Lecture by the Ambassador of the Czech Republic

The 15th Ambassador’s Lecture took place on March 10 (Tue.) at the Japan National Press Club. The speaker was the Ambassador of the Czech Republic H.E. Mr. Jaromir Novotny. The Czech Republic assumed the Presidency of the European Union for six months starting in January this year. Every Czech Republic ambassador in the world bears the heavy responsibility for consultations and fine tuning among the EU member country embassies in the country to which he or she is accredited.

The EU is so large, it is possible for those who are citizens of the EU and its trust territories to travel to and from the Arctic Circle, the South Pacific, and jungles without a passport. Total EU exports are the world’s largest, with EU imports the second largest. The EU is a remarkably varied entity. Among the current 27 member countries, there are “only 23” official languages, but there are a total of 60 regional and minority languages and three alphabets are used. Despite the long collective history of the European nations dating back to the Holy Roman Empire, there remain various difficulties over each nation’s sovereignty and mutual relations. Ratification of the EU Constitution is experiencing a rough passage in several countries. Adoption of the Euro as common currency of all member states is not yet complete.

The capital of the Czech Republic has remained unmoved for over a thousand years, which only three countries can boast of. There are twelve World Heritage Sites in the Czech Republic. Regarding recent relations with Japan, Ambassador Novotny spoke of the nations’ economic links, including beer companies that use hops from the Czech Republic and the Toyota automobile plant in the Czech Republic. The ambassador also referred to Czech renown as a great musical nation, the birthplace of DvoŚák, Smetana and JanáĎek. Musical exchanges with Japan are frequent. As for sports, the winner of every Sumo tournament receives a Czech crystal cup.

The ambassador spoke forthrightly about his own experiences and personal history as well as that of the Czech Republic. He experienced the “Prague Spring” and the Soviet military invasion when he was a university student. He passed through a difficult period thereafter and was not allowed to assume an important office until the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. His talk left a deep impression on the large audience.

English Club took place in the presence of a full house on March 17 (Tue.) at the Marunouchi Café. The topic was “The Art of Public Communication in English: How is It Learned? Actual Training through Simple Impromptu English Debate.” The presenter of this seminar on debating was the popular Speech and Debate Trainer, Mr. Toshiyuki Inoue.

Practice makes Perfect! Veteran trainer Inoue-sensei and Mr. Timothy Wright explained in easy-to-understand terms the essence of English debate before launching into some actual impromptu exercises for the audience. Together with experienced debaters Mieko Kobayashi and Yoko Mori, they presented a four-person model debate on the topic of “Is Debate Necessary for Japanese?” Each speech elicited great interest and broad smiles and laughter from the audience.

English Club will next take place on April 21 (Tue.) when our speaker will be Crossword Puzzle Expert Ms. Michelle Arnot.

A Takuwakai lunch meeting mainly for supporting members took place on March 5 (Thu.) jointly organized for the first time with the Japan-British Society and the British Chamber of Commerce in Japan (BCCJ).

The event was held at the Westin Hotel, with a total of some thirty members of the three organizations sitting together at tables and enjoying friendly conversation with each other. The speaker was British Women’s Marathon ‘hope’ and professional diplomat Ms. Mara Yamauchi. Mara’s record includes sixth place at the Beijing Olympics, and first place and winner at the Osaka International Women’s Marathon in January this year.

Mara joined the British diplomatic service after graduating from university and is currently on leave from the British Embassy in Tokyo. Her “third leg” is her trainer and husband Mr. Shigetoshi Yamauchi. Mara’s words of wisdom to her audience: Have a dream and never give up: Her own dream began at the age of 11, when she saw the marathon at the Los Angeles Olympics Cherish the support of family and friends: She is able to put all her effort into marathon running thanks to the support of her husband Shigetoshi, who is her manager, coach, masseur and chef! Copy others. Be a good thief: Use your brain and common sense: Extremes in training or lifestyle are not acceptable. Even when the race is over, ｌife ｇoes on. The audience was deeply moved by Mara’s humor-filled description of her experiences, interspersed with photos from her Beijing Olympics run.

A lively session of Q&As and anecdotes ensued, concluding a delightful time with the charming, petite Mara, and the very handsome Mr. Yamauchi.

Spring Gala 2009 April 23（Thursday）18:30-20:30
Place：Meiji Kinenkan
Enjoy a splendid performance of Dixieland jazz!