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The Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs, Mrs Carrie Yau, visited today (July 18) the Matsumotoro Restaurant, a historical restaurant in Japan where Dr Sun Yat-sen frequently met Mr Shokichi Umeya during his sojourn in Japan. While running a photo-studio in Hong Kong, Mr Umeya first met Dr. Sun in Hong Kong in January 1895. Since then, Mr Umeya became a close friend and supporter of Dr. Sun and his revolutionary activities, and had donated generously to Dr. Sun¡¦s revolutionary cause in the coming decades.
On the last day of her duty visit, Mrs Carrie Yau was glad to meet Ms Ayano Kosaka, the great-grandchild of Mr Umeya and the caretaker of her great grandfather¡¦s artifacts in relation to Dr Sun¡¦s life and activities in Japan. She exchanged views with Ms Kosaka on possible collaboration with public museums in Hong Kong in connection with the 100th Anniversary of the 1911 Revolution. The artifacts concerned have never been on loan for exhibition outside Japan. Ms Kosaka will actively consider the collaboration proposal from Hong Kong.
The Permanent Secretary left Hong Kong for Japan on July 15 to visit Japanese cultural agencies and facilities to learn about and exchange views on the promotion of culture and the arts which would shed light on the West Kowloon Cultural District project.
During the visit, Mrs Yau called on a number of museums of modern and contemporary art in Kanazawa and Tokyo. She also visited the National Diet Library and called on the Commissioner for Cultural Affairs where she was briefed on Japan's cultural policy.
Ends/Friday, July 18, 2008
Issued at HKT 22:08
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