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50 Japanese attend memorial ceremony
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Posted on Jul 09 2008
Fifty Japanese attended the first Northern Marianas Memorial ceremony held yesterday at 10am at Marpi, during which they prayed for those who perished on the island during World War II.
The group arrived two days ago with their leader, Chiaki Nagumo, who has been named an honorary tourism ambassador for the CNMI for a year now.
Nagumo was on Saipan two years ago, where he did a beach cleanup at the Paupau Beach with Beautify CNMI.
The Marianas Visitors Authority organized everything such as the tents, chairs, and speakers for yesterday’s ceremony.
“I am pleased to join you in this memorial ceremony. Since the end of World War II, the CNMI has seen significant increase in the number of memorial monuments in the CNMI,” said Marianas Visitors Authority managing director Perry John Tenorio during a speech after the ceremony.
“Monuments such as this one serves as a place to remember departed love ones and to pray for world peace. As the years goes by, let us continue to pay tribute to our fallen loved ones by remembering them in our hearts and continue to pray for peace,” he added.
“The people of Japan and the Northern Marianas have strong ties spanning over 87 years, beginning with their administration of the islands as a Japanese Mandated Territory. Your presence here is a testament bond of friendship is as strong now as it was then,” he said. “I extend our appreciation for your visit and we look forward to welcoming you back to our islands in the near future.”
Japanese singer Goro Noguchi, who got married to Japanese actress Yuri Mitsui on Rota in 2001, was at the ceremony yesterday.
Today, Noguchi will be joined by other Japanese celebrities such as Kojiro Shimizu, Tamotsu Ishibashi, Shoko Hamada, Yoshimi Hamasaki, and Marika Minami in a charity concert at the Sandcastle of the Hyatt Regency Saipan at 6pm. Tickets are available at the Sandcastle counter for $100 for two persons. The ticket includes a three-course dinner with coffee and tea.
For further information, call Ms. Kobayashi at 483-7265.
