovalec, učitelj in urednik je Shiba-san spodbujal mlajšo generacijo zgodovinarjev za raziskovanje Vzhodne in Jugo-vzhodne Evrope. Rezultati njegovega prizadevanja so številne razprave o Jugoslaviji, Balkanu in vzhodnoevropski regiji kot celoti, od katerih so bile številne kasneje vključene tudi v publikacije, namenjene širšemu bralstvu, kot je na primer ( Motto shiritai Yugosuravia Več o Jugoslaviji, Kōbundō 1991) v seriji ‘Motto shiritai’ in vrsta monografij v seriji ‘Šestdeset poglavij’ ( Rokuju shō), ki jo izdaja založba Akashi-shoten. V seriji ‘Šestdeset poglavij’ so izšle štiri monografije, posvečene Hrvaški, Srbiji, Sloveniji ter Bosni in Hercegovini, katerih pobudnik, sourednik in soavtor je bil Shiba-san. Leta 2005 in leta 2009 je Shiba-san bil osrednji govorec na dveh mednarodnih simpozijih na Univerzi v Ljubljani: prvi je bil posvečen japonskim študijam in drugi japonskim študijam na Balkanu. Nam, organizatorjem, je povedal, kako je bil prijetno presenečen, da naš Oddelek za azijske študije ponuja predmete, kot so zgodovina vzhodne Azije, uvod v vzhodnoazijske študije in druge podobne predmete, ki so pokrivali celotno regijo in ne le posamezne države. Presenečenje Shiba-sana je odražalo pomen, ki ga je pripisoval razumevanju zgodovine v regionalnem kontekstu, ne pa kot zgodovine, zapakirane v meje posameznih držav. Shiba-san je imel ključno vlogo tudi pri vzpostavitvi zelo plodnega sporazuma o sodelovanju med Univerzo v Ljubljani in Univerzo v Tokiu na prelomu tisočletja. Shiba-san, odprta, iskrena in radovedna oseba, je med svojimi obiski v Sloveniji stkal močne vezi s slovenskimi zgodovinarji in družboslovci. Še posebej globoko je bilo njegovo prijateljstvo s Petrom Vodopivcem, višjim znanstvenim sodelavcem na Inštitutu za novejšo zgodovino v Ljubljani. Iz tega sta med letoma 2011 in 2016 zrasla dva bilateralna projekta, prvi je bil osredotočen na prikaze zgodovine v učbenikih na Japonskem in v Sloveniji, in drugi na zgodovinopisje. K sodelovanju sta me povabila tako Peter Vodopivec kot Shiba-san. Petletni raziskovalni projekt je ponudil še več možnosti za intenzivne stike s 14 Shiba-sanom. Osrednji plod te skupne raziskave sta dve monografiji, s Shiba-sanom kot sourednikom: prva je School History and Textbooks: A Comparative Analysis of History Textbooks in Japan and Slovenia (Inštitut za novejšo zgodovino, Ljubljana, 2013) in druga The 20th Century through Historiographies and Textbooks, Chapters from Japan, East Asia, Slovenia and Southeast Europe (Inštitut za novejšo zgodovino, Ljubljana, 2018). Okrog leta 2008 se je začelo drugo, manj znanstveno, a zaradi svoje vsebine zelo živahno sodelovanje. To je bil projekt "Cinema (post) Yugo". Osrednjo vlogo v projektu je igrala Hirano Kyoko, japonska filmska kritičarka in specialistka za jugoslovansko kinematografijo, skupaj s Shiba-sanom in njegovim učencem Yamazakijem Shinichijem. Med drugimi aktivnimi organizatorji sva bila tudi urednika te knjižice, Jelisava Sethna in jaz, ter lektorica srbohrvaščine Alma Okajima. Cilj projekta »Cinema (post) Yugo« je bil predstaviti japonski publiki bisere jugoslovanske filmske produkcije in hkrati spremljati dogajanje na področju filma v različnih post-jugoslovanskih državah. Kot jezikoslovec sem se lahko dotaknil Shiba-sanovega dela le s svoje zelo subjektivne in zato omejene perspektive. Njegovi številni študenti in bralci si ga bodo zapomnili po pionirskem delu, ki ga je na Japonskem opravil na področju proučevanja Jugoslavije ter balkanistike. Toda Shiba-san za seboj pušča tudi dediščino svojega dela na mednarodnem prizorišču. Ohranjal je tesne odnose z raziskovalci s področja nekdanje Jugoslavije, ne le iz Slovenije, temveč tudi iz Hrvaške in Srbije, natančneje z Univerze v Zagrebu in Univerze v Beogradu. Leta 2010 je Shiba-san kot gostujoči profesor v Evropskem centru za mir in razvoj, ki so ga ustanovili Združeni narodi v Beogradu, organiziral vrsto konferenc in simpozijev, kjer je zbral ugledne mednarodne raziskovalce, da bi se skupaj lotili vprašanj, ki so mu bila blizu. Shiba-sana lahko najbolje razumemo kot »angažiranega intelektualca«, ki mu življenje v slonokoščenem stolpu ni bilo dovolj. Njegova bibliografija, ki obsega skoraj 20 strani, odraža zapuščino nekoga, ki se je skušal lotiti ključnih vprašanj svojega časa. Shiba-san je bil tudi aktiven mentor, ki je pomagal začeti akademsko kariero številnih mladih znanstvenikov, ki danes nadaljujejo njegovo delo. Leta 2017 ga je za »prispevek k seznanjanju japonske javnosti o zgodovinskih in družbenih okoliščinah osamosvojitvene poti Slovenije« predsednik Slovenije, Borut Pahor, odlikoval z državnim odlikovanjem, medaljo za zasluge. Mislim, da se bomo vsi, ki smo ga imeli privilegij osebno poznati in delati z njim, spominjali njegove tople osebnosti, pozitivne energije in sramežljivega nasmeha, ko je za hip zapuščal sestanek, da pokadi svojo cigareto. Naj počiva v miru. . Andrej Bekeš 15 IN MEMORIAM Professor Shiba Nobuhiro (1946-2021) scholar, colleague, friend2 On May 28, 2021, Shiba Nobuhiro—eminent historian of Yugoslavia, the Balkans, and more broadly Eastern Europe, professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo and professor at Jōsai International University—passed away suddenly at the age of 74. Shiba-san and I first met in 1978. He had just returned from two years of study at the University of Belgrade where he had studied Yugoslav history. As for me, I was at Osaka University of Foreign Studies, studying Japanese linguistics. We quickly became good friends. After completing my studies in Osaka, I enrolled in a PhD program at the University of Tsukuba. As both Shiba-san and I were living in Tokyo in the 1980s, we met frequently. This was a time when there was considerable interest in Japan among progressive intellectuals in the Yugoslav system of self-management. However, Shiba-san’s chosen field, contemporary Yugoslav history, was not something that had great market value in Japanese academia at the time. Especially when economic problems surfaced after Tito’s death in 1980, Yugoslavia came to be seen by many Japanese as just another problem-plagued Eastern European communist country. Shiba-san, too, keenly felt the change in attitude. Yet he did not give up in the face of adversity, continuing steadfastly to do serious research and publishing works related to Yugoslav history, society, and culture. After completing my PhD at Tsukuba, I spent the last few years of the 1980s back in Slovenia much the same way as Shiba-san did in Tokyo, struggling to find a secure academic position in my chosen field. During this time, Shiba-san regularly visited Yugoslavia, of which Slovenia was still then a part. He liked the Alpine scenery of Lake Bohinj and its surroundings. Whenever he had the time, he would spend some days at a tourist farm there. It was in the summer of 1988 that we had a pleasant reunion there, while he was on holiday with his family. The late 1980s were marked by growing internal instability in Yugoslavia. Reports published abroad about events in Yugoslavia tended to be rather confusing, as the lines of division were too complex to disentangle for the 2 An earlier version of this obituary has appeared in Electronic Journal of Central Euro- pean Studies in Japan, No. 6 (September 2021). 16 uninformed. Shiba-san’s sound and balanced explanations of the Yugoslav political system contributed greatly toward enlightening Japanese specialists, as well as the general public, during these chaotic times. His publications on developments in Yugoslavia included several volumes in the Iwanami Booklet series aimed at lay readers, as well as more scholarly work on the socialist Yugoslav political system and the nationality question. Providing helpful commentary in those polarized times was a very difficult goal to achieve, but in his work Shiba-san managed to avoid taking sides on the basis of either nostalgia or ideological affinities. With Slovenia’s independence in 1991, the demise of Yugoslavia began. The Balkans suddenly became a topic of serious foreign policy debate, and as a result the value of the expertise accumulated by Shiba-san finally came to be recognized. In 1992, he moved to the University of Tokyo, where he remained until retirement. In the new, better-funded academic environment, and with the evolving situation in former Yugoslavia continuing to generate wide interest, Shiba-san’s output, aimed at both scholarly and general audiences, received a new impetus. The list of Shiba-san’s publications is impressive. During the years I spent teaching at the University of Tsukuba (1990-1995), I had many discussions with Shiba-san concerning developments in Yugoslavia. We did not always agree about everything, which is only natural, but Shiba-san showed his wide and profound understanding of Yugoslavia’s complexities and maintained a coherent view. At the end of the 1990s, Shiba-san also helped the University of Tokyo establish for the first time a Slovene language course, as well as courses in the languages of other former Eastern bloc countries. The 1990s also saw the publication of two seminal works by Shiba-san: Yūgosuravia gendaishi ( ; The Contemporary History of Yugoslavia), published in 1996 by Iwanami Shoten, Tokyo; and Barukan no minzokushugi ( Nationalism in the Balkans), published the same year by Yamakawa Shuppansha, Tokyo. Shiba-san regularly updated both of these works. The 13th edition of the latter book came out in 2015; Shiba-san completed the 18th edition of the former book in 2016 and was working on the 19th edition when he passed away. As always, Shiba-san tried to make knowledge about his area of specialization accessible to the general public. The outcome of his efforts was Zusetsu barukan no rekishi ( An illustrated history of the Balkans), published in 2001 by Kawade Shobō Shinsha, which released a revised version in 2015. Another area of active engagement for Shiba-san was the question of how to arrive at “Common history,” to go beyond regional historical conflicts. One of the roots of “Common history” writing was the “joint French-German history 17 textbook” project which started with the process of reconciliation between France and Germany. It served as inspiration, among others, for the quest for common history of two other areas of conflict, the Balkans and East Asia. Shiba-san’s contribution to the writing of common history in both regions can be found in his organising the international symposium In Search of a Common Regional History: the Balkans and East Asia in History Textbooks, (University of Tokyo, 2006) and his editing of the special thematic section How to Construct Regional Histories in the Balkans and East Asia: From Historiography toward History Education in the journal European Studies ( , University of Tokyo, 2008). As research scholar, teacher, and editor, Shiba-san was from the start eager to encourage a younger generation of scholars to take an interest in his chosen field. His efforts resulted in the publication of numerous monographs on Yugoslavia, the Balkans, and the Eastern European region as a whole, many of which were later incorporated into publications aimed at a general readership. These included one volume in the Motto Shiritai ( ; Know more) series, titled Motto shiritai Yugosuravia Know more about Yugoslavia, and published by Kōbundō in 1991; and four volumes in the Sixty Chapters Rokuju shō) series published by Akashi Shoten, devoted respectively to Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina. Shiba-san was a speaker at two international symposia organized by the University of Ljubljana, held respectively in 2005 and 2009. The first was on Japanese Studies, and the second focused on Japanese Studies in the Balkans. He told us, the organizers, how he was pleasantly surprised that our Department of Asian Studies offered subjects such as “The History of East Asia,” “Introduction to East Asian Studies,” and other courses that covered the whole East Asian region and not just individual countries. His comment reflected the importance Shiba-san attached to the understanding of history in a regional context, and not as something divided into containers called individual countries. Shiba-san also played a key role in establishing a cooperation agreement between the University of Ljubljana and the University of Tokyo. During his visits to Slovenia, the open-minded and curious Shiba-san forged strong ties with Slovene historians and social scientists. Especially profound was his friendship with Peter Vodopivec, a senior research fellow at the Institute of Contemporary History at Ljubljana. Out of this friendship grew two bilateral projects undertaken between 2011 and 2016, one focusing on depictions of history in textbooks in Japan and Slovenia, and the other on historiography. I was invited by both Peter Vodopivec and Shiba-san to participate. The five-year research project offered more opportunities for me to 18 enjoy intensive exchanges with Shiba-san. The fruits of this joint research are two monographs co-edited by Shiba-san, issued under the titles, School History and Textbooks: A Comparative Analysis of History Textbooks in Japan and Slovenia (Institute of Contemporary History, Ljubljana, 2013) and The 20th Century through Historiographies and Textbooks, Chapters from Japan, East Asia, Slovenia and Southeast Europe (Institute of Contemporary History, Ljubljana, 2018). Around 2008, another less scholarly but—because of the content—very lively cooperation began. This was the project “Cinema (post) Yugo.” Film critic Hirano Kyoko was the prime mover of the project, along with Shiba-san and his former student Yamazaki Shinichi. Other active participants included the two editors of this booklet, Jelisava Sethna and myself, as well as Serbo-Croatian lecturer Alma Okajima. The aim of “Cinema (post) Yugo” was to educate viewers by showing them the gems of the Yugoslav film industry, and then