Preservation of Kudan: Promotes Lasting Friendship and Peace Between The Philippines and Japan

(image is from the Philippine Embassy Tokyo website):

Recently, Ambassador Manuel M. Lopez and his wife, Maritess Lopez welcomed the dignitaries at the book launching of “History and Heritage of The Kudan, The Official Residence of the Philippine Ambassador to Japan.” The book is one of the Philippine projects to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Japan.

The guests were headed by Hon. Katsunobo Kato, Minister-in-charge of Promoting Dynamic Engagement of All Citizens; State Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Yoji Muto, and Ms. Yoko Ono Lennon, artist, musician, peace activist and wife of the late Beatles legend John Lennon. The guests included the members of the Diplomatic Corps, ranking members of the Japanese Diet, top business executives, and Philippine National Artist for Visual Art BenCab.

The ambassador called for the preservation of the official residence of Philippine Ambassadors to Japan, they called Kudan, he emphasized the historic and cultural value which is now an integral part of the history of Philippine diplomacy in Japan. Aims to raise the awareness and deepen the appreciation of Filipinos and Japanese on the importance of Kudan as it continuously provided an indispensable backdrop for the implementation of Philippine foreign policy in relation to Japan.

For her part, Ms. Yoko Ono Lennon describes Kudan as the venue for establishing and promoting lasting peace and friendship between the Philippines and Japan. Ms. Ono conveyed her best wishes for the Philippines and, in echoing her advocacy for universal peace and an end to all wars, expressed the hope that “our countries can now always be friends…instead of boxing.”

For his part, Minister Kato stressed that Philippine-Japan bilateral relation is at its height supported by the strong relation of mutual trust between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Benigno S. Aquino III. Minister Kato expressed the hope that this historically valuable Ambassador’s Residence would be continuously maintained in good condition in the future.

The Kudan residence is an Iberian-style building that was built in the 1930s for Iwajiro Yasuda. Kudan was purchased by the Philippine government in 1944. Kudan is one of the few architecturally important houses in its original form left in Japan from the prewar era. It has been the subject of studies by Japanese architecture scholars and is considered a historically important building by the Chiyoda local government. On 11 March 2013, the residence was declared a national historical landmark property by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines.