Director of Kobe International Sustaining Organization
Pastor of Kobe International Christ Church
It’s a scene just after the big tsunami that had happened almost 10 years ago. I saw many cars stuck vertically in the rice fields. The car is a symbol of convenience. Miyagi Prefecture supports large consumption city Tokyo as the major rice-producing prefecture. The paddy fields were moaning in sludge and debris brought by the black tsunami. During the time of escaping from the tsunami, it was dangerous to use the car since all of the cars congested and clocked the roads. Highways were destructed and twisted, airports lost their functions because of the tsunami, and fishing ports where were the center place of fisheries were completely destroyed.
Our visit to Ishinomaki City Miyagi Prefecture through 15 hours of driving from Kobe by saying “We will come again” to local people reached 112 times. What made us do so? Our actions didn’t come from the act of an evangelist. Our sensitivities were directly linked to our actions. In the past, there is a history that rice cultivation in severe cold regions cruelly made Tohoku people suffering. People went away from home to work in the city and daughters had been sold even after the war.
In the 1950s, there was no farming machines, small pickup trucks, or chemical fertilizers for Tohoku farmers. The peasants were at the mercy of the national policy “tanshyu (反収: the rice yield per 10 areas)” that was driven by the government. Volunteers from Kobe have begun to struggle with the soil covered by the tsunami mud. We were also in a blind effort like pioneers to the salty rice fields. We only had an innocent spirit of being with local people. We didn’t have any skills. It was probably a reckless action. It is a problem if stink bugs appear because of pesticide-free and organic farming style. And we felt cold looks, “You all from the city can’t bear the severe nature”.
I felt pain in my intestine duodenum for a few days before we leave from Kobe because of my “anxiety”. I could not sleep. We purchased rice seedlings that do not contain neonicotinoid-based pesticides from Osaki City. We also started to receive supports from Yasuda Shigeru, Professor Emeritus of Kobe University, and also local farmers. Young people heard about our activities and began to participate in one after another from all over Japan. My wife, Kayoko, took care of the management of contacts between participants. And she encouraged me with her prayers.
We listen to our creator’s voice, “Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground”. Since I am an unpaid pastor, so I kept giving hard time with my wife. Unlike in the past, not humans but the earth became the other party to us. Kayoko handed us her hand-made meal boxes and sent out the participants with her smiles while waving her hands. We were just worried about undiscovered tasks. We began to take our steps like a baby. Never give up even if we stumbled and made scars on our foreheads, and just keep going.
In September, we experienced with children, who will be responsible for the next generation, that our ninth rice harvest in Ishinomaki City where is the place of agriculture, forestry, and fishing. We were delighted to work together with the locals.
SILATURA HMI: Clerk of Central Sulawesi Province, Yoshio Iwamura who met with Hidayat Lamakarate.
MUGNI SUPARDI Reporter
ENTERTAINING:
Yoshio Iwamura started taking care of Firdaus, one of the children who lost their parents due to Petobo fluidization.
Japanese, Yoshio Iwamura supports children of victims of Palu
PALU-aims to help children affected by earthquakes, tsunamis and Firdaus in Central Sulawesi Province. Men who came from Japan are looking for children who have no children. Children of victims without parents have a place to live in one of the facilities, and funds are provided by foster parents until they can grow and become independent. A children’s facility will be built at BTN Palupi Permai, Blok. V5. No.14. It is “Kayoko Children Home”. Kayoko himself was taken from the name of his wife who died about three years ago. As this couple was not blessed with children, Yoshio Iwamura is out in the world to help the abandoned and orphaned children.
“Kayoko Children Home” is told in the journal that an orphan will be provided with an education fee of 3,000 yen per month, until an adult at an institution.
In this support, Yoshio Iwamura is a donation raised by Japanese people for children affected by the disaster. First, Yoshio Iwamura came to Pal on September 31, 2018, three days after the earthquake. He rescued with BASARNAS members.
Yoshio Iwamura met with Dr. Ir.Edward Abdurrahman, Director of M.Sc, and Dr. Maryoko Hadi, Geologist. The agenda for building educational institutions in various places in Indonesia, how to respond to volcanic eruptions, and how much support from Japan was discussed for about two hours. After that, Yoshio Iwamura were handed over autograph letters from Toshizo Ido, Governor of Hyogo Prefecture, and the mayor of Kobe, Mr. Kizo Hisamoto.
At the moment, a visit for Yoshio Iwamura, scheduled to be held for the fourth time in Pal due to his noble work, is scheduled for 14 September. It is the opening ceremony of the facility. It is available for at least 5 children.
Yoshio Iwamura met with one of the children who lost her parents during Petobo’s fluidization on Wednesday, May 8th, the third visit. The four and a half-year-old boy Firdaus, who he met in the temporary hut, lives with his grandmother, Carida Muhammad (58). At the time of the earthquake, 11 families were killed in Petobo’s fluidization. “I met my family for the second time, and we told the family about the intentions and support of “Kobe International Sustaining Organization”,“Kayoko Fund,” but Firdaus still can not leave his grandmother. In this temporary hut, Firdaus’s grandmother has a role to cook for other sisters, so she can not go home immediately.” The problem facing Yoshio Iwamura was that relatives, such as grandfathers, usually did not immediately agree to let go of orphans. However, given the realistic life, learning, and future prospects of children, it is only a matter of time before it is judged to be the best choice for children.
He also held talks with the Secretary of State of Central Sulawesi, H Moh Hidayat Lamakarate MSi, by explaining the purpose of “Kobe International Sustaining Organization” and the purpose of the “Kayoko Fund” to Palu city. As an expense for the construction of a facility for the affected children, the organization provided 1 million yen including land, maintenance and labor costs. As a location condition, the facility will be built near the school or mosque. The education of children is smooth, and it is easy to get knowledge about religions such as morals.
“For this work, we found the right partner, Stephan & Yeni Limboki Family, and the Rinboki Family is also responsible for failure to build and maintain the facility. This Family is the most appropriate person to take care of the children of Palu,” he said.
Postal transfer account 14340-96549731 Subscriber’s name Kayoko Fund Minato Bank Akai Branch (175) Normal 3921374 Kayoko Foundation fund Bank of Mitsubishi UFJ Sannomiya Branch (462) Normal 3422530 Kayoko Fund Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation Kobe Sales Department (500) Normal 9821847 Kayoko Foundation Mizuho Bank Kobe Branch (490) Normal 1817303 Kayoko Foundation
9条にノーベル平和賞を, 9条を世界文化遺産World Cultural Heritage に“Please award the Nobel Peace Prize to Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution.” Headquarters of Executive Board of Kobe “Nobel Peace Prize for Article 9” Founder Rev.Yoshio Iwamura
The Japanese Constitution is a pacifist constitution that stipulates renunciation of war in its preamble and notably Article 9. Article 9 in particular has been playing an important role since the end of WWII in preventing the Japanese government from waging war. Article 9 has become the hope of those who aspire for peace in Japan and the world. However, the Japanese Constitution is currently under the threat of being revised.
To spread a peace constitution in all the countries of the world, we request that the Nobel Peace Prize be given to the Japanese citizens who have continued maintaining this pacifist constitution, Article 9 in particular, up until present.