to follow up with developments in different post-Yugoslav countries. As a linguist, I could only touch on Shiba-san’s work from my own very subjective and therefore limited perspective. He will be remembered by his many students and many more readers for his pioneering work in Japan in the field of Yugoslav and Balkan studies. But Shiba-san also leaves behind the legacy of his work on the international stage. He maintained close relations with researchers from the former Yugoslav region, not only from Slovenia, but also Croatia and Serbia, specifically from the University of Zagreb and the University of Belgrade. In 2010, while serving as a visiting professor at the UN founded European Center for Peace and Development in Belgrade, Shiba-san organized a series of conferences and symposia bringing together eminent international researchers to tackle issues close to his heart. Shiba-san can best be described as “an engaged intellectual,” one not content with life in an ivory tower. His bibliography, extending to nearly 20 pages, reflects the legacy of one who has sought to tackle the key issues of his times. Shiba-san was also an active mentor who helped launch the academic careers of many young scholars, who today continue his work. In 2017, for his “contribution to informing the Japanese public about the historical and social circumstances of Slovenia’s path to independence,” he was awarded the Medal of Merit by then President of Slovenia Borut Pahor. I think that all of us who had the privilege to know him personally and work with him will remember his warm personality, his positive energy, and his shy smile when he slipped out of a meeting for a smoke. May his soul rest in peace. . Andrej Bekeš 19 Tokyo, Slovenian Embassy 2011 University of Ljubljana 2009 Tokio, Veleposlaništvo RS 2011 Univerza v Ljubljani 2009 After a meeting of “Cinema (post) Yugo” 2015 Po srečanju skupine “Cinema (post) Yugo” 2015 20 I. DEL:POZDRAVNI NAGOVORI Part I: GREETINGS 1 Ana Polak Petrič, Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia to Japan 2 Helena Jaklitsch, Minister for Slovenians abroad 3 Yasuhisa Shiozaki, Parliamentarian, Chairman of the Japan-Slovenia Parliamentary Friendship League 21 H.E. ANA POLAK PETRIČ Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia to Japan Drage Slovenke, Slovenci, prijatelji Slovenije. V veliko čast mi je, da vas lahko nagovorim ob tako pomembni obletnici naše države. On June 25th, we are celebrating the 30th anniversary of our independence, and almost at the same time, on the 1st of July, we are taking over the Presidency of the EU Council. Both events are important and significant signs of the development of Slovenia as a democratic, prosperous, and free country in the heart of Europe. The events which unfolded in Slovenia 30 years ago made an enormous impact on the lives of our citizens. For the first time in our history, we decided to form our own state, and thus the thousand-year-old dream of Slovenians to live in an independent state finally came true. With the independence from Yugoslavia came also the adoption of a new constitution devoted to the respect for human rights and the rule of law. I, and fellow Slovenians who experienced the evening of June 25th, 1991, will never forget that glorious day. This is also the time for us to celebrate our resilience and the fact that as a nation of two million, we managed to survive the turbulent history of Europe with our own language and culture intact and finally created our own state. This would not be possible without our fellow Slovenians abroad and our friends worldwide. Thus, allow me to take this opportunity to extend my sincere gratitude to all of you who help preserve the Slovenian culture and language abroad and who help us promote our country in Japan. This is why I am, together with my team, honored to host and organize today's event at the Embassy of Slovenia in Tokyo. I would like to thank Minister Dr. Helena Jaklitsch for taking the time in her busy schedule to make a keynote address; the honorable Diet member Mr. Shiozaki for his continued support as a President of the Japanese-Slovenian Parliamentary Friendship League; and the moderators and panelists who will share with us their personal and professional experiences from 30 years ago. During this time of celebration, Slovenia also remembers those nations which helped us in our path towards sovereignty and independence. Japan recognized 22 Slovenia in 1992, and since then our relations have been friendly and are further developing. The Japanese have discovered the treasures of Slovenian nature, food, and wine, and the Slovenians admire Japanese hospitality and kindness. Political ties are growing stronger; in the latest high-level official visit, Slovenia was honored to host the Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Motegi, in April 2021. Joint projects and cooperation are blooming in the economic and scientific fields. Port Koper in Slovenia is becoming increasingly attractive for Japanese transporters delivering to and from Central Europe, and we are exploring possibilities for further collaboration in the areas of digitalization, cybersecurity, high tech, artificial intelligence, and Society 5.0. In conclusion, allow me to underline that the COVID pandemic has revealed to us that together we can be stronger, and that solidarity and mutual understanding must prevail in state relations, as well as in person-to-person contacts. In short, the friendship between Slovenia and Japan is clear proof of this, and this friendship will continue to grow in the future. V svojem imenu in v imenu Veleposlaništva Republike Slovenije dovolite, da vam iskreno čestitam ob dnevu državnosti in želim, da boste ta dan preživeli v mislih z našo ljubo domovino Slovenijo. Foto: Mirko Kunšič 23 24 25 H.E. HELENA JAKLITSCH, Minister for Slovenians Abroad Your Excellency Dr. Ana Polak Petrič, Ambassador of Slovenia to Japan; dear Mr. Yasuhisa Shiozaki, President of the Japanese and Slovenian Parliamentary Friendship League; dear Dr. Vladimir Kos; dear fellow Slovenians; dear Japanese friends of Slovenia and respected participants of this event! I am very pleased and honored to be with you for this celebration of the 30th anniversary of Slovenian independence. What an incredible moment in our Slovenian history! I want to thank you for your loyalty to Slovenia and its culture, for all your goodwill and efforts to establish connections and build bridges between Japan and Slovenia. The two countries may seem geographically and culturally distant and very different, but we have more in common that one might imagine. We both have strong work ethics and a high level of cultural life, as well as a deep respect for our ethnic heritage. And we both know how to be persistent when facing all kinds of misfortune. It is of no surprise, therefore, that quite a few Slovenians have succeeded in cultural, scientific, and other areas of Japanese society. On this occasion, I have the great privilege to thank the state of Japan for its recognition of Slovenia as an independent, sovereign nation and state on March 17, 1992! Slovenia has lived through 30 successful and exciting, sometimes even turbulent years. First, there was the War for Independence and the struggle for international recognition. Then, we joined the European Union and NATO, became the first transition country to adopt the euro, and became a member of the OECD in 2010. Working with other countries, we survived a global economic crisis and have successfully dealt with the COVID pandemic. Right now, Slovenia is about to take over the presidency of the Council of the European Union – for the second time. On the one hand, we are committed to this alliance, and on the other hand, we are open to other productive partnerships. I cannot help thinking of our writer Alma Karlin, who came to Japan around 100 years ago and was inspired to write her novels set in Japan, or of the many Slovene poets who have taken to writing haiku and tanka. The Ljubljana Faculty of Arts has agreements with several Japanese universities, and we are proud to have a Slovene course at the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies and 26 so many other ties we are grateful for. Allow me to conclude with a work by the great Vladimir Kos, whose poems have transmitted the Japanese culture to us for the last 65 years. In his collection Temnogozdni akordi (The blackwood’s chords) from 2007, he wrote a tanka in Slovene: Še most se boči rahlo, da se lunine opanke v noči ne zadevajo, ko gre na randevú v Togétsu. Dragi rojaki, ladies and gentlemen, Še enkrat iskrene čestitke ob 30. Obletnici samostojnosti in neodvisnosti naše države Slovenije! Naj bo praznovanje njenega rojstnega dne res praznik vseh nas, ki v srcu ne le dobro, temveč slovensko mislimo, čutimo in ljubimo! Ne pozabimo: Slovenija, moj dom brez mej, ker nosim te s seboj! kjer rod je moj, kjer sin je tvoj, tam si Slovenija! Prijetno praznovanje vsem ter srečno, draga Slovenija! 27 28 29 H.E. YASUHISA SHIOZAKI Parliamentarian, Chairman of the Japan-Slovenia Parliamentary Friendship League Transcript of the greetings It is my pleasure to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the foundation of Slovenia with all of you who have relations with Japan and Slovenia. The history of friendship between Japan and Slovenia began in 1992, when diplomatic relations were established, and will celebrate its 30th anniversary next year. For Japan, Slovenia is a friendly and important partner that shares basic values such as freedom, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. In 2019, Foreign Minister Kono became the first Japanese Foreign Minister to visit Slovenia. During the visit, Japan and Slovenia confirmed that the two countries would further strengthen good bilateral relations. In 2019, we were honored to receive President Pahor in Japan to attend the enthronement ceremony of Emperor Naruhito. On this occasion, we were also honored to receive Dr. Bertoncelj, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and Dr. Pikalo, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Science, and Sport. Such active mutual visits of VIPs is evidence of good bilateral relations, and we can expect further development in our relations in various fields. In 2005, I visited Slovenia for the first time as Senior Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs. Moreover, in 2016, which was the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Slovenia, I again visited Slovenia as the first Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare of Japan to participate in the Bled Strategic Forum sponsored by the government of Slovenia. At the forum, I gave a keynote speech at the session on human security. Additionally, Slovenia will assume the presidency of the Council of the European Union during the latter half of this year. Thus, it is even more significant to strengthen Japan-Slovenia relations, not only from the viewpoint of bilateral relations, but also from the perspective of Japan-EU cooperation. Japan and Slovenia are physically far apart; however, we know that the citizens of Slovenia have a strong interest in Japanese culture. For instance, there are many judo clubs in Slovenia, and the Embassy of Japan in Slovenia has held a number of successful events that introduced Japanese culture such as kimono 30 and Japanese movies. In terms of cultural exchange, we expect that the relationship between the two countries will become closer and closer. Last but not least, I would like to send my best appreciations to Her Excellency, Ambassador Petrič in the Embassy of Slovenia in Japan, and the Japan-Slovenia Friendship group for organizing this event. Together with all of you gathered here today, I would like to cooperate for the further enrichment of friendship between the two countries. With these words I would like to conclude my talk. Hvala. Thank you very much. 31 32 II. DEL: OKROGLA MIZA Part II: ROUND TABLE 1 Tinka Delakorda Kawashima Introductory words 2 Yasuhiro Nagasaki 3 Andrej Bekeš 4 Jelisava Dobovšek Sethna 5 Yukio Mori 6 Profiles of participants 33 TINKA DELAKORDA KAWASHIMA INTRODUCTORY WORDS With us today to discuss Slovenian independence from the Japanese perspective are: - H.E. Mr. Yukio Mori, Former Honorary Consul of the Republic of Slovenia in Tokyo - Prof. Emeritus Andrej Bekeš, co-founder of the Department of Asian Studies at University of Ljubljana - Ms. Jelisava Sethna, President of the Slovenian-Japanese Friendship Group - Mr. Yasuhiro Nagasaki, former NHK journalist deployed in Slovenia during the time when the country gained independence Welcome and thank you for being with us. The purpose of today’s roundtable discussion is threefold: we would like to discuss how relations between Slovenia and Japan began, how they have developed over the 30 years since Slovenia’s independence, and what the future holds for Slovenian and Japanese relations. Before we begin our discussion, please allow me to give you a brief overview of some significant events that led up to the independence of Slovenia in 1991. Slovenia used every tool within the constitutional and legal framework of the then Yugoslavia: 1.) It began with an article in the federal constitution – the possibility of secession for individual republics – which Slovenia took very seriously. 2.) From the end of the 1970s, Slovenia was able to attain liberalization within the League of Communists (ZK) and a systematic expansion of the scope of freedom of speech through the judicial process. This meant that Slovenia’s liberal judiciary took seriously the Yugoslav legal framework, which allowed much more democratic implementation than the League of Communists actually allowed. Slovenians exercised their free speech in the media: Mladina, Tribuna, and later Nova revija. Freedom of speech opened the door for new social movements like the peace movement, the environmental movement, and the LGBT movement. These movements culminated in the second half of the 1980s with the 34 formation of new unions independent of the League of Communists: the Slovenian Peasant Union, Slovenian Democratic Union, and Social Democratic Union of Slovenia (which is now the Slovenian Democratic Party). 3.) Also during this time and possibly as a result of these unions, we began to see confrontations within the conservative centralist structures in Slovenia and Yugoslavia (with the leadership of Serbia under Slobodan Milošević) and against other pressures from Belgrade. The most famous example, perhaps, was the revolt triggered by the arrest of the four Mladina journalists. Soon, liberal currents came to dominate Slovenia. A Committee for the Protection of Human Rights was established, and widespread support for democratization and independence prevailed. 4.) All this resulted in the implementation of free elections in 1990. It must be emphasized that the consistency in the legal aspects of these changes for independence, including in the referendum, provided a strong foundation for later international recognition. 5.) Finally, after the proclamation of Slovenia’s independence, the Territorial Defense, which was initially created to support of the Yugoslav People’s Army, became a military obstacle to the army. This was a very quick run through the main events that led up to Slovenia’s independence. For a Japanese language description, see Prof. Shiba’s history books on the background of the disintegration of Yugoslavia, especially the fully revised Yūgosuravia gendaishi ( The contemporary history of Yugoslavia), published in 2021 by Iwanami-shoten, Tokyo. 35 36 37 YASUHIRO NAGASAKI AT THE TIME OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE IN SLOVENIA At the time of Slovenia’s independence, I was stationed at the NHK Prague branch office and was in charge of the Central European region, including the former Yugoslavia, as a correspondent. Checking my notebook at the time, I was in Ljubljana on the evening of June 24th, 1991, to where I traveled from Prague via Belgrade. I took the 50-minute flight from Belgrade to Ljubljana by now defunct JAT (Jugoslovenski aero transport). I also saw reporters from various countries heading to Ljubljana to cover the independence ceremony. Heading from Ljubljana International Airport to the city center, everything seemed to be quite usual. Coming from the busy Belgrade, I could see the Alpine mountains in the distance, and I felt very calm. The next morning, the 25th, information was circulated that the Declaration of Independence would be announced that day. Reporters from each country, including myself, found themselves in a hurry, because we had earlier heard that Slovenia’s Declaration of Independence would be on June 26th. Because of this earlier declaration, I hurriedly made and sent a report for the nightly news in Japan by satellite transmission. After the Declaration of Independence, the town of Ljubljana was full of people drinking in pubs, dancing in the streets, and singing songs. The streets were filled with people celebrating the joy of independence. However, the situation changed drastically on the morning of the 27th. The JNA (Jugoslovenska Narodna Armija - Yugoslav people’s Army) started to intervene. When I heard that Ljubljana International Airport was blocked, I rushed to the airport with my crew and discovered that the airport was indeed blocked and could not be approached. I wrote a report behind the airport building and headed straight to the border area. The border with Austria was already under the control of the JNA. Therefore, I had to travel to the Italian border. The border with Italy was still managed by the Slovenian Self-Defense Forces, and I recorded my reports around the border office. The combat situation changed from moment to moment, and eventually the Slovenian side shot down a JNA helicopter. Learning of this, the JNA’s Fifth Army Division Commander, who then was in charge of Slovenia, warned, “I will not hesitate 38 to deploy air strikes and missile attacks on Slovenia!” In my notebook, I wrote down: “It’s war!” Afterwards, I could hardly sleep for several days. There was a 7-hour time difference between Japan and Europe, and I interviewed, wrote manuscripts, and reported 24 hours a day. At that time, the reporter himself had to take the video materials he shot to the Slovenian national broadcasting station and transmit them via satellite. I ended up doing this for my own transmissions to Japan. On the 28th, I was in Medvedje village, 30 kilometers east of Ljubljana. The main road to Zagreb, which runs beside the village, had been stopped for many kilometers. Combat had begun, and private trucks were stuck. All the drivers seemed to have evacuated, and no one was there. Upon arriving at the village, I saw farmhouses that had been burned down; the smoke was still rising after bombing and shooting by the JNA. No one was there, and it was eerily quiet. As I approached the farmhouses, I saw a charred corpse lying down, probably a farmer from a burned-down farmhouse. When heading to the main road, I saw three bodies behind a truck with an AL (Albania) license plate, and I found two more bodies on the side of the road. According to a farmer living nearby, a JNA fighter jet had swooped down to a low altitude of around 50 meters and had fired with a machine gun. Then, I traveled southwest to Novo Mesto. The injured were hospitalized in the town hospital, and I interviewed them. A Bulgarian patient said, “A fighter plane shot at us!” A Bosnian shouted angrily, “It was barbaric!”. In this way, the days of covering the combat that took place in various parts of Slovenia continued. On July 2nd, information came to us that JNA tanks were blocked by the Slovenian Self-Defense Forces. I rushed to the outskirts of Brežice with my crew, where more than a dozen JNA tanks were surrounded by the Slovenian forces. Occasionally, the tanks moved to try to break the siege. While observing the situation with British reporters from a nearby hill, one of the tank’s turret suddenly turned towards us! As soon as I hurriedly lay down on the ground, the tank fired. It then started to move, so I escaped to a safe place. And I recorded my report there. On July 3rd, a sudden ceasefire was announced. Still, I continued working without break, moving from the battlefield to the ceasefire negotiations between Slovenia and the Yugoslav Federation. My busy days covering the situation went by in this way. Looking back on those days, I think three things can be said. 1) The Slovenian side fought very efficiently and effectively against the JNA, 39 which was overwhelmingly superior in terms of military power. Daily press conferences were well organized. The Slovenian government accurately communicated the situation of the country to the international community and won over international public opinion. They succeeded in a skillful strategy that balanced military and diplomatic victory. In the event of an emergency, the citizens and the government were united and managed to overcome their difficulties. I was impressed by the fact that the government and the people of Slovenia were well prepared physically and mentally for independence. 2) For Slovenia, the choice of independence was inevitable. After Slovenia’s independence, a war broke out in Croatia, Bosnia, and Kosovo, and Yugoslavia collapsed. It can be said that Slovenia’s independence was the first blow toward the downfall of Yugoslavia. 3) On a personal note, through my coverage of the country’s march to independence, I became friends with the Slovenian people, including Dr. Bekeš, who is one of the speakers at this roundtable conference. This started my long relationship with Slovenia. The day June 24th, 1991, gave me an opportunity to build long-lasting, friendly relations with Slovenia. RELATIONSHIP WITH SLOVENIA AFTER INDEPENDENCE I returned to Japan in 1993 and was put in charge of the situation in Yugoslavia at the International News Department of NHK Tokyo. This included covering the newly opened Slovenian Embassy in Tokyo. The first ambassador, Mr. Janez Premože, was very supportive of NHK’s coverage, and I am very grateful for that. One day, at an embassy party, I met Dr. Andrej Bekeš for the first time. He was teaching at the University of Tsukuba at the time. It turned out that he was the very person who had translated the Slovenian and Serbian interviews I had sent from Ljubljana while covering the declaration of independence. He would go to the NHK offices in Tokyo and translate them into Japanese. This encounter led to a 30-year friendship with Dr. Bekeš. In October 1995, with the help of Ambassador Premože, the Slovenian government invited me and my colleague for 20 days to the country. During this time, I interviewed government officials including Mr. Milan Kučan, then President of Slovenia, and produced news reports introducing tourist attractions and industries in Slovenia, such as the primeval forests of Kočevski Rog, beautiful Lake Bled, high-quality Slovenian wines, and competitive companies such as Elan (now Slatner). However, my most focused report was on the newly launched Asian Studies program at the University of Ljubljana. For this report, I interviewed Dr. Bekeš, who led and taught in the Japanese language department. He emphasized in the interview that, “The European tradition of Japanese studies 40 has been more focused on literary studies than necessary. We would like to teach students how to use the Japanese language to study, let’s say, sociology or political science”. Slovenia was rarely introduced in a comprehensive way on Japanese television, including during the former Yugoslav era. However, the program that included my report was the first to comprehensively convey the state of Slovenia after independence in 1992 to Japanese viewers. RELATIONSHIP WITH JAPAN, ETC. Unfortunately, the Southeastern European region, including the former Yugoslav region, still has unstable political factors. For example, many issues remain, such as the relationship between Serbia and Kosovo, and whether North Macedonia can smoothly enter the European integration process in the future. The Government of Japan is providing various support through JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency), recognizing that the stability of Southeastern Europe leads to the stability of Europe and that of the world. As a member state of the EU and a former Yugoslav state, Slovenia is a country blessed with excellent human resources, as well as geographical proximity and linguistic closeness to the southeastern part of Europe. It is expected that Slovenia could play an even more influential role in the European stabilization process. For Japan, Slovenia is a gateway to the region and a partner in trade and cultural exchange, and we should deepen our relationship more than ever. The conditions for deepening our relations are already in place. We believe that deepening and nurturing friendly exchanges with Slovenia, which still has a lot of untapped potential, is very important for the stability of the world. “10 days war”: JNA attack in Gornja Radgona (taken from the WEB) 41 42 43 44 45 ANDREJ BEKEŠ MOTHER’S INSTINCT WAS RIGHT At the beginning, I must thank Mr. Nagasaki. He told us today about his experiences which he never disclosed before during our very long friendship. Well, in April 1990, I returned to Japan to my new teaching assignment at the University of Tsukuba and stayed there until 1995. Immediately before returning to Japan, I spent the four years from April 1986 to March 1990 working in Ljubljana. As our moderator, Prof. Delakorda Kawashima said already, the late 1980s was a period when a pronounced trend towards democratization in Slovene—and more widely in Yugoslav—society became apparent. Especially in Slovenia, it was indeed enjoyable to see, after the “leaden years” ( svinčena leta), how the cultural scene and critical media were from day to day becoming more vibrant. It was also a period of deepening economic woes and the time of “Roška” military trials, which resulted in uniting the Slovene population under the aegis of protecting the human rights of the defendants. Conflict between conservative and liberal elements was deepening, resulting in free elections in Slovenia in early 1990. The referendum at the end of that year confirmed the wish of Slovene people to go independent. After the successful independence referendum, Slovenes in Japan, while being a bit worried, were mostly optimistic, believing that independence would be achieved peacefully. Perhaps, we who stayed in Japan were even more optimistic than the people back in Slovenia. So were also the Japanese colleagues at my university. It was a kind of “blissful ignorance,” I suppose. We even teased a student who gave up going on a student traineeship to Slovenia in June 1991 because his mother was worried about the unstable political situation. But finally, it turned out that the only person thinking in realistic terms then was perhaps the mother of this student. Indeed, she was right. On June 25th, 1991, independence was proclaimed. And then, the Yugoslav people’s army (JNA) came out of the barracks on June 27th. The reports started coming in the day after. I was asked by NHK to translate news material coming from Slovenia. It was NHK correspondent Mr. Yasuhiro Nagasaki who was sending the news from Slovenia, and I was in Japan, on the receiving end. What I saw were devastating, shocking scenes. Tanks speeding 46 through the bucolic countryside, shooting at farmhouses. JNA fighter jets bombing the town of Gornja Radgona. A long line of trucks bombed by the JNA in southern Slovenia. Images that I thought only belonged to war movies or documentaries from WWII were images of a war actually happening in my own country. A very important issue for us in Japan then was how to get accurate information about the situation in Slovenia. Mr. Janez Premože, at the time representative of LB (Ljubljana Bank, now NLB, New Ljubljana Bank), was internet savvy and supplied every Slovene in Japan he could reach via fax and mail with printouts of news from Slovenia that were available on the internet. This kept us informed somehow and we who were in Tokyo at that time are all still grateful to him for this act of solidarity. It was during these early days of anxiety that my close friend consoled me with Chinese poet Du Fu’s words: “The country is no more, but the mountains and rivers are still there ( ).” I was also trying to get as much information as possible from the Japanese media, which I had also done earlier during the period leading to independence. Yugoslavia was Europe’s backwater, and very little information was available in Japanese. It was the late professor Nobuhiro Shiba, an expert on Yugoslavian and Balkan history, who wrote a few very informative monographs on developments in Yugoslavia, just before and immediately after its demise. My impression was that most of the Japanese printed media—and most of the international media, too—had their correspondents located (it goes without saying) in the Yugoslav capital and were reporting almost exclusively from the federal government’s point of view, so their reports were not so reliable. An extreme example was TV commentary from a former Japanese diplomat, who said something like, “Ah, you know, those bastards (yatsura), they have been fighting each other for the past 1500 years. It’s nothing special.” This kind of understanding was quietly accepted as “expert” opinion. In this sense, NHK stood out. The information they provided, with people like Mr. Nagasaki in the field, was really very precious. It is paradoxical, though, that with the communist country falling apart, the most reliable news was surprisingly being provided by an organ of the Communist Party of Japan: the Akahata Shinbun newspaper. Their young and ambitious correspondent with excellent understanding of Yugoslav complexities, Mr. Zen Chida, presented a balanced picture of events during the early days of the conflict. Later on, he was substituted by a more orthodox senior reporter. 47 The war—some prefer to call it a skirmish—lasted for 10 days. In a way, it was a fortunate result compared to what went on later in Croatia and Bosnia. At the end of July 1991, it was calm enough for me to return to Slovenia. At Heathrow Airport’s border control, I was greeted with “Ah, another one of those,” and let in. There were no flights to Slovenia then. Finally arriving by train from Vienna to Šentilj, I could not hold back my tears. And then in August, it was calm enough for my wife and our baby daughter to join me. NEW STATE, NEW IDEAS: ASIAN STUDIES IN LJUBLJANA I would like now to move on to the next topic: establishing an Asian Studies program—and within it, a Japanese Studies program—in Slovenia. This was actually a very long process. It started in 1986, with my first return to Slovenia after finishing my PhD studies in Japan. There was a critical number of people trained in Chinese and Japanese Studies, just enough to start a modest program in both fields. We came one step within opening an Asian Studies program at the University of Ljubljana in 1989, but by then the economic situation in Yugoslavia had become so bad that all plans for establishing new programs at the universities were stopped. Then came independence and the war in Croatia and Bosnia, and many potential teachers, including myself, dispersed to look for jobs elsewhere. So any prospects seemed very dim for a while. But the new state seems to have had also new ideas. In 1993, the Slovene Ministry of Education had a vision to refresh university curricula with new content fit for the newly independent country. Thus, the ambitious sounding Department of Asian and African Studies (Now Department of Asian Studies) was established at the University of Ljubljana Faculty of Arts in 1995. On October 1st of the same year, we started with a Japanese Studies program (2 teachers) and Chinese Studies program (3 teachers). It was only one month later that Mr. Nagasaki and his NHK TV crew came to visit Slovenia; our newly established Japanese Studies program was suddenly broadcast on NHK prime time news. I served as the first head of the department and as the chair of Japanese Studies, teaching there for 21 years until my retirement at the end of 2016. The whole department was very energetic. In its 26 years of existence, it produced about 250 BA graduates, about 100 MA graduates, and about 20 doctors in the field of Japanese Studies, with degrees obtained either at the University of Ljubljana or at an overseas university, most often in Japan. Also, about the same or even bigger number of doctoral degrees were awarded in the field of Chinese Studies. Since 2015, the department has expanded to include the program of Korean Studies. Unfortunately, the originally planned African 48 Studies program never developed, so the reference to the program was removed from the name of the department. Some graduates of the Japanese Studies program work as professors at Japanese universities and some universities in Europe. The department now offers elective courses in Sanskrit and Hindi. Exchange programs with a number of Japanese, Chinese, and Korean universities are thriving. Such a dynamic development would not have been possible without intensive exchange programs with our partner universities— Japanese universities in the case of Japanese Studies. The first partner university was the University of Tsukuba, with which the ties are especially cordial. Lively cooperation is continuing, not only in the field of Japanese Studies, but more widely in humanities and social sciences as well. I am glad to observe that this is actually a two-way process, as the Slovene language is also being taught at some of these Japanese and Chinese partner universities. But most visible are perhaps the efforts in the field of translation. A number of Japanese, Chinese, and Korean modern and classical literary works were translated into Slovene by our graduates. As a result, Japan, and East Asia as a whole, is enjoying a much closer relationships with Slovenia. Academic, cultural, and economic ties are becoming stronger as the time goes by. I personally am very grateful that I could take part in these developments. It was perhaps the best part of my life. PROSPECTS FOR THE FUTURE Somewhere during our roundtable discussion, it was mentioned that I have received two distinguished awards in Japan: the Order of the Rising Sun (Golden Rays with Rosette) and the Japan Foundation Award. The achievements recognized by the awards were not mine alone but that of all my colleagues in our Japanese Studies program. Unfortunately, these are not collective awards and had to be awarded to a physical person. That is where I have come in handy. Being there from the beginning and, for a long time, being in charge of the Japanese Studies program and also the acting or former head of the Department of Asian Studies: that was the reason, I suppose. Therefore, I understand these awards as the appreciation not of my work as an individual but of the collective effort of the Japanese Studies program and also the whole department. I was glad to donate my Japan Foundation Award to the Slovene Science Foundation to support further academic exchange between Slovenia and Japan. 49 Here, I would like to thank again the Japan Foundation for supporting our Japanese Studies program with their invaluable help, especially during the early years. They supported teacher exchanges, aided local teaching staff salaries, and made book and textbook donations, to mention just a few of their activities. Without this support, the development of a Japanese Studies program in Slovenia would not have been as fast, and the quality of our program would not have been as high as it is. Now, business relations. As someone who has spent all his time in academia, I think Mr. Mori is much more appropriate to say something about pursuing business contacts between the two countries. Still, I would like to say that in its 26 years of existence, the Japanese Studies program in Slovenia has also laid good foundations for business contacts. A great many of our graduates have spent a semester or two on exchange programs with our university partners in Japan, becoming not only fluent in Japanese but getting firsthand experience of living in Japanese society by being immersed in Japanese social and cultural contexts. Like the other programs at the University of Ljubljana Faculty of Arts, the Japanese Studies program is interdisciplinary. Our graduates possess not only language skills and knowledge of Japanese culture, but also possess a wide range of specialties within the field of social science and the humanities. They can thus be very attractive candidates for a company seeking to enter into business relations with Japanese companies—or for Japanese companies in Slovenia, too. I think that if we sustain the enthusiasm of the first 26 years of this program, results will naturally follow. The efforts of those who have worked in Slovenia’s Japanese Studies and Asian Studies programs over the last 26 years has benefitted cooperation in other academic fields as well. Contacts made at Japanese partner universities through the field of Japanese Studies opened the door to wider cooperation with many universities, in fields ranging from medicine to technology and natural science. Our Japanese language courses (from elementary to intermediate) also help students and teachers from other fields learn the basics of the language so they can integrate better into their study or work environment when they go to Japan for study or research. Last but not least, in relation to business cooperation, these language courses are also open to people from outside academia, but for a modest fee. Cooperation in the cultural field is also very important. Many of our graduates, attracted by Japanese literature, started working as translators. As a result, many works of contemporary Japanese literature are now available in Slovene editions translated directly from Japanese and not, as before, via a third language. As works of classical literature are much more intellectually demanding, however, this particular area still needs more dedicated effort. 50 Another area that helped pioneer cultural exchange between Slovenia and Japan are the fine arts. For example, Ljubljana Graphical Biennale, one of the three great graphical events in the world, is well known in Japan and always attracts many first-class contributors. Through such channels, this exchange grew further to include exchanges between students and artists, resulting in solo and group art exhibitions of Slovene artists in Japan and Japanese artists in Slovenia. Here, too, there is still much potential for further development, if we keep the present enthusiasm going. As our academic ties deepen, our economic ties will also continue to develop, as, I am sure, will our cultural ties. 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 JELISAVA DOBOVŠEK SETHNA MEMORIES OF SLOVENE INDEPENDENCE When Slovenia proclaimed independence, I had been living in Japan with my family for 14 years. My British husband was running an architectural practice. I helped him with administrative work and taught part-time as an English teacher. Our two sons were attending an international school. In those pre-internet times, we kept in touch with my family and friends in Slovenia through letters and monthly telephone calls. At least every three years, we would also make a trip to my homeland. During our visit in 1989, I detected increased patriotic fervor and a strong wish for independence. In December 1990, I returned home to cast a vote in a referendum in which over 90 percent of voters opted for independence. Everything felt like a dream, voters were euphoric, and nobody worried about what might happen next. On June 25th, 1991, Slovenia declared independence. Being far away, I missed the euphoric moment when “we were allowed to dream,” to quote the then president Milan Kučan, Two days later, the news reached us that Slovenia had been attacked by the Yugoslav People’s Army (JNA). Anxiously, I called home only to learn that my father and elder brother were mobilized as members in the territorial forces and were on duty at the nearby air raid shelter. Apparently, air raids and fighting were occurring very close to my hometown of Novo Mesto, as Mr. Nagasaki has already attested in his presentation. The days that followed were filled with anxiety, as the information that was reaching us was meager. Two main problems that I encountered in those pre-internet times were communication and a confusion with names. It was getting difficult to reach my family in Slovenia; telephone calls were very expensive, and the postal service had stopped completely. Secondly, the similarity between the names Slovenia, Slovakia, and Slavonia was very confusing to the Japanese and other non-Slovenes. In August, when the 10-day war for Slovenia had already ended, I was vacationing in the mountains of Nagano where I had no contact with the outer world. One day, my neighbor came to me and asked me which part of Yugoslavia I was from. When I answered, “from Slovenia,” she said uneasily, “Oh, that’s where all the fighting is going on.” My heart sank, but I recovered quickly when I realized that she meant Slavonia in Croatia to where the war had expanded by that time. Slovenia was spared the worst while the war gradually spread into other parts of Yugoslavia and brought a lot of misery to the population there. 58 I again experienced the feeling of patriotic euphoria at the end of 1991 while singing motets by the Slovenian composer Iacobus Gallus at a Christmas concert performed by the Tokyo International Singers which took place in The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan in Ginza. I was brought to tears when, at the end of the concert, I received a bouquet of red carnations and was introduced as a singer from “the youngest country in the world.” In February 1992, the then foreign minister Dimitrij Rupel came on an official visit to Japan. The Slovenes living in Tokyo met with him on that occasion and presented him with a gift of a daruma doll, which symbolizes perseverance and good luck. Following the Japanese tradition, the minister painted one eye of the daruma with a wish that the Slovenian state be recognized by the Japanese government. Japan recognized Slovenia as an independent country three weeks later on March 17th, 1992. The daruma magic worked! MY CONTRIBUTION TO ENHANCING THE VISIBILITY OF SLOVENIA IN JAPAN After independence, Slovenes in Japan tried our best to promote the country to the Japanese. My husband Soli who, at the time, was an active member of the British Chamber of Commerce, encouraged me to start a business group. The highlight of our efforts was a seminar and tasting of Slovene wine at the international food and wine fair, FOODEX. I would also represent the group at quarterly meetings of the Association of Foreign Chambers of Commerce in Japan. However, when I was invited by Prof. Nobuhiro Shiba to teach a program of Slovene language and culture at the prestigious University of Tokyo, I realized that I had found my calling. The start of the program was on a 59 much smaller scale than what Prof. Bekeš was doing in Ljubljana. Also, there was a lot of skepticism about the success of such a program, not so much from the Japanese side but, surprisingly, more from the Slovenian side. This was perhaps due to the lack of confidence and recognition of the importance of such a program in the promotion of Slovenia in Japan. At this time, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Prof. Shiba for all his help and support that he so generously continued to bestow upon us even after the program was moved to the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. I continued to teach there for 18 years until my retirement, with intermittent shorter sessions also at Rikkyo University, Tokyo University, and International Christian University. Besides classwork, we also organized all kinds of events and projects. For example, we held two international symposia of Slovene language and culture: in 2000, on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the poet France Prešeren’s birth; and in 2008, during the Trubar Year, celebrating the 500th anniversary of the birth of Primož Trubar, the Father of the Slovene language. Both events were held at the University of Tokyo, again with the generous help of Prof. Shiba. After each symposium, we also published the proceedings with the support from academic institutions, the Slovenian embassy, and business donors. From the very beginning, we also collaborated with the Center for Slovene as a Second/ Foreign Language at the University of Ljubljana. We carried out all their biannual projects, including translations of literary texts and documentary films, Slovene Film Days, and, among others, a translation into Japanese of the booklet Pocket Slovene, which introduces the Slovene language in an interesting and practical way. We hosted two Slovenian authors, Vinko Moderndorfer and Nejc Gazvoda. They visited our classes and interacted with the students, who had translated their short stories. All these projects were a great motivation booster for the students, some of whom later moved on to using their knowledge of the Slovene language and culture in their research as academics or in their posts as diplomats, tourist guides, and other occupations. I would also like to quickly mention the project Cinema Yugo in which Prof. Bekeš has been involved as well. Every year, we screen a Slovene movie at a Tokyo university. The screening is preceded by an introduction of the background and content of the movie and followed by a discussion that often includes Skype interviews with the director of the movie. Some of the directors who have joined us include Marko Naberšnik, Goran Vojnovič, Rok Biček, and Maja Weiss. Last but not least, I must mention the student choir who sang “Zdravljica” at the beginning of today’s event and who will conclude the event with another Slovene song. Like Mr. Nagasaki visiting the Japanese Department at the Faculty of Arts in Ljubljana, the journalist Luka Hvalc of the Slovenian National Radio called on us during one of our classes in 2011 and shot a video of the students singing the song “Lipa,” which went viral when it was 60 broadcast in Slovenia. Finally, I would also like to talk briefly about the Slovenian-Japanese Friendship Group (SJFG), which will be of most interest to our guest of honor Minister Jaklitsch. The group was started on St. Martin’s Day 10 years ago and has actively been promoting interaction between Slovenes, Japanese, and other nationals living in Japan who are interested in Slovenia. Our activities include social gatherings to celebrate special events, such as Culture Day in February, Statehood Day in June, and St. Martin’s Day in November. At these gatherings, which often include more than 50 participants, we prepare a short cultural program with presentations, readings, music, and quizzes, while enjoying Slovenian food and wine. We have also organized hiking events and literary and movie nights. In the last year, due to the COVID pandemic, we have had to move our activities online, where we held a Slovenian food competition on Statehood Day. For St. Martin’s Day, we prepared a video presentation of our activities to date in which we included Slovenian music and messages from the Ambassador and the President of the SJFG. We hope to resume our activities as soon as the circumstances improve. Through the above work and commitments, I have managed to nurture and strengthen my Slovene identity, for which I am very grateful. FUTURE OF SLOVENIA-JAPAN RELATIONSHIP In the future, we need further collaboration among different stakeholders, for example in the fields of education and business. The SJFG has been supported by the Japan Slovenia Business Council throughout. It has been a good and successful collaboration. I personally would like to see more involvement of both relevant Slovene and Japanese authorities in the promotion of Slovene studies in Japan. We now have a regular, expanded program at the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, with a full-time lecturer from Slovenia. We need to develop that further and maybe hold more academic events. Symposia are a good way to promote the knowledge and understanding of Slovenia. Also, I would like to see more student and cultural exchanges. As far as the SJFG is concerned, it is my wish that all Slovenes who live in Japan permanently or only temporarily join our activities and take an active role. It is wonderful when we can get together and exchange our experiences, make new friends, chat in Slovene, drink Slovene wine, and make merry together. Through activities, we can build our confidence and enhance our Slovene identity. 61 62 63 64 65 YUKIO MORI WHAT WE HAVE DONE DURING THE PAST 30 YEARS AFTER INDEPENDENCE, AND OUR HOPES FOR THE FUTURE OF THE TWO COUNTRIES We can go back in our memories during the past 30 years after the Independence and there have been significant things that were done for the future of the two countries. Right after independence, we had the great opportunity to be invited to visit Slovenia to see what could be done to establish new business developments between our two countries as part of a “New Beginning.” At the time, Mr. Tsutomu Hata was the minister of MOFA, so we visited him to authorize our first semi-official visit by issuing a letter addressed to Ambassador Kurokawa of Japan Embassy in Vienna, who was in charge of Slovenia. We used land transportation to get to Ljubljana via Maribor, which took a very long time. We spent about 10 days and met nearly 100 people involved in Slovenian business and politics. Our first impression of Slovenia was that it was totally different from other socialist countries. This was a nice, big surprise, which motivated us to establish closer business and also political relationships with the country. Slovenia felt like Singapore, which serves as the geographic, political, and economic center of ASEAN. The majority of people in Singapore are highly educated and well-connected to their neighboring countries through a historical network. Similarly, Slovenia is the center of Central Europe and historically well-connected to Western and Eastern Europe, including the former Yugoslavia and even Russia. So, we felt that if Japan were to establish an effective presence in Slovenia, we would be able to expand our network over a huge area of Europe, including all the neighboring nations, through the extremely capable people of Slovenia, who could help us overcome cultural and language barriers. Right after returning to Japan, we proposed to key LDP parliamentary members that they open a Japan Embassy in Ljubljana. We explained the above-mentioned reasoning and the huge advantages of having an embassy. Fortunately, these members included Mr. Harada, the then Chairman of the 66 Japan-Slovenia Parliamentarian Friendship League, and Mr. Aizawa, the then Chairman of the Japan-Slovenia Friendship Association. They were totally convinced and agreed to go forward with our proposal. Finally, a Japan Embassy was established in Ljubljana. We established our first joint venture in Ljubljana, where COMNET acted as an importer of Panasonic communications equipment and other products, but it did not last long. Later, we were asked by the Slovenian Ministry of Agriculture to promote food products in Japan through FOODEX in Tokyo. This was how we came to start our wine import business on a small scale; it was a totally new challenge. Fortunately, this wine import and distribution business has lasted for nearly 25 years, making it a pioneer in this area that continues to grow. In addition, we helped open the first wine bar in China that serves only Slovenian wines. Recently, for the first time, we have taken on the difficult challenge of importing Slovene pork product. After nearly 10 years of effort, we have begun importing a smoked ham called šunka made by Kodila. We have been doing test marketing despite the difficulties posed by COVID-19, and we are hoping to see good results sooner or later. Right before COVID-19 struck, our group of companies and individuals made a small direct investment in establishing a CAD operation-sharing agreement between Japanese and Slovenian companies. We also established a new advanced mechatronics business in collaboration with MATT d.o.o. in Murska Sobota. Our future goals are to establish young student exchanges between the two countries, with a focus on engineering high school students. Japan needs more young, highly educated engineers with international experience. Slovenia would be a perfect fit for this kind of program, as Slovenes have a high level of intelligence and Slovene society is very safe. Meanwhile, Japan should be able to contribute to Slovenes through traditional Japanese monozukuri, product craft that is both highly technical and highly economical. 67 68 69 PROFILES OF THE ROUND TABLE PARTICIPANTS Dr. Andrej BEKEŠ Dr. Bekeš studied mathematics at the University of Ljubljana and Osaka University. Later he switched his interest to Japanese linguistics, receiving his MA from Osaka University of Foreign Studies in 1981, and his PhD from the University of Tsukuba in 1986. He was appointed as the first Head of the newly established Department of Asian Studies at the University of Ljubljana in 1995. Between 2010 – 2013, he worked as a Professor at the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Tsukuba. In 2008 Dr. Bekeš received the Japan Foundation Award and in 2017 he was decorated with the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette. In 2017 he became Professor Emeritus at the University of Ljubljana. Mag. Jelisava DOBOVŠEK SETHNA Ms. Dobovšek Sethna studied English and Italian at the University of Ljubljana and received her MA in Applied Linguistics from the University of Surrey, UK. She has lived in Japan since 1977, where she has worked as an educator at Japanese high schools and universities. Over the course of 20 years, she ran a program of the Slovene language and Culture at Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, the University of Tokyo and Rikkyo University. She is a co-founder and present director of Linguapax Asia. She is also active as the president of the Slovenian-Japanese Friendship Group. H.E. Minister for Slovenians Abroad, Dr. Helena JAKLITSCH Dr. Helena Jaklitsch graduated in history and sociology at the Faculty of Arts in Ljubljana in 2002. In 2009, she completed her master’s degree at the History Department at the Faculty of Arts in Ljubljana, followed by a doctoral degree in 2016 with her thesis on Slovenian schools in refugee camps in Italy and Austria from 1945 to 1950. She held positions of responsibility at the Ministry of Justice from 2005 to 2014. She was the head of the project team for the operational management of logistic preparations and the implementation of ministry events during Slovenia's Presidency of the EU Council. In 2014, she began working at the Ministry of Culture, first in the Slovenian Language Service and then in the Creativity Directorate. 70 Dr. Tinka DELAKORDA KAWASHIMA Dr. Delakorda Kawashima was one of the first graduates from the new Program of Japanese Studies at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana. She received her MA in Philosophy at the University of Tsukuba and her PhD in Sociology at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana, in 2012. After working as an Assistant Professor at the Department of Asian Studies at the University of Ljubljana for over 7 years, she received a JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship and worked as a part-time Lecturer at the Yamaguchi Prefectural University's Department of Intercultural Studies. She is currently working as an Associate Professor at Hiroshima University. H.E. Mr. Yukio MORI Born in Tokyo, Japan, H.E. Mr. Mori received his BA at Seijo University, and attended Pomona College in California. After founding MTI (Manufacturing Technology Initiative) in California, his growing interest in Slovenia resulted in his founding of the Board of Slovenia-Japan Friendship Association. In 2007, he was appointed as the Honorary Consul of the Republic of Slovenia. He was also the founder and an active member of Fuji Triglav Society. He is an Honorary Member of Slovenia/Japan Business Society in Slovenia, and is actively promoting Slovenian wine in Japan, importing different wines through his company Zaria from the 1990s onwards. Mr. Yasuhiro NAGASAKI Mr. Nagasaki has joined NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) in 1981 and worked for 30 years in the field of international reporting. He worked at NHK Tehran, Prague, Berlin, Geneva, and Moscow Bureaus and was Head of NHK General Bureau for Europe in Paris from 2007 to 2011. After returning to Japan, he served as Head of NHK Kobe station and joined NHK International, Inc., one of the NHK group companies in July, 2014. Since 2015, he has served as Managing Director. Between these postings, he served as an anchorperson for the international news program “World Today” of NHK satellite channel for 4 years. Mr. Nagasaki was stationed in Slovenia in 1991 when the country reached independence, and was reporting on the developments as the reporter on the ground. 71 H.E. Ambassador Plenipotentiary and Extraordinary of the Republic of Slovenia to Japan, Dr. Ana POLAK PETRIČ Dr. Polak Petrič received her BA in Law at the Law Faculty, University of Ljubljana in 2002. In 2007, she completed her master’s degree in Advanced International Studies at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, University of Vienna. Dr. Polak Petrič received her PhD in Law at the European Faculty of Law, Slovenia, in 2014. She was appointed as the High Representative of the Republic of Slovenia for Succession issues for the term of 2014 – 2019. Since 2015, she has been active as an Assistant Professor of International law, Diplomacy and European Law at the European Faculty of Law. Since 2019, she is also appointed Assistant Agent of the Republic of Slovenia at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. She was appointed as the Ambassador Plenipotentiary and Extraordinary of the Republic of Slovenia to Japan and to the Philippines in 2019. H.E. Mr. YASUHISA SHIOZAKI, Parliamentarian and Chairman of the Japan-Slovenia Parliamentary Friendship League H.E. Mr. Shiozaki received his BA at the the University of Tokyo in 1975, where he majored in American Studies. He completed his master's degree at the J.F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in 1982. He was elected to represent the first district of Ehime in the Diet in 1993. He served as Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and was appointed Chief Cabinet Secretary in 2006. He was appointed as Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare in 2014. He has been active as the President of the Japanese and Slovenian Parliamentary Friendship League. 72 III. DEL: SPOMINI NA SLOVENSKO SAMOSTOJNOST IN NA POT DO NJE 1 Janez Mihelčič 2 Jelisava Dobovšek Sethna 3 Igor Leiler 6 Leon Terashima 4 Miran Skender 5 Andrej Bekeš 7 Vladimir Kos 73 JANEZ MIHELČIČ Pred tridesetimi leti sem bil na Japonskem že dobrih dvajset let, najprej kot študent, potem pa kot učitelj ruščine in kot katoliški duhovnik. V Slovenijo sem se bolj redko vračal (nekako vsakih sedem let), povezanost z domačimi in domovino sem ohranjal v glavnem preko pisem po pošti, ker je internet takrat šele nastajal. Osamosvajanje Slovenije sem tako spremljal bolj od daleč, saj sem bil polno zaposlen s predavanji na univerzi. Ko sem izvedel za rezultate referenduma, sem bil zelo ponosen, da s(m)o se znali tako »skupaj vzeti«. Ob tem pa sem tudi dosti premišljeval – zakaj smo Slovenci med seboj velikokrat tako skregani in razdvojeni. Pa se mi je posvetilo, da se morda za tem skriva neka globlja modrost: Slovenci smo maloštevilen slovanski narod, ki se je prebil najdlje na zahod, in je bil vedno pod velikim pritiskom germanskih ali romanskih sosedov. Če bi se v zgodovini slučajno zedinili za »napačno stran«, bi nas že zdavnaj pobralo. Zato je naša znamenita »neenotnost« morda nekakšna, skoraj biološka modrost, ki nam je omogočila, da smo kot narod preživeli … Sem pa zadnje čase prebral kar nekaj zgodovinskih knjig o drugih predelih naše Zemlje in opazil, da neenotnost sploh ni čisto slovenska težava. Vendar sem kljub temu vesel in ponosen, da nam je takrat uspelo, da smo se zedinili in se osamosvojili. Thirty years ago, I had been in Japan already for more than twenty years, first as a student and later as a teacher of the Russian language and as a Catholic priest. To Slovenia, I travelled rarely (about once every seven years); I kept in touch with my family and my homeland through letters by traditional mail, because the internet at that time was just beginning. The process of Slovenia's independence I followed more from afar; I was quite busy with lectures at the university. However, when I learned about the results of the referendum, I was very proud that we were able to muster up such unity. At the same time, I was wondering, why do Slovenians quarrel and fight with each other so often? Then it occurred to me that perhaps there is a deeper wisdom behind this peculiarity: Slovenia is a small Slavic nation that has made its way farthest to the west and has always been under great pressure from Germanic or Romance-speaking neighbors. If we had united ourselves with the "wrong side" in history, we would have disappeared a long time ago. Therefore, our famous “disunity” may be a kind of almost biological wisdom that allowed us to survive as a nation. 74 Recently, I have read a number of history books about other parts of our Earth, and I have noticed that disunity is not a purely Slovenian problem. Nevertheless, I am happy and proud that at that time we managed to unite and become independent. 75 JELISAVA DOBOVŠEK SETHNA SPOMINI NA ČAS SAMOSTOJNOSTI Samostojno Slovenijo sem dočakala na Japonskem, kjer sem z družino prebivala od leta 1977. Mož arhitekt je v tistem času vodil samostojni biro; jaz sem mu pri tem pomagala in bila istočasno zaposlena kot profesorica angleškega jezika, sinova sta obiskovala mednarodno šolo. S svojci in prijatelji v Sloveniji smo bili v tem predinternetnem času v rednem stiku preko pisem in mesečnih telefonskih pogovorov. Vsaj enkrat na tri leta smo se podali tudi na pot v domovino. Ko smo poletí leta 1989 potovali po Sloveniji, sem zaznala povečan izraz domoljubnega zanosa in želje po samostojni Sloveniji. Le-ta se je udejanjila naslednje leto, ko je bil 24. decembra izveden plebiscit za neodvisno Slovenijo. Udeležila sem se ga tudi sama in se skupaj z več kot 90 odstotkov volilnih udeležencev izrekla za samostojnost. Vse se je dogajalo kot v sanjah, preveval nas je občutek evforije in skrb za posledice nam takrat ni bila ovira. Ko je bila 25. junija 1991 proglašena neodvisnost, sem zaradi daljave zamudila tisti evforični trenutek “ko so nam bile dovoljene sanje”. Čez dva dneva nas je preko japonske televizije dosegla novica o napadu JLA na Slovenijo. Vsa zaskrbljena sem poklicala po telefonu starše; odgovorila je mama in mi povedala, da oče in brat kot člana teritorialne obrambe dežurata v bližnjem protiletalskem zaklonišču. Prav v bližini mojega domačega kraja so se odvijali spopadi med vojaki JLA in slovensko teritorialno obrambo. Desetdnevna vojna je bila za nas huda preizkušnja, saj so bile novice skope in kmalu tudi vse komunikacije pretrgane. Evforija se je razblinila in nadomestila sta jo strah in skrb za družino in rojake v Sloveniji. K sreči se je ta prva vojna v Evropi po 2. sv. vojni hitro končala v Sloveniji, medtem ko je zajela druga območja Jugoslavije in v letih, ki so sledila, prinesla veliko gorja tamkajšnjim prebivalcem. Spomladi 1992 sem se odpravila na prvi obisk v novo, samostojno Slovenijo. S seboj sem nosila tudi dva telefaksa, ki sta nam potem v obdobju, ko poštne usluge še niso bile urejene, olajšala komunikacije z domovino. Med obiskom sem srečala veliko prijateljev in znancev, ki so vsi z upanjem stremeli v bodočnost, čeprav je le nekaj sto kilometrov stran divjala vojna in so prvi begunci že iskali zatočišče v bližini mojega rojstnega kraja. Istega leta poletí je starejši sin Zal, takrat star 13 let, sam odpotoval na dolgo pot v Slovenijo, kjer je nekaj tednov obiskoval redni pouk na novomeški osnovni šoli in nato še 76 tečaj slovenskega jezika za učence iz avstrijske Koroške. V Tokio se je vrnil poln novih spoznanj in doživetij ter z bolj izoblikovano slovensko identiteto. V naslednjih dveh letih sem zaključila magisterij iz uporabnega jezikoslovja, nakar se mi je ponudila prilika, da začnem s programom slovenskega jezika in kulture na Tokijski univerzi in kasneje na Tokijski univerzi za tuje študije. V dvajsetih letih do upokojitve leta 2017 sem več sto japonskim študentom predstavila osnove slovenskega jezika in jih seznanila z elementi slovenske kulture in literature. Skupaj s kolegi smo pripravili tudi dva mednarodna simpozija z zbornikom, se udeleževali prevajalskih in kulturnih projektov Centra za slovenščino kot drugi/tuji jezik, predvajali slovenske filme in gostili slovenske pisatelje in filmske režiserje. Študentje so pridobljeno znanje pokazali na slovenskih družabnih prireditvah in proslavah, kjer so recitirali poezijo, pripravljali kvize o Sloveniji in peli slovenske pesmi. Z ustanovitvijo Slovensko-japonske prijateljske skupine leta 2011 smo krog dejavnosti razširili in vanj vključili na Japonskem živeče Slovence, kot tudi Japonce in ljudi drugih narodnosti, ki jim je Slovenija ljuba. Svojo slovensko bit sem na ta način lahko gojila in utrjevala skozi vsa ta leta, za kar sem iz srca hvaležna. 77 78 IGOR LEILER Vsem, ki jih zanima mnenje dedka, ki mu še vedno ni jasno, zakaj se ljudje nenehno prepirajo o tem, kateri bog, če obstaja, je TAPRAVI. Rojen, v tedaj še, jugoslovanski Ljubljani. Rojen v časih, ko so bili partizani in komunisti bogovi. V rosnih letih to seveda sploh ni bilo pomembno. Rojen v družini, ki se je zbrala v velikem številu za božič in praznovala dolgo v noč. A vedno brez starejšega brata, ki je verjel v komunizem in je postal član partije. Le-ta pa ga je ob vsakem božiču poklicala na sestanek, ki je bil bolj pomemben od božiča. Zares so se trudili izgnati vero iz tedanje družbe. To dedka spomni na napore, ki so jih predstavniki vere naredili, da iztrebijo misli, ki so postavile SONCE v center vesolja in izpodrinile ZEMLJO na rob obstoja, ČLOVEKU odvzele center bivanja in ga postavile na obrobje. ČLOVEK pa je bitje, ki ni nikoli zadovoljno z obstoječim znanjem. Vedno znova in znova se poglobi v globine dvomov in išče nove odgovore na stara in nova vprašanja. Dedek, ki to piše, bi bil zelo vesel, če bi bili vsi ljudje takšni, a žal so mu izkušnje pokazale, da se večina ljudi zelo hitro skrije v luknjo, izkopano iz že znanega. Pokukati na dan, pokazati glavo soncu in podvomiti o svojem znanju. NE, to ni preveč popularno. Dvom boli, nov odgovor na staro vprašanje pa ni v skladu z obstoječim mnenjem, zato nov odgovor ne more biti pravilen. No, dedek je malce zašel. Najstniška leta so prišla, z njimi pa srečanje z mnogimi, ki so bili v moderni slovenski zgodovini odgovorni za to in ono. Imen ne bom omenjal: politiki, pesniki, znanstveniki, pisatelji, šarlatani in pijanci, vsega je bilo kar veliko. V tistih letih so se najstniškemu dedku zdeli vsi zelo pametni, vsak pametnejši od drugega. Nekateri so bili že takrat prepričani, da se mora Slovenija osamosvojiti. Razlogov za to je slišal ogromno, a razumel jih ni. Gospodarstvo, politika, vpliv enega na drugega, to je bilo preveč za najstnika. Takrat je še verjel v to, da so ljudje razumni in dobri. Ne samo najstniški znanci in prijatelji, tudi veliko starejših je verjelo v osamosvojitev Slovenije. Toda v tistih časih, ko je bil komunizem predpisana vera, take misli ni bilo mogoče obelodaniti, obelodanjanje bi pomenilo obglavljenje! Potem pa so prišla leta, ko je bilo treba študirati in ni bilo ne časa ne energije, ne zanimanja za kaj drugega (z izjemo punc in piva). Toda sprehod na Grmado zgodnjega nedeljskega jutra pa je dedka-najstnika prebudil. Pogled na Ljubljano, ki je bila zavita v smog, kljub NEDELJI, mu je odprl oči. Odločil se je, da se posveti ekologiji in kmalu po končanem študiju v Ljubljani se je 79 napotil na Japonsko, eno od dežel, kjer je bilo ekologijo mogoče študirati. Verjel je, da bo lahko znanje na tak ali drugačni način uporabil in pomagal pri ustvaritvi malo lepšega okolja. A to se je dogajalo pred približno 40 leti, ko ekologija še ni bila v modi. Ne samo, da ni bila v modi, zasmehovana je bila. Službe v Sloveniji ni našel, univerza za stvar ni bila zainteresirana. Hotel je preživeti in našel je delo na Japonskem. Delo mu je odprlo mnoga vrata, a ekologija je izginila iz zavesti. Potem pa so začele prihajati novice iz tedaj še vedno jugoslovanske Slovenije, ki niso obetale nič lepega. Nekdanja Jugoslavija je začela razpadati. Včeraj prijatelj, danes sovražnik. Včeraj najljubši sin, danes morilec. Jugoslavija je šla skozi pekel in žal so mnogi postali žrtve tedanjih demonov. Slovenija se je osamosvojila, a to dedka ob novicah o tedanjih dogodkih ni preveč razveseljevalo. Vse, kar se je dogajalo v Jugoslaviji, je bilo preveč žalostno, preveč resnično in prenabito s sovraštvom do preteklosti. Osamosvojitev Slovenije?! Dobra stvar za Slovenijo in Slovence? Ne vem! Morda. Verjetno. Vendar … sodbo dedek prepušča jutrišnji zgodovini. Zgodovini, ki bo (dedek UPA) sposobna pogledati na dogodke v nevtralni luči, ki se bo znala (UPA) izogniti čerem sovraštva, ki trenutno onesnažuje Slovenijo po vseh kotih. Kot ekolog dedek takega onesnaženja ne zna odstraniti, kot človek pa vam lahko pove, da ste v zmoti, če mislite, da je vaše mnenje edino pravilno. Partizani niso bili angeli, domobranci pa tudi ne. Današnje Slovenije pa brez partizanov ne bi bilo. Tudi Slovenci bi bili razpršeni po veliki Nemčiji, kar se nekaterim nemškutarjem zdi kar dobro. Verjemite ali ne, tudi nekaj takih ljudi je dedek srečal na občasnih obiskih Slovenije. Ta kratka vinjeta nima konca, ničesar ne zaključuje, nobeni misli na koncu ne postavlja pike ali klicaja. To bo storila prihodnost (???), v kateri dedka ne bo več! 80 81 82 MIRAN SKENDER GOSPODARSKO SODELOVANJE Z JAPONSKO – ZGODBA O USPEHU Minilo je 31 let, odkar sem nekega deževnega marca 1990 prvič prišel na Japonsko, in od takrat naprej je moje življenje za zmeraj povezano s to deželo. Na Japonsko sem odšel iz Lesnine, takrat velike jugoslovanske firme, s katero smo leta 1985 začeli na Japonsko zelo uspešno prodajati pohištvo. Kazalo je dobro, a že konec leta 1990 je Lesnina začela razpadati, in prav tako bivša država. Naslednji dve leti sta bili milo rečeno nenavadni. Z jugoslovanskim potnim listom smo si prizadevali za promocijo nove države, ki je ni nihče poznal. Iz področja nekdanje države pa so na Japonsko prihajale samo grozljive novice o vojni. V takem ozračju smo redki, tam bivajoči Slovenci, začeli Japonce obveščati, kdo smo in kaj hočemo. Vseh 30 let se ukvarjam predvsem z gospodarskim sodelovanjem z Japonsko. Prva tri leta pa sem bil tudi dopisnik RTV Slovenija iz Tokia. Moja povezanost z Japonsko pa temelji na gospodarstvu. Jugoslavija je imela odlične politične odnose z Japonsko, gospodarsko sodelovanje pa je bilo slabo. Elan in LEK sta bila glavna izvoznika. Izvoz pohištva je dobil zalet konec osemdesetih, ko je bilo japonsko gospodarstvo na zgodovinskem vrhuncu (bubble times). 1992 je sledil zlom, » bubble times obilje« je čez noč izginilo, Jugoslavije pa takrat tudi ni bilo več. Japonska nas je priznala spomladi 1992. Še danes mi ni jasno, kako smo preživeli obdobje 90−93. Sledila so leta trdega dela, kar se tiče promocije slovenskega gospodarstva. 1996 smo dobili prvo veliko priložnost – predstavitev slovenskega gospodarstva v Sunshine Cityju v Tokiu. Odziv slovenskega gospodarstva je bil odličen, japonskega pa kar dober. Kakorkoli, Slovenija je od takrat na gospodarskem zemljevidu Japonske. Po tem letu smo se začeli predstavljati na sejmih (Foodex, Furniture Fair itd.) ter izrabljati možnosti, ki so jih ponujale japonske agencije za promocijo gospodarskega sodelovanja (npr. JETRO). V devetdesetih letih je bilo nekaj večjih poskusov Japoncev v Sloveniji žal neuspešnih. Suzuki je želel prevzeti Revoz in Mitsubishi si je zelo prizadeval, da bi dobil projekt zamenjave uparjalnikov v NE Krško. Japonci niso bili uspešni, a kljub temu je mogoče reči, da so bili temelji za prihodnje sodelovanje postavljeni. Malokdo ve, da je bila npr. Yaskawa v Sloveniji aktivna že v 90-ih. Energetika je dobila prvi večji uspešni 83 projekt s črpalno elektrarno Avče, ki jo je dobavil Mitsubishi. Sledila je npr. Toshiba, ki je opremila Pošto Slovenije, Hitachi, ki z Elesom izvaja, lahko rečemo kronski projekt upravljanja z električno energijo, ki se imenuje NEDO, po japonski agenciji za razvoj energetike, ki tudi sofinancira ta zahtevni projekt. Danes imamo v Sloveniji kar več japonskih tovarn za proizvodnjo robotov in ne samo to, ob njih delujejo tudi močni razvojni oddelki, ki tesno sodelujejo s slovenskimi univerzami itd. Skratka, postajamo to, o čemer smo sanjali pred 30 leti, pomemben japonski evropski center za skupen razvoj in komercializacijo novih tehnologij in izdelkov. O tem, kaj se je dogajalo na področju gospodarskega sodelovanja z Japonsko v zadnjih 30 letih, je mogoče napisati debelo knjigo. A sklenem lahko z dvojim: Slovenija postaja pomemben evropski partner japonskemu gospodarstvu, ki je še zmeraj tretje največje na svetu. Še posebej pa me veseli, da je gospodarsko sodelovanje sledilo odličnemu sodelovanju na drugih področjih, zlasti na področju znanosti in izobraževanja ter sodelovanju z japonskimi univerzami. 84 85 ANDREJ BEKEŠ 30 LET: SLOVENSKA NEODVISNOST VIDENA Z JAPONSKE Konec osemdesetih let v Sloveniji. Po devetih letih študija na Japonskem sem štiri leta od aprila 1986 do marca 1990 preživel v Ljubljani, delal sem kot raziskovalec in predavatelj. To je bilo tudi obdobje izrazite demokratizacije v slovenski in širše v jugoslovanski družbi. Še posebej v Sloveniji je bilo po "svinčenih letih" res vzpodbudno videti, kako so kulturna scena in kritični mediji iz dneva v dan postajali vse bolj dinamični. To je bilo tudi obdobje poglabljanja gospodarskih težav in čas vojaških procesov na Roški, posledica česar je bila, da se je slovensko prebivalstvo združilo v zahtevi za zaščito človekovih pravic vseh obtoženih. Konflikt med konservativnimi in liberalnimi elementi se je poglabljal, kar je privedlo do svobodnih volitev v Sloveniji v začetku leta 1990, referendum ob koncu tega leta pa je potrdil željo slovenskega ljudstva po samostojnosti. Materinski instinkt je imel prav. Aprila 1990 sem se z družino vrnil na Japonsko, kot gostujoči profesor na Univerzi v Tsukubi. Po uspelem referendumu o neodvisnosti smo Slovenci na Japonskem, čeprav v nekaki napetosti, bili večinoma optimisti, saj smo verjeli, da bo samostojnost Slovenije dosežena mirno. Prav tako tudi japonski kolegi na moji univerzi. Celo dražili smo študenta, ki bi junija 1991 moral na študentsko prakso v Slovenijo, a si je zaradi materinih skrbi nad nestabilno politično situacijo premislil. 25. junija 1991 je bila razglašena neodvisnost. In potem je Jugoslovanska ljudska armada (JLA) 27. junija prišla iz vojašnic. Poročila so začela prihajati naslednji dan. Z javne TV NHK so me prosili za prevajanje novic, ki prihajajo iz Slovenije. Novinar, ki je iz Slovenije pošiljal gradivo, je bil njihov dopisnik Yasuhiro NAGASAKI. Kar sem videl, je bilo uničujoče. Tanki, ki drvijo po bukoličnem podeželju in streljajo na kmečke domačije. Reaktivna letala JLA, ki so bombardirala Gornjo Radgono. Dolga vrsta bombardiranih tovornjakov v južni Sloveniji. Slike, za katere sem mislil, da pripadajo le vojnim filmom ali dokumentarcem iz 2. svetovne vojne, so bile slike vojne, ki so se dejansko dogajale v moji državi. Moj dobri prijatelj me je potolažil z besedami Du Fuja: "Države ni več, gore in reke pa so še vedno tam ... 86 Informacije o razmerah v Sloveniji. Gospod Janez PREMOŽE, takratni predstavnik NLB (Nove Ljubljanske banke), se je že tedaj dobro spoznal na internet in vsem Slovencem na Japonskem, ki jih je lahko dosegel, po faksu in po pošti dostavljal izpise novic iz Slovenije, dostopnih na internetu. Po drugi strani pa so japonski tiskani mediji kot tudi večina mednarodnih medijev s svojimi dopisniki, ki so kajpada vsi bili locirani v prestolnici, poročali skoraj izključno z vidika jugoslovanske zvezne vlade. Edina izjema, in zame dragocen dodaten vir informacij, je bil presenetljivo organ japonske komunistične partije Akahata Shinbun. Njihov mladi in ambiciozni dopisnik, ki je odlično razumel jugoslovanske kompleksnosti, Zen CHIDA, je v svojih dopisih predstavil uravnoteženo sliko dogodkov v zgodnjih dneh vojne. Kasneje ga je nadomestil bolj ortodoksen starejši novinar ... Znova je zavladal mir. Vojna − nekateri ji raje rečejo spopad − je trajala 10 dni. V primerjavi s tem, kar se je dogajalo kasneje na Hrvaškem in v Bosni, še sreča. Konec julija 1991 je bilo dovolj mirno, da sem se lahko napotil v Slovenijo. Na mejni kontroli letališča Heathrow so me pozdravili z "Ah, še eden od tistih". Letala tedaj v Slovenijo niso letela. Ko sem z vlakom z Dunaja končno prispel v Šentilj, nisem mogel zadržati solz. Potem pa je bilo avgusta dovolj mirno, da sta se mi pridružili tudi žena in najina hčerkica. Dejanska neodvisnost in mednarodno priznanje. Na olajšanje vseh je zadnji vojak JLA zapustil Slovenijo konec oktobra 1991. Dejanska neodvisnost je bila tu. Kmalu zatem je sledilo mednarodno priznanje. Februarja 2002 je slovenska delegacija z zunanjim ministrom Dimitrijem RUPLOM prišla na Japonsko, da bi se pogajala o priznanju s strani Japonske. Prosili so me za tolmačenje. Ker na Japonskem nisem imel ustrezne obleke, sem si jo moral sposoditi pri prijatelju. Sicer pa je bil vtis delegacije na Japonskem na gostitelje očitno pozitiven, saj je kmalu zatem sledilo priznanje Slovenije. Nova država - nove ideje: širitev kulturnih in jezikovnih obzorij. Leta 1993 je slovensko Ministrstvo za šolstvo v še vedno relativno neugodnih gospodarskih razmerah imelo vizijo osvežiti univerzitetne programe z novimi vsebinami, primernimi za novo neodvisno državo. Tako je bil na Filozofski fakulteti Univerze v Ljubljani leta 1995 ustanovljen ambiciozno zveneči "Oddelek za azijske in afriške študije" (zdaj Oddelek za azijske študije), ki je 1. oktobra istega leta začel japonske študije (2 učitelja) in kitajske študije (3 učitelji). Postal sem prvi predstojnik oddelka in vodja katedre za japonologijo. Na oddelku sem poučeval 21 let, vse do upokojitve konec leta 2016. V svojih 26 letih obstoja je na oddelku na področju japonskih študij diplomiralo približno 250 diplomantov, približno 100 magistrov ter 10 doktorjev znanosti, približno enako ali celo večje pa je število tistih, ki so končali kitajske študije. Od leta 2015 je na oddelku tudi program korejskih 87 študij. Nekateri diplomanti japonskih študij delajo tudi kot profesorji na japonskih univerzah in nekaterih univerzah v Evropi. Oddelek zdaj ponuja tudi izbirne predmete, kot sta sanskrt in jezik hindi. Programi sodelovanja in izmenjav s številnimi japonskimi, kitajskimi in korejskimi univerzami dobro delujejo. Z veseljem opažam, da gre dejansko za dvosmeren proces, saj se sedaj slovenski jezik poučuje tudi na nekaterih japonskih in kitajskih univerzah. Toda najbolj vidna so morda prizadevanja na področju prevajanja. Naši diplomanti so v tem času prevedli številna sodobna in tudi klasična literarna dela iz japonske, kitajske in nedavno tudi korejske književnosti. Posledica vseh teh prizadevanj je, da sta Japonska in Vzhodna Azija v celoti postajata Sloveniji vse bližje. Prav tako se tudi akademske, kulturne in gospodarske vezi vedno bolj krepijo. Obeti za prihodnost. Skupaj s poglabljanjem akademskih vezi se bodo še naprej razvijale tudi gospodarske vezi, kot sem prepričan, pa tudi kulturne vezi. 88 89 90 Slovensko japonska prijateljska skupina - Mar3novanje 2018 91 LEON TERASHIMA PRAZNUJEMO 30 LET NEODVISNOSTI! Čas beži. Od tistega dneva, ko sem Slovenijo obiskal leto dni po osamosvojitvi, je minilo že 30 let. Takrat sem bil star 17 let in sem hodil v srednjo šolo na Japonskem. Rad bi zapisal nekaj spominov iz tistega časa. Bilo je poletje, ko sem šel z letališča v Ljubljano, kjer sem nekaj dni preživel pri sorodnikih, ki so živeli blizu centra mesta. V Ljubljani sploh nisem imel občutka, da je pravkar minila vojna. Nakupoval sem v Nami ter se sprehajal po mestu kot ponavadi, ampak če dobro pomislim, sem res imel nenavaden občutek, da nenadoma nisem več v Jugoslaviji, ampak v Sloveniji. Tretji dan mojega bivanja v Ljubljani sem se srečal s predsednikom Kučanom, prvim predsednikom Slovenije. Ker sem imel le 17 let, sem bil zaradi srečanja in pogovora zelo nervozen. Obiskal sem zgradbo, kjer je bil takrat predsednik, in v pogovoru z njim pokril več različnih področij. Predsednik me je vprašal, ali se je v mojih očeh kaj spremenilo, odkar je Slovenija postala neodvisna. Povprašal me je tudi o razlikah med Japonsko in Slovenijo. Spomnim se, da sem mu omenil ustrežljivost prodajalcev v Sloveniji, kjer je seveda še vedno prevladoval socialistični način razmišljanja, ter o gostoljubnosti Slovencev. Poleg tega sem omenil tudi japonski običaj, kjer je stranka vedno na prvem mestu. Kot eno izmed večjih razlik med državama sem omenil odnos zaposlenih do strank. Ko sem na primer gledal oblačila v nakupovalnem središču in iskal svojo velikost ali garderobo, so se prodajalci ves čas le naslanjali na steno, se smejali in pogovarjali. Od začetka do konca nisem dobil zadovoljive postrežbe. Še vedno se dobro spomnim, da si je predsednik začel delati zapiske, ko sem govoril o tem, da na peronu na železniških postajah še vedno ni oznak za slepe in o drugih stvareh, ki manjkajo v Sloveniji. O tem sem govoril, čeprav me je ves čas skrbelo, da sem bil s svojimi komentarji preveč predrzen. OD RDEČE DO MODRE Mislim, da ta sprememba ni bila lahka in da je bilo to tisto leto, ko so se vsi državljani začeli zavedati, da skupna miselnost preteklosti ne bo enaka kot v prihodnosti. Naslednji dan, po srečanju s predsednikom, sem se odpeljal do Metlike, kjer je živela moja babica. Bil sem šokiran in prestrašen, saj sem v okolici Metlike čutil sledi vojne, ki jih v Ljubljani ni bilo čutiti. 92 Z mosta na reki Kolpi, po kateri poteka meja med Hrvaško in Metliko, sem na strani Metlike videl več pogorelih avtobusov, od katerih je ostala samo pločevina, in velike zapreke za tanke, narejene iz delov železniških tirov, ki so bili položeni ob cesti. Babica mi je povedala, da so se morali pogosto, ko se je zaslišal letalski alarm, vsi stanovalci, tudi iz petega nadstropja, evakuirati v zaklonišče, ki je bilo v kleti. S tem sem zares spoznal, kako težko je bilo tisti čas moji babici. Zdaj, 30 let kasneje, mislim, da se je Slovenija zelo spremenila in postala čudovita država. Ima globalno perspektivo, zaveda se pomembnosti gostoljubnosti in je okoljsko ozaveščena, kljub temu da je majhna država. Dandanes sem na Slovenijo zelo ponosen. Nazadnje sem obiskal Slovenijo poleti 2019 in jo nameravam ponovno obiskati aprila naslednje leto. Želim si, da bi spet videl živahno in prijazno Slovenijo, ki je uspešno premagala korono. 93 94 VLADIMIR KOS MOJ POTNI LIST ČEZ LETA TRI − ČE BOG DA − BOM STO LET … MOJ POTNI LIST − ODKAR ŽIVIM V TUJINI JE VES SLOVENSKI! FOTO LE JE BLED: KOT DA DOLŽAN SEM NEKAJ ZGODOVINI … SLOVENSKEGA PEČATA NI ME SRAM − DRŽAVA SMO − PEČAT TO IZPRIČUJE! IN TUDI, ČE BOM MORAL KDAJ DRUGAM … SLOVENSKI POTNI LIST Z MENOJ POTUJE! PO BARVAH MI SLOVENIJA DIŠI: V POMLAD CVETOV, V ZAMAKNJENOST PLANINE, V JESEN SADOV IN GOB, V ZLATÓ IZ VIN … IN V ZIMO S SNEGOM, Z ANGELČKI IZ GLINE. Vladimir Kos, april 2021 95 96 SPREMNA BESEDA 97 ANA POLAK PETRIČ OBETAVNA PRIHODNOST ZA PRIJATELJSKO SODELOVANJE MED SLOVENIJO IN JAPONSKO V letu 2022 bomo praznovali 30. obletnico vzpostavitve diplomatskih odnosov med Slovenijo in Japonsko. Slednja je priznala Slovenijo kot samostojno državo 17. marca 1992, dva meseca pred vstopom Slovenije v Organizacijo združenih narodov, diplomatski odnosi pa so bili vzpostavljeni 12. oktobra 1992. Kdo bi lahko menil, da je Japonska podelila priznanje "pozno" ali vsaj kasneje, kot si je mlada, nova država Slovenija želela. A glede na okoliščine takratnega časa ter znano navezanost Japonske na ameriška stališča glede pomembnih geostrateških globalnih vprašanj, kar so takrat predstavljali padec komunizma in berlinskega zidu ter razpad Sovjetske zveze in Jugoslavije, je bila previdnost pričakovana. Slovenija je veleposlaništvo v Tokiu odprla februarja 1993, Japonska pa v Ljubljani januarja 2006. Stiki med Slovenci in Japonci so seveda obstajali že daleč pred tem. Če omenimo le nekaj posameznikov, ki so poskrbeli za to, velja najprej izpostaviti Almo Karlin, Celjanko, ki je na svojem potovanju okoli sveta na Japonsko prispela pred stotimi leti, leta 1922, in tam ostala dobro leto. Japonska jo je očarala. Od tam je v Evropo pošiljala potopise in predmete, in kasneje, ko je v vrtincu dogajanj med in po drugi svetovni vojni živela v revščini in bolezni se ni poslovila od svojega kimona. Njena zbirka iz Japonske še danes domuje v Pokrajinskem muzeju Celje. Še eno zanimivo dediščino japonskih predmetov je Sloveniji zapustil tudi nekdanji jugoslovanski veleposlanik Franc Kos, ki je na Japonskem služboval od leta 1958 do 1962. Pomemben pečat kulturnemu sodelovanju med Slovenijo in Japonsko pa so dali tudi stiki z japonskimi likovnimi umetniki, posebej preko ljubljanskega grafičnega bienala. V težkem povojnem času je leta 1956 na Japonsko pripotoval pater dr. Vladimir Kos, ki je v redu jezuitov opravljal misijonarsko delo in v zavetišču tokijskega predmestja skrbel za revne otroke in mlade. Hkrati je kot dolgoletni profesor predaval na tokijski univerzi Sophia, še danes pa ustvarja poezijo v slovenskem in japonskem jeziku, zaradi česar je njegov doprinos k zbliževanju Slovenije in Japonske še posebej pomemben. To je bilo prepoznano tudi z državnim odlikovanjem zlati red za zasluge Republike Slovenije, ki ga je prejel leta 1994. Prav tako je tudi pater Janez Mihelčič na Japonskem opravljal misijonarsko in profesorsko delo. Tudi poučevanje jezikov, ki je danes eden temeljev izobraževalnega in kulturnega sodelovanja med državama, izhaja še iz časov nekdanje Jugoslavije. 98 Poosebljata ga dva na Japonskem živeča Slovenca. Zasl. prof. dr. Andrej Bekeš, ki je bil po študiju japonskega jezikoslovja kmalu po slovenski osamosvojitvi eden od pobudnikov ustanovitve Oddelka za azijske študije na Filozofski fakulteti v Ljubljani in je tudi eden redkih Slovencev z japonskim visokim odlikovanjem ter mag. Jelisava Dobovšek Sethna, ki je v Tokiu več let vodila lektorat slovenskega jezika in je danes predsednica društva Slovensko-japonskega prijateljstva. Njunemu delu so sledili številni profesorji, prevajalci in lektorji ter študenti na obeh straneh, ki danes soustvarjajo in poosebljajo sodelovanje med Slovenijo in Japonsko. O Sloveniji je v okviru zgodovine Jugoslavije pisal in raziskoval prof. dr. Nobuhiro Šiba, ki je igral pomembno vlogo tudi v času slovenske osamosvojitve z osveščanjem in seznanjam japonske javnosti o zgodovinskih in družbenih okoliščinah, za kar je prejel tudi slovensko državno odlikovanje. Drugi številni Japonci in Slovenci so v času osamosvojitve nesebično in iskreno delovali v prid nove samostojne države. Ker je ta publikacija posvečena prav njim in vsebuje njihove spomine in zapis aktivnosti, jih na tem mestu posebej ne izpostavljamo. * * * Danes uradno velja, da so dvostranski odnosi med Slovenijo in Japonsko "prijateljski in brez odprtih vprašanj". To dikcijo uporabljamo v svojih razgovorih diplomati, a dejstvo je, da takšni odnosi med državami niso samoumevni in da ta dokaj suhoparna fraza skriva v sebi razvejano, učinkovito in v prihodnost usmerjeno sodelovanje med dvema narodoma. Aktualni politični odnosi so na visoki ravni, kar se izkazuje v številnih visokih obiskih v zadnjih letih. Če omenimo le nekaj najbolj aktualnih – predsednik Slovenije g. Borut Pahor je s svojim obiskom v Tokiu jeseni 2019 počastil ustoličenje novega japonskega cesarja; Slovenijo je konec aprila 2021 obiskal zunanji minister Japonske g. Tošimitsu Motegi, le dve leti prej pa tudi njegov predhodnik g. Taro Kono. Ministrica za izobraževanje, znanost in šport dr. Simona Kustec pa se je poleti 2021 udeležila otvoritve tokijskih olimpijskih iger. Na obeh straneh v parlamentu delujeta tudi skupini prijateljstva, ki skrbita za medparlamentarno sodelovanje. Gospodarsko sodelovanje med državama je v vzponu, rezultate nam zavidajo tudi države v soseščini. Slovenija je namreč uspela privabiti številne pomembne japonske investicije, posebej na področju robotike in z visoko dodano vrednostjo. Med njimi naj omenimo tovarno Yaskawa v Kočevju, Daihen v Lendavi, Kansai Paint ter Sumitomo Rubber Industries. Omenjeni projekti so danes videni kot primer dobre prakse in vzor številnim interesentom na japonski strani, ki si zaradi pandemije in želje po večji diverzifikaciji proizvodnje zamišljajo prodor na nove trge, posebej v Srednji in Vzhodni 99 Evropi in na Zahodnem Balkanu. Tu ima Slovenija prednosti, ki so že prepoznane s strani japonskega gospodarstva. Japonska je strateško uvrščena kot ena izmed najpomembnejših trgovinskih partneric in investitorjev v Programu spodbujanja investicij in internacionalizacije slovenskega gospodarstva 2020−2024. Luka Koper postaja čedalje pomembnejše pristanišče za vstop v Srednjo in Jugovzhodno Evropo. Na Japonsko slovenska podjetja izvažajo številne produkte, od najbolj tehnološko razvitih – na primer Cosylab in Omega Air, do odličnih vin, bučnega olja in piranske soli. Potenciali za sodelovanje so na področjih obnovljivih virov energije, novih tehnologij v kmetijstvu, zdravstvu ter pri uresničevanju t. i. Družbe 5.0, koncepta napredne visokotehnološko razvite družbe, a prijazne človeku in z ohranjanjem njegovega dostojanstva in pravic. Pomemben projekt sodelovanja je tudi z japonsko državno agencijo za nove tehnologije (NEDO), ki v partnerstvu s Hitachijem in Elesom in številnimi drugimi postavlja v Sloveniji t. i. pametno omrežje. Glede na dosedanje uspehe in zaznan interes se zdi, da se za poglobitev gospodarskega sodelovanja med državama ni bati, za kar bosta skrbela še naprej tudi oba poslovna gospodarska sveta. Žal Slovenija po zaključku uspešnega, srčnega in predanega dela g. Yukija Morija na Japonskem nima častnega konzula, kar bi v prihodnje morali nasloviti. Pandemija je prizadela blagovno menjavo med državama, še posebej turistični sektor, ki pa ima velik potencial, ko bo Japonska ponovno odprla svoje meje in bo v Evropi število okužb manjše. Zanimanje za Slovenijo je v času olimpijskih in paraolimpijskih iger 2020 samo še naraslo. Tudi sicer je sodelovanje med državama na področju športa dolgoletno in produktivno. Kdo v Sloveniji ne pozna japonskih skakalnih šampinjonov, na Japonskem pa slavnega Luke Dončića? Ta športni duh sodelovanja je japonska stran nedavno okronala z visokima odlikovanjema olimpijcu g. Juriju Franku in predsedniku Olimpijskega komiteja Slovenije g. Bogdanu Gabrovcu. Tudi slovenski in japonski znanstveniki sodelujejo na številnih področjih, najbolj odmevno je v navezavi Inštituta Jožef Stefan z japonskim Inštitutom KEK v Tsukubi v okviru projekta Belle2 in delovanja trkalnika SuperKEKB. Gre za raziskovanje "nove fizike", pri kateri igrajo pomembno vlogo slovenski znanstveniki pod vodstvom direktorja Inštituta KEK prof. dr. Masanorija Yamaučija, ki je za izjemne zasluge pri uveljavljanju slovenske znanosti v tujini prejel tudi slovensko državno odlikovanje. Priložnosti za poglobitev znanstvenega sodelovanja se bodo v prihodnje nudile v okviru Horizon Europe, pa tudi Mednarodnega raziskovalnega centra za umetno inteligenco pod okriljem UNESCO (IRCAI) v Ljubljani. Naj poudarimo, da danes na japonskih univerzah predavajo odlični slovenski profesorji, med njimi dr. Godler, dr. Bertalanič, dr. Delakorda Kawashima in dr. Hodošček. 100 Učenje japonskega jezika v Sloveniji postaja vedno bolj popularno in aktivnosti Oddelka za azijske študije na Filozofski fakulteti ter Raziskovalnega središča za Vzhodno Azijo so razvejane. Lahko bi rekli, da je Slovenija ustvarila pravi rod mladih japonologov in prevajalcev, ki danes s poznavanjem Japonske in s svojim delom vidno prispevajo k poglabljanju razumevanja med dvema državama. Čeprav pa se večina Japoncev odloči za učenje slovenščine v okviru študija drugih slovanskih jezikov, je njihova predanost hvalevredna in zato lektorat slovenskega jezika na Tokijski univerzi za tuje študije ostaja pomemben del promocije Slovenije na Japonskem. * * * Slovenija in Japonska imata, še posebej v luči članstva Slovenije v EU in njenega predsedovanja Svetu EU leta 2021, številne točke skupnega interesa tudi glede prihodnje ureditve sveta. Postajamo pomembni partnerji na področju t. i. zelenega okrevanja in boja proti klimatskim spremembam, pri zaščiti demokratičnega sveta, človekovih pravic in multilateralizma, pri izvajanju aktivnosti v regijah Zahodnega Balkana in Indopacifika, če omenimo le nekatere izmed njih. Na Japonskem se je na primer začel izvajati slovenski projekt Naše pravice, katerega namen je učenje otrok o njihovih pravicah, da bi s tem pripomogli k solidarni, enakopravni in strpni družbi. Japonska je tudi redna donatorka sredstev za aktivnosti v Sloveniji ustanovljene neprofitne Ustanove za krepitev človekove varnosti (ITF). Odnosi med EU in Japonsko kot podobno mislečim partnerjem v Aziji temeljijo na strateškem zavezništvu, ki bo ob naraščajočih tenzijah v svetu ter rivalstvu med dvema velesilama ZDA in Kitajsko, vedno bolj pomembno za ohranjanje globalne stabilnosti in varnosti. EU in Japonska sta leta 2018 sklenili dva ključna sporazuma, na katerih temelji medsebojno sodelovanje in ki ponujata neslutene potenciale nadaljnjega povezovanja – prostotrgovinski Ekonomski partnerski sporazum (EPA) ter Sporazum o strateškem partnerstvu (SPA). Doprinos slovenskega poslanca v Evropskem parlamentu g. Lojzeta Petrleta pri pripravi slednjega je bil prepoznan z japonske strani z visokim odlikovanjem cesarja. Med EU in Japonsko je bilo nedavno sklenjeno tudi Zeleno zavezništvo s ciljem okrepitve usklajenih prizadevanj za pospešitev podnebnih in okoljskih ukrepov; tu je še Partnerstvo za povezljivost in najnovejša Strategija EU za sodelovanje v Indo-Pacifiku. Obstaja torej plejada idej in podlag na prihodnje sodelovanje med Slovenijo kot članico EU in Japonsko, ki presega meje dvostranskega sodelovanja v ožjem pomenu besede. * * * 101 Čeprav jih ne moremo beležiti s statistikami in dokumenti, so pomemben, morda najpomembnejši del tkanja prijateljskih vezi med državama kulturni projekti, študentske izmenjave, restavracije z odlično hrano in pijačo obeh držav (ena takih je vsekakor Pikapolonca v Kjotu), sajenje lip in japonskih češenj, igranje harmonike ali šamisena, ter enostavno medčloveški, vsakodnevni stiki med prebivalci Slovenije in Japonske. Stiki med vsemi tistimi, ki v tem nepopolnem zapisu niso omenjeni in ki s svojimi dejanji prispevajo k medsebojnemu razumevanju, zbliževanju in solidarnosti med državama. To pa tudi je in bo ostalo glavno vodilo delovanja veleposlaništva Slovenije v Tokiu. Zaradi vseh nanizanih dosedanjih dosežkov in prihajajočih načrtov bomo 30. obletnico odnosov med Slovenijo in Japonsko praznovali z velikim optimizmom, da se bo prijateljstvo in sodelovanje med državama razvijalo še naprej. In tudi s hvaležnostjo vsem, s katerimi smo skupaj prispevali k tako razvejani in produktivni interakciji med dvema sicer geografsko, kulturno in zgodovinsko oddaljenima narodoma. Praznovanje leta 2022 bo zato posvečeno vsem posameznikom, ki so zaslužni za to – od visokih državnih predstavnikov, veleposlanikov in ekip veleposlaništev, akademikov, gospodarstvenikov, kulturnikov, jezikoslovcev, do vseh ljudi na obeh straneh, ki so stkali to pristno prijateljstvo med dvema čudovitima deželama – deželo na sončni strani Alp in deželo vzhajajočega sonca. 102 103 104 105 106 107 ZAHVALI / THANKS / Za finančno podporo pri izidu te knjižice se zahvaljujemo Uradu Vlade republike Slovenije za Slovence v zamejstvu in po svetu in Japonsko-sloven-skemu poslovnemu svetu. We would like to thank The Government Office for Slovenians Abroad and the Japan-Slovenia Business Council for their financial support in publishing this booklet. Posebna zahvala vsem študentom japonologije in njihovim mentorjem na Filozofski fakulteti Univerze v Ljubljani in študentom slovenskega jezika na Tokijski univerzi za tuje jezike ter Centru za slovenščino kot drugi in tuji jezik za pomoč pri prevajanju besedil. Special thanks to the students and teachers of Japanese Studies at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana and of Slovene language at Tokyo University of Foreign Studies and the Centre for Slovene as a Second and Foreign language for their help with translation work. OPOMBA Fotografije, kjer vir ni označen, so iz privatnih zbirk JD Sethna in A Bekeša. 108